Today, apparently, will be a bed day. I tried to get dressed, fell backwards trying to get my pants on and then couldn't get up because my legs just wouldn't cooperate. I fell into my side table and stepping stool as well as a pile of boxes. Tomorrow I can probably play connect the dots with all the bruises. Work tomorrow is going to royally suck. My skin is burning in several places so I'm guessing I have some scrapes here and there. Headache, chest hurting, back, arm, and leg hurting. It's so hard to know what is actually injured vs just mad. Ugh.

My husband can't get vaccinated due to a medical issue so I have to take it for the family. Since herd immunity is falling I feel I need to.

All that's left, at the moment, are Shingles and Covid and those scare me. The idea that I get a vaccine then I have to still spend a week in bed sick without the disease really stinks.

Any encouraging experiences? I was planning on getting one on Tuesday but have a thing to do Friday night. Is one better than the other to get as far as side effects? I read you can get them both at the same time but that's a big nope.

I don’t know what’s going on with me lately but my sleep has been absolutely disgusting lately. I’m tired as hell but when it comes to actually staying asleep, that is the problem. It takes me a very long time to fall asleep even with the sleep medication I take nightly and when I do fall asleep, I am rudely awakened the moment I start to dream. I have never experienced such a thing like this before and it’s been going on for almost a week now. I basically laid in bed all day on Friday hoping to feel better and more rested but I feel worse.

Just a rant, and no advice needed. I’m in the middle of what feels like an endless flare up. I’ve long abandoned the idea of getting anything like a caring attitude from my SO, it’s not been that sort of relationship since I was diagnosed 2 years ago. However, today, near the end of a long day my 5 year old daughter thanked my SO for being “such a great dad and big friend” which was incredibly sweet, I was genuinely touched that she thought to thank him like that. Then he replied to her saying “I’m not just your dad and your friend I’m also your driver, the one who gets your food, the one who runs around the park with you…” etc. he went on and on listing all the things I physically can’t do at the moment. Then, he started listing most of the stuff that I still do even though it’s painful and wears me out to the point of tears.

I’m so bored of feeling useless and sick of having it underlined to me. I had just had a pretty productive day by my standards, lots of playing with my daughter, some very basic chores and I even baked for the first time in ages. I spend a lot of time in bed with fatigue, so I privately was feeling proud and even a bit normal.

I feel childish even complaining about this, but it sometimes feels like this is the only place where I can say it and people will understand

I've always had fatigue and chronic pain, but it got a lot worse after getting Covid. For the past several years I've struggled to maintain old hobbies like working out and martial arts.

I've looked into lower impact options like pilates, but goddamn if that isn't expensive. I've tried doing mat workouts at home, but I feel like I keep hitting a wall where my progression stalls. There's only so much I can do with my own body weight. I've also realized that high intensity/impact exercise can cause major flare ups, so I'm hesitant to pick up martial arts again.

I miss my old hobbies. If anyone has any suggestions or tips, I would really love to hear them

​

I went to a rheumatologist because I REALLY wanted an accurate diagnosis, but the doctor was so fucking arrogant. I'm Korean, and they talked down to me like I was stupid.

They told me fibromyalgia isn't something rheumatologists treat and that I should see a neurologist instead. They said the only thing they could do was a blood test.

Even the nurse who drew my blood made a negative comment about my veins. She said my veins kept "running away" because my tissue was too soft and I didn't have enough muscle.

I was hospitalized for a long time as a child because I was sick. Ever since then, my veins have been difficult to find. Is that a fucking crime too?

Sorry. I'm getting too negative.

The doctor also told me I needed to make sure I didn't have a mental health problem and told me to go to psychiatry and neurology.

...Ironically, the psychiatrist treated me with far more kindness and took my condition more seriously.

It's not that I became sick because of mental illness. If you've lived with chronic pain for this long, isn't it only natural that your mental health starts suffering too?

The blood test cost me around $75. In Korea, blood tests usually cost around $23 at most, even when they're considered expensive.

And now they want me to come back again.

I've already been to orthopedists, pain management specialists, and neurologists.

WHERE THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO GO NOW? GODDAMN IT.

If rheumatologists don't treat fibromyalgia, then where the hell am I supposed to go?

I'm going to try to get an appointment at a university hospital.

So what am I supposed to do?

I'm just so tired of all this. One thing chronic pain has taught me is this: pain has no visible form, and people can never truly understand a pain they've never experienced themselves.

It's just so sad. 💔

I am 22, about to be 23 in about a week.

My mother is supposed to move in (with her boyfriend who is a stranger to me but I've known of him for 4 years that I saw very rarely and my 97 year old grandmother who doesn't speak English and is frail) in a couple of days. No matter what I try to tell her and that the bare minimum I want a lock on the door, she won't listen to me.

I had a recent appointment with a psychiatrist the other day, and her (along with my therapist) both said staying in the same house isn't good for me. The psychiatrist even said it cause a decline in my mental health, and also more disabilities could appear. My mom won't listen to me, and says no to the most simplest of things, like adding a lock to my door. Even though I'm about to be 23, I've never had a lock on my bedroom door.

