A 2013 study followed 18 people with Fibromyalgia for 6 months. Guess what. 17 of them reported falling down. On average they fell twice during the six months, and nearly fell three times. Are you surprised? I’m not. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’d followed 18 healthy people for six months and found that 17 of them fell down at least once. Then again, maybe I think that people fall more because I’m used to tripping up the stairs.
The conclusion of this study really cracked me up. (paraphrased) “Nurses caring for Fibromyalgia patients should assess for fall risk.”
So, how often do you fall down? Have you found any tricks or tips to help keep you upright?
[Tweet “Do you fall more since you developed Fibromyalgia?”]
Source:
Fall experiences of persons with fibromyalgia over 6 months.
Rutledge DN, Martinez A, Traska TK, Rose DJ.
J Adv Nurs. 2013 Feb;69(2):435-48. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2648.2012.06026.x. Epub 2012 May 2.
Alishia says
I have recently been diagnosed with fibro. I fall at times because of balance… Wondering if anyone else falls from flare ups, and getting weak?
Julie says
Falling is fairly common with Fibro, the weakness, the pain all contribute. Many also have balance issues although it’s unclear if that’s Fibro directly or related to co-existing conditions (or even meds).
Alison Exelby says
At the start of this year I fell down the second to last step at work and fractured my foot. I have found im clumsy and of balance since being diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I had a day of work and then was back at work with my moon boot, I found the fibro pain worse that the fractured foot pain. I always seem to be tripping over my own feet.
Julie says
I think that’s true generally that those of us who live with chronic pain find it worse than the acute pain. Hard for someone else to imagine that we hurt worse than a broken bone.
Donna Grant says
I don’t fall down but I am certainly more unbalanced and clumsy. I am always bumping into things and can’t remember the last time my legs didn’t have at least one (if not multiple) bruises. I never used to be like this. Just this afternoon I somehow managed to cut my side on a door handle!?
Julie says
Cut? Be careful girl! But, I totally know what you mean. How did that get there?
Valda Garner says
Hi Julie! I found that I feel down less and stumbled less after starting cpap for sleep apnea because I was sleeping better. Everyone with fibromyalgia should be checked for sleep apnea. 85% of people with fibromyalgia have sleep apnea. Take care!!
Julie says
That’s an excellent point, and one that I’ve suggested in the past should be a part of evaluating all Fibro patients (yet too often is ignored).
That said, I did a sleep study and found out nothing valuable from it.
Tiffany says
I’ve had a few falls, but I usually catch myself or always remember to go slowly and either place a hand on the wall or the railing or lean up against the wall often if I’m feeling fatigued. Before going up stairs, I tend to stop to take a breath and orient myself first. My Fibro symptoms started when I was a child, so it’s hard to say if these things got worse with it or not. But it certainly has seemed to get worse as I age, I’m 25 now.
I personally think this might be due to the fact that many Fibro patients experience balance problems and dizziness especially when standing up quickly. Just one of those many strange symptoms that can go along with it. I often feel unbalanced like I’m going to fall, but manage not to. The intense and chronic fatigue we can experience also doesn’t help much. I also discovered that some Fibro patients have problems with direction and remembering where they are. We can get very disorientated (one thing I struggle with a lot.) Hence why I stop to orient myself before going up any stairs.
This one seems to trigger my anxiety a lot (I also have Anxiety Disorder) and makes it hard for me to drive. I am horrible even with the most simple of directions. And if I stopped to orient myself as often as I needed to in a car… I’d make many a driver behind me pretty upset. And my sensitivity to loud noises (Sensory overload, another symptom of serious cases of Fibro) makes me dread the sound of that beeping horn. It only increases the anxiety so bad, like a knife in the chest. The anxiety I do have gets so bad I’ve literally blanked out and have done things like drive on the wrong side of the road and pass through stop lights. Hard to say if it’s from the Anxiety or some trigger of a serious Fibro Fog or maybe both. Doesn’t help that when I get in the driver’s seat of a car I hold the steering wheel like a vice grip and become rigid as a rock. So I wont drive anymore… at least not unless I can one day find a cure for these issues.
I do experience a lot of balance problems and dizziness, so I do stumble a lot and can be clumsy. But like I said, I usually manage to catch myself or sit back down quickly. I’ve learned not to push myself (okay sometimes I can’t seem to help it… then pay for it afterwards) but I try to pace myself and not rush, even though it seems like the world is racing by at lightning speed. We can’t compete with the world (something I often need to remind myself) we just need to find our own pace.
Julie says
I can’t help but wonder if more of us have another issue causing the balance / dizziness issues than just Fibro. I have that issue too when I stand up, and I’m more likely to fall UP stairs than I am down them. I’m sorry your anxiety is so terrible. Anxiety is a terrible thing. I’ve had some bad times with it in life, but I can’t say it’s been as bad as you described.