While the hallmark symptom or sign of fibromyalgia is chronic widespread body pain, that is not the only symptom of fibromyalgia. Nor does simply saying widespread body pain really express what that means. The same is true with the other standard symptom of fibromyalgia - chronic fatigue. The … [Read more...]
Getting Past the Sadness and Isolation of Chronic Pain
Getting Past the Sadness and Isolation of Chronic Pain guest post by Sarah Anne Shockley All of us living with chronic pain are aware of how difficult it is on a physical level. Very aware, most of the time. But what we sometimes don’t acknowledge is the immense toll living … [Read more...]
The Many Shades of Hidden Illness
I have multiple hidden illnesses as do most of us. It seems much like Lays potato chips you can't have just one. My hidden illnesses include Fibromyalgia, TMJ, migraine, endometriosis, and thyroid disorder and IBS and probably one or two more that aren't coming to me at the moment. Chances are you … [Read more...]
The Relationship between Stress, Depression & Fibromyalgia
The Relationship Between Stress, Depression & Fibromyalgia Stress plays a major role in both fibromyalgia and depression. While there are many similarities in fibromyalgia and depression, including brain areas that are activated and how both respond to stress, fibromyalgia is more than just … [Read more...]
Why I’m Quitting Amitriptyline for Fibromyalgia
Why I’m Quitting Amitriptyline for Fibromyalgia guest post by Boni Wagner-Stafford I woke up this morning much sooner than I’d really like. Just ninety minutes after the last time I got up to pee and six hours after getting into bed. I’m best on between eight and nine hours’ sleep each … [Read more...]
7 things you need to let go of to feel better
7 Things You Need to Let Go Of, To Feel Better Sometimes we hold on so tightly to things that we don't need. I think that when we live with chronic illness we hold on even tighter. Illness strips so much away from us that we can feel it necessary to hold onto anything that's left, … [Read more...]
The effect of health goals on health outcomes (study)
There are two types of people - internals and externals. Internals take the blame for everything because they feel that they are in control of the world around them, of how they react, how they behave, and even what happens to them. Externals look to the world around them for answers, when things … [Read more...]
Movie Review: Cake starring Jennifer Aniston
Cake: A story of chronic pain, depression, & grief When the movie Cake first came out in 2014 the chronic pain community was buzzing about the story and Jennifer Aniston’s portrayal of a woman living with chronic pain. However, the reviews seemed a bit mixed. Some I read loved it and others … [Read more...]
The Stigma of Mental Illness – #StoptheStigma
The Stigma of Mental Illness Last fall (2014) I took Experimental Psychology and one of the projects we worked on was related to mental illness stigma. I've wanted to share a part of the paper I wrote for that and thought that since May is Mental Illness Awareness Month now would be ideal. Before … [Read more...]
Fighting the Twins: Fibromyalgia and Depression
Depression is probably the most evil thing to come with chronic pain, but for many of us depression is something we were fighting long before the chronic pain took hold. I mostly dealt with anxiety prior to chronic illness. Depression showed up occasionally, but it wasn't the type of thing that … [Read more...]
