This is the longest flare I've ever endured - over 2 months. I have awakened with some kind of symptom every... single... day! Today is severe pain in my feet, legs, back, bladder - woke at 4:00 am; even with Ambien, Ativan and Gabapentin.
I'm watching my diet, drinking more water, resting, taking vitamins... Simply doing everything that has helped in the past. The only thing I haven't done this time is voice my misery - until now...
I try so hard not to whine, complain, cry - and just tough it out... Why is this flare lasting sooooo.... long? What else can I do?
I am sorry you are in such pain for so long. Have you tried an Epsom salt bath? Very hot water and soak. I do hope you find some relief...I also have a tens unit and on bad days I find myself putting those sticky things everywhere... I just sit in the recliner and turn it on and then move the sickies to a new place. Soft relaxing music... going to the gym and getting in the warm water pools and then going into their sauna provides me with great relief. I like the sauna best... it is good for relieving stress.
Some times it helps to cry and whine instead of trying to tough it out. Have you seen your doctor to see if you need to change some meds? This year seems to be especially hard on all of us. I hope you feel better soon.
I am new here and I am confused about "flares". I'm hurting all the time, sometimes more and sometimes less, though there is not one day I have no pain. This has been going on non stop since summer of last year. Can flares last this long? This is just all a mystery to me.
Kim, it is ok to whine, complain and cry. Somehow you have to unburden yourself. I know about toughening it out, I've done it most of my life. I truly believe that is why I am an emotional wreck now, things have eaten into me for too long. My best advice to you is let it out, it relieves stress as well. A good way is to scream into your pillow, I do it when I am alone. It may sound stupid but it helps ease my frustrations.
I have been fighting my pain my entire life. Toughing it out, forcing myself to go on. Just recently, I looked back on all those years of suffering and defiantly pushing myself, and I thought, “This really isn’t working for me.” It’s quite humbling to look at my (STUBBORN!!!) self and see that I wasted so much time FIGHTING the pain, disassociating from my body just to keep doing what I thought I had to do to survive-- instead of LISTENING to the pain, and understanding what was trying to be communicated.
I’m willing to bet that everyone here is a fighter, a strong spirit. I know that I feel like I’ve had to fight through every day. When I really look at it-- I see that I’m fighting myself(completely counterproductive!)
The first step towards healing is loving ourselves. Listening to what the pain is trying to tell us instead of ignoring it. It’s these “gotta push through this” attitudes that contribute to and ultimately intensify fibro.
Baby yourself. Do for you what you would do for any loved one in pain. Be kind and gentle with yourself, this too shall pass. The more you fight it, the worse it gets. Sending hugs, love, and blessings your way!
You are not alone! Although this whole year I have had much more pain much more frequently, I have just about a week or a little more come out of a real doozy myself, about the same amount of time and persistent insomnia, too, and I am also on about 3 meds for it. I was beginning to think this was another even lower "new normal" and I don't think I could handle that. Not sure why, and in fact I'm never am sure why these big ones come or go, so I can't help you with that. It seems to have a mind of it's own that way. I think the heat triggers me with fibro, and I know for a fact it does with migraines and fatigue and summers are never my best times. The past few years my internal clock gets turned upside down in th summers. I have CFS too and I have had a month at a time before where I couldn't get out of bed. This was different and awful pain.
I had prepaid last weekend in the mountains at least 3 months ago, and I was thinking as it approached I would have to cancel. I haven't had any kind of a vacation for years. I just wanted to get out of the house for a couple days!! Well, fortunately in the last week before I started feeling ever so slightly better here and there. So I managed to pack (and forget shirts..no biggie if you're at a topless camp...LOL). I did ok, and not only that, I took 2 walks into the forest, one was more like a hike, and aside from a bout of localized pain that lasted only about 2 hours after the 1st one, I was fine. I'm just a normal kind of sore bc I don't walk, but I'm not incapacitated, as I could be and have been after such exertion.
Hang in there. IMO, you will snap out of it at some point, hopefully SOON.