#Fibromyalgia Awareness Day - Some Thoughts

Today is Fibromyalgia Awareness Day. Since I can't find any sort of online activities to participate in, I've decided to just do a blog post about it.

I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia in 2011. Like most people, I had spent several years going to appointments, being told all my tests were normal, being looked at like a hypochondriac and feeling increasingly frustrated that nobody could see what was happening to me.

Fibromayalgia is tricky; the pain moves around, the symptoms flare up and calm down (sometimes for no apparent reason), the brain fog, the trouble sleeping and restless sleep. All of that, plus the invisible nature and continued lack of widespread recognition/understanding of it among medical professionals, tends to mess with your head a bit. Is it any wonder those of us with fibromyalgia are more likely to have depression and anxiety?

I'm not taking any medication to treat my fibromyalgia, which isn't to say that I'm not treating it at all. Instead I control my symptoms through adjustments from the DO I see every month and lifestyle changes. Doing things like pacing myself, being careful about how I move my body and keeping up with regular gentle exercises all help to reduce the worst of the fibro beast.

I will never be able to just go and do as I please without paying a sizable physical price. For me, that is what it boils down to.

But I can go and do some things - sometimes. I wish people understood that when I go out in the world it doesn't mean I'm all better. Sometimes I just need to pull myself together, smile and enjoy myself. Managing the many symptoms of my fibromyalgia and chronic migraines is a very intense job. One I can never really leave but, if I want to hang onto my sanity, I must pull my chair back from time to time and focus on having some fun.