Infection:

The Lyme disease is a kind of infection, which is caused by the bacterium borrelia burgdorferia, and this disease affects many parts of the body and the signs and symptoms are varied. In the Lyme disease the patient experiences widespread pain and he also develops the tender points on his/her body that are very sensitive to touch and the mildest of pressure. The symptoms og lyme disease are very much the same in the FMS disorder in which the occurrence of the tender points is the most common complaint of the patient. The diagnostic criteria for the FMS disease have not yet been fully defined except for the ACR 1990, which distinguishes certain common symptoms that may be found in the FMS patient. The persistent pain in the body accompanied by fatigue and sleep disturbances are the most distinguishing symptoms of the FMS condition.

The percentage of misdiagnosis for lyme disease is 15 to 50 percent. The Lyme disease can be cured satisfactorily and the patient needs to have different diagnostic tests for the right diagnosis of the condition otherwise the patient will have to use the treatment which is for the other disease. The distinguishing symptoms of the Lyme disorder are clear to understand like the patient has chills and fever and slight headache. Some of these symptoms are not found in the FMS disorder.

Of course, these patients who