Do you all suffer with the fibro fog. mine wasnt too bad until recently. Today I have given out my phone number completely wrong, and gone to the doctors 2 hrs early even though i have it on my calandar. I couldnt even remember the name of my niece this afternoon. hubby just gives me that "look" which doesnt help matters.
How do you all cope with this problem?
I boy do I ever have it. I make list and forget where I put them, forgotten my meds and paid for it the next day, hubby tells me things and I'll say no you didn't so he's thinking I'm ignoring him and it just goes on and on. In the begining I was really upset and even cried a few times but now I just laugh at myself and sometimes say wow I'm more like Mom every day. You will find ways to help you but make sure if you make a list keep it by your purse. :)
Hi, I am new to fibro and this group, what’s fibro fog?
What is Fibrofog?
Fibrofog is a term given to the variety of cognitive problems that many fibromyalgia sufferers face during their illness. Fibrofog encompasses memory loss, difficulties using language, and difficulties with learning. These symptoms tend to descend in a haze or "fog," around the sufferer. Fibrofogs can occur at any time and can vary in intensity when they do occur. Fibrofogs tend to be at their most severe during flare ups in pain.
Fibrofog affects about both women and men who have fibromyalgia pain, though it tends to hit women more often. Women between the ages of 30 and 50 are most likely to be affected by fibrofog. Episodes of fibrofog typically last only a few days, though sometimes severe fibrofog can last for weeks or even months.
Symptoms of Fibrofog
Fibrofog is one of the most common yet unrecognized symptoms of fibromyalgia. If you have fibromyalgia signs and symptoms it is important to be aware of fibrofog so that you can seek appropriate treatment and manage your illness more effectively. Some symptoms of fibrofog include:
Causes of Fibrofog
The causes of memory loss and fibrofog are as yet undetermined; however, a number of factors could be at the root of these cognitive impairments. It is apparent that there is no real problem with the mental capacities of people suffering from fibrofog. Instead, there must be underlying problems that cause the brain to be unable to complete memory functions.
Hope this helps...
I have been suffering from this symptom for as long as I can remember. Totally sucks in high school during testing and exams! It does help to put sticky notes everywhere and surround yourself with people who genuinely understand what your saying even if you can’t fully communicate the message!
What is Fibrofog?
Fibrofog is a term given to the variety of cognitive problems that many fibromyalgia sufferers face during their illness. Fibrofog encompasses memory loss, difficulties using language, and difficulties with learning. These symptoms tend to descend in a haze or "fog," around the sufferer. Fibrofogs can occur at any time and can vary in intensity when they do occur. Fibrofogs tend to be at their most severe during flare ups in pain.Fibrofog affects about both women and men who have fibromyalgia pain, though it tends to hit women more often. Women between the ages of 30 and 50 are most likely to be affected by fibrofog. Episodes of fibrofog typically last only a few days, though sometimes severe fibrofog can last for weeks or even months.
Symptoms of Fibrofog
Fibrofog is one of the most common yet unrecognized symptoms of fibromyalgia. If you have fibromyalgia signs and symptoms it is important to be aware of fibrofog so that you can seek appropriate treatment and manage your illness more effectively. Some symptoms of fibrofog include:
- short term memory loss
- difficulty remembering where you put things
- difficulty remembering plans
- difficulty with language, including trouble holding conversations, understanding conversations, and expressing thoughts
- difficulty finding the "right" word to use in conversation
- trouble remembering simple numbers
- transposing letters and numbers
- trouble concentrating and focusing
- trouble retaining new information
Causes of Fibrofog
The causes of memory loss and fibrofog are as yet undetermined; however, a number of factors could be at the root of these cognitive impairments. It is apparent that there is no real problem with the mental capacities of people suffering from fibrofog. Instead, there must be underlying problems that cause the brain to be unable to complete memory functions.Hope this helps...
thanks for the tips and for the more detailed info mrspigpen. I do have problems sometimes holding conversations with people, my words get completely muddles up and then I forget what I want to say. In the end I just keep quiet. It gets so frustrating when you cant think of a word, and embarassing. Think I am going to have to sit my friends down and explain to them whats going on or they are going to wonder why i am going from a very talkative person to a very quiet one.
My goodness what next, the tremours have started, nearly covered a cafe last night with my drink, then kicked a friend under the table when my leg suddenly decided to have a life of its own!!!!! Might just stay at home, could be safer
Thanks a lot for the information, I have had majority of these symptoms for about 2-3 years now and I was thinking I might be a.d.h.d. I really didn’t know what to think back then. And its embarrassing when I have to tell someone to help remember stuff or find the words I’m trying to say. And to top it off, people say you are so young for all of this and I like tell me about it but diseases don’t have no age. Oh and my daughter said she will be embarrass if I have to used a walking cane when I go to her school or games, so I cried today and felt like crap. Hope tomorrow will be a better day.
today i couldnt remember anything it seemed like. i had to write things down and kept losing my notes so my mom would find them was forgetting what things were called and everything :( not fun at all
"Fibro Fog" has been a very big problem for me for several years, especially since I work as an intensive care nurse and need to be sharp when I'm at work. I try to save up my concentration "energy" for work. I use a number of methods to help myself. First of all is labeling everything- and I do mean everything. There are post-it notes on my kitchen cabinets to remind me of how I like the cabinets organized, since I kept deciding where I wanted things stored and then forgot that I had even tried to organize my kitchen. I use tiered hangers in my closet, and the top ones are labeled so I know which clothes are grouped together. My dresser drawers are labeled so I put the clothes away the same way every time I do laundry. I have signs on my bathroom mirror to remind me of the routines I have set up for myself, and the routines themselves are printed out and kept in a binder on my desk. Most of the time I don't have to check my lists, but when the fog is thick, I know the list is there so I can keep my life in order. I keep one calendar on the wall by my desk that I call my "Master Brain". If it's not on the Brain, it doesn't happen, so I write anything important there.
Over the years I have educated my friends and family about what Fibro Fog is. When I'm having especially bad days, I have gotten into the habit of letting people know by saying " the Fog is thick today". That way they get warning that I might be a bit wonky and might call on them to help me out. That's my best suggestion for dealing with Fibro Fog and negative reactions to it like your hubby and his "look" - tell him you are relying on him to be your ally and partner in moving through the Fog.
I deal with this on a daily basis. which sucks because with my job forgetting things could mean disaster for the business. I have post-it notes all around my desk, a dry erase board with a list of things to do, and a notepad that I keep a running list of things that i have completed and what date they were completed. Those things are just to get me through the work day. At home it is a matter of organizing my schedule and putting things where i will see them or writing a note on my hand. lol....my husband gets frustrated because i cant remember things he tells me at all. I find myself slipping up in conversations and not being able to find the words i want to say or even forgetting what we were talking about in mid sentence. I hate fibro fog!
I am new to fibro, just some months in, and I'm starting to experience that fog everyone's talking about. I forget appointment times, I forget what day of the week it is, I blank out more often than usual. It's very weird to me; I'm usually more on point with things in my daily life, but now I'm "foggy", disoriented much of the time.
I forget what happened a few hours prior, what my husband said the night before & worryingly the kids getting up in the night for things. I try and keep my brain active with still working & reading every night, but at the moment it's honestly not made a difference. My Husband still gets frustrated, despite showing him the spoon theory and other articles. It must be a nightmare to live with when someone keeps saying "I don't know, I can't remember" - if anyone knows any good vitamins/minerals or other things good for this, please let me know! Thanks :-)
I’ve learned to laugh at myself because it’s the only way I can cope!
Funny thing today - I'd apparently video'd my husband snoring and emailed the Video to him. I got a strange email from him today, denying it was him (as most men do) - but I can NOT remember doing this - so very strange LOL! Fibro, gotta laugh :-)
I hate it most when I 'freeze' mentally and physically. I have difficulty coordinating my body as well when my brain stops working...
FibroChou, I freeze as well and have coordination issues. I have locked myself out of car and home twice this month. I confuse easily on what day of the week it is and that is so unlike the Type A person I used to be
Locking yourself out sounds really frustrating! Luckily, I haven't done that since I carry extra keys in my purse. I have difficulty keeping track on dates, too so I keep my calender book close and write out everything I need to do.
I used to be very active, too and was able to remember all the activities without writing them down. Memorizing in school was not hard, either. Now I am lucky if I remember how to spell my husband's last name (or his cell number)! I've had moments when I couldn't spell my own name!! Remembering passwords is a nightmare....
Just thought of a horrible example…
I started using my maiden name one day and I have been married almost 10 yrs! Ever since that day I catch myself doing it. It is really weird!!!
That IS strange. Are you thinking about getting divorced? or perhaps you are wanting to go back to when you were not sick? or you are losing some part of your memory?
I kept my last name when I got married(we have separate last names), so I never practiced writing my husband's name! My husband's name is Swiss, so a lot of people (w/o FM) misspell it!
I never knew this happened until doing research other night. My wife has been telling me for awhile that I have Alzheimer's like symptoms.On a positive note, she doesn't think I'm ignoring what she tells me anymore. LOL