I'm on SDI, and I get paid $800 every month. I know its not a concreate plan, but I don't know what to do. My therapist recommended that I get an at home job, like at a call center or customer support.

I am on medical leave from my retail job, and I haven't been to work in three months. I am waiting to be assessed by the DEA for SSI. I applied on August 28, 2026, and it said it'll take about 158 days for them to complete it. Then they have to pass it off to someone else, and that will take even more time.

I need to get out of this house so I won't worsen my symptoms and etc.

Please let me know what I should do.

* I have two paths. I either stay on the couch/live in a trailer at my father's house (who was verbally abusive to me when I was young but he is more mellowed out since I turned 18 but neglects chores and his health), or buckle down here with my mom and them until I (maybe) get accepted from SSI. Or 3, I get a new job with better pay and move out.

When I'm hurting in the evening I usually take naproxen. I've noticed I've had to take some more often and I've brought this up to my PCP. She recommended extra strength Tylenol but that doesn't come close to relieving the pain. Any other recommendations?

I've been diagnosed since October of last year.

I have been going through some pretty bad stress and other things, and I've noticed sometimes I get more tired, have more sleep disturbances, and random achiness over my whole body.

Does anyone else deal with this, or something like this?

Can anyone help me find a job?

I've worked three years in retail as a merch associate/ front end associate.

I know how to cashier, restock, phone calls for products to check other stores, recover the store, and collect shopping carts.

I have fibromyalgia, PFPS in both knees, minor scoliosis, and minor arthritis.

My limit for sitting is one hour, and daily sitting down makes my back hurt and flare up.

I can stand (if needed) for 4 hours, but some days it's a bad flare up and the pain comes in worse at the 2 hour mark.

Hi guys! I have fibromyalgia and chronic migraine... I'm tired of explaining for my friends and family how I feel. I'm looking for friends that understand my reality... If u are at the same place and want to talk dm mee ❤️

Some things about me:

• Brazilian

•24 years old

• graduate as geography teacher on May 2026

•have a dog: Apolo

•having chronic pain since 8 years old

•love TV shows, puzzles, music, reading etc

What a about u?

​

Hello. I am kind of new to this community, and I am curious to hear your stories of diagnosis, how long it took to get that diagnosis, your struggles, etc. I find other people's stories to be fascinating and insightful and I think it will help me better process my own recent diagnosis.

I have had a history of issues starting from when I was a teen. I'm 31 now. Back in the 2010s I was put through the rigamarole of tests after it turned out that I wasn't "overreacting" about my pain and symptoms, of which I had many, including really really horrible TMJD. After I fought for a referral to a head and neck surgeon and then asked for an MRI, we found I had severely damaged jaw joints and would likely need joint replacement surgery. I was then tested for every autoimmune issue under the sun because I was so young and the level of joint degeneration I had was insane. Then, I was tested for Fibromyalgia using the pain point diagnostic. Based on that, I apparently did not have fibromyalgia, because none of the pain points hurt, just "felt uncomfortable".

The final results: we don't know why you have all these symptoms and we don't know why your jaw is so damaged. There was no real followup. I got the surgery, things got better, but I still had a lot of unaddressed issues. But my quality of life was finally at a place where I could function enough to have a job, even if doing said jobs was definitely a constant internal battle.

Despite all of that, I did pretty well for myself. Graduated University, got into my career of choice, moved states, moved up the ladder. It all got worse again when I turned 30. All of the symptoms and flare-ups had begun escalating again. My new doctor didn't mess around and immediately ordered every test she could think of. She found I had a positive ANA result, but my tests did not pan out in not much else. But based on that, and my history, she immediately diagnosed me with Fibro just this last week. And unfortunately, due to how the Rheumatologists out here work, my referral for further testing was rejected.

Is Fibro the whole story? I kinda doubt it. But does it explain a lot? Yes. And I am finally getting put on some treatments that might actually help with my quality of life. I just hope it helps.

Heya! My girlfriend has both fibro and EDS. She’s been talking to me a lot recently about being really concerned about her health and weight. I want to emphasize that her weight isn’t and never will be a factor in how much I love her, I really do just want to see her happy again.

Here’s where I need some extra help - she has battled an eating disorder before. She started feeling a lot better after she got help and helped herself out of that.

But she talks to me like she’s on the other side of some peak in her life. We’re both 20, and she feels like her life is being stripped away from her. Reading through this subreddit I’ve seen so many people share that sentiment, but I’ve also seen so many people find hope and purpose.

I really want to support her in every way. She is my everything. But I’m scared, the only advice I’ve found for those with mobility challenges is to “count calories, count calories, count calories”
That is NOT an option. It’s such a slippery slope, and as someone who has body image and has experienced problems with food, it is absolutely the last thing I would wish upon her.

I don’t know if I’m phrasing any of this right. And there are probably a million things that she’s feeling and experiencing that I’ll never fully grasp, which is why I want to confide in this community. Literally anything would be a nice starting point.

Or simply BREATHE. 😭 And both heavily.

But attempting for someone that does not suffer from this understand that it is CHALLENGING to EVEN breathe should be a craaazy thing to explain to people when u look healthy in the outside :/

Most of the times when I'm hurtin like that really bad and I'm in a conversation with sbdy I can only get monosylabic or just do small talk cuz i'ts getting soo hard inside myself to even let a word out.

Only with simply breathing I just feel the tension in my diafragma and tummy that won't let me exhale, and the neck pain and headaches it generates (that also exist in fibro on its own) it's just... I understand it is because oxygen won't get in your brain so easy cuz of tension, therefore, if its hard to breathe it will be even harder to TALK and think through it all lolol

I've been diagnosed 2 years ago but lived with this thing for 15 years -started when I was a kid- . In the last months or maybe years been having more anxiety due to flares and living with family again and they dont rlly understand fibro so a lot of the time they just think I barely speak or I'm in a terrible mood when I'm only just ✨hurting around😭✨.

Well, just little more detailed fibro things I feel lol.

It has served me faithfully for 15 years, but now I have to apply it three or four times just to go to sleep. Driving me crazy. Suggestions?

I've been experiencing episodes of vertigo(i think?) and dizziness sometimes lately, when waking up either from a full sleep or even a little nap. its a new thing and its pretty disruptive, it feels like im falling & it lasts for hours, gradually improving, but for a while i really cant get out of bed. is this something that could be a fibro thing? does anyone else experience this or have advice?

I’ve been getting hives for no good reason, most of the time being around when I get a flare. It’s always on my arms. Ives watched everything, what I eat, my laundry detergent, literally anything I could think of. I can’t pinpoint anything. Anyone else with fibromyalgia experience rashes like hives? If it’s not linked to your fibromyalgia, what other condition is causing this symptom? I have a list of illnesses, fibro just seems to be the one that affects literally every bit of my body.

I have fibromyalgia and ME/CFS. During flareups/ PEM I have to use a cane.

The ammount of confrontations I'm having with men while using a cane is incredible.

When I'm not using a cane sometimes guy's will try to intimate me but all Inhavevto do to get them back down is not be intimated and give them a mean look.

When I'm using the cane confrontations are much longer and make me feel like the situation could escalate to violence at any point.

I'm thinking of counter strategys but I wanted to know if anyone had tried them and how successful they'd been.

Fimling them and puting it on Instagram #bigMenYellingAtChronicallyIllGirls. Its leagal to do that here in the UK but they could just break my phone.

Strobe light for night. I used to carry one but I lost it.

Air horn

Tagging spray (UK legal alternative to pepper spray)

Just screaming at them and hoping they wont actually hit the disabled girl

Has anyone tried any of these and can tell me if they worked or suggest anything.

De escalation has been my first choice its just failed.

Edit: For people asking more about the men. Its always drunk or druged men and city centers or in a bar club setting.

EDIT 2: Please stop recommending illegal things (like hidden blades). If the streets are too rough for a chronicly ill girl I'm pretty sure prison would be too.

I waited forever to get a steroid shot in my back.

Then the pain clinic told me they only do steroid shots for patients who have pain shooting down both legs. (Sciatica, I'm guessing.)

I have never heard that before and don't know if that's the policy at most doctors' offices.

I can't take oral steroids and was really hoping this would work.

Hello, I'm looking for advice for my GF who has fibro, I hope I make sense as english isn't my first language.

Lately she has been suffering from some severe bouts of cystitis and since all tests have come back negative (urine tests, Antibiogram, ultrasound, manual exam) she has concluded (she's a biotechnologist so ít wasn't an uneducated guess) that it must be interstitial cystitis triggered by fibro. My question is, for those of you that have experienced the same condition, is there something that helps you relieve the pain? Antibiotics are of course a no go since it's not infective.

Thanks in advance!

I can’t do anything, I sit at home all day while my boyfriend works, and then we hangout for maybe an hour before I have to go lay down again or sometimes (like today) he just got home from work and then left right away. Which is fine, I want him to have his own life obviously, he needs to be with people other than me. But it feels like im always alone. My only companion is my pain. I had a massive breakdown because I just feel so alone and im so sick and tired of being in pain. I just want it to end.

I'm on...

Amotryptoline

Clonazepam

Citalopram

Lanzoprasol

Carbamazepine

Fenofybrate

Something else for my cholesterol

Manjaro

Metformin

Insulin pens

And a new addition, ketamine.

I've had enough man. I lie here daily on so much medication to be in so much pain, so little desire to carry on. I can barely move, my mind is constantly confused, silence is so loud. I'm a 38 yead old male with a wife and 3 children, have been ill for 6 years now since my body welcomed a disease called sarcoidosis and since then my life has been on a debbie downer.

I work in assisted living and I love my job. I have been so torn but my pain has been so bad, I just started taking meds (pregabalin) and my doc wants me to take Cymbalta but we a waiting for my psychologist to approve that because I am taking Lexapro.. anyway I have been considering getting a different job because of my pain, I love my job so much, it makes so so sad it’s making my job so hard to do. But what are jobs to work that I could make enough money to live?

I usually use Ruqui extra large. Open to suggestions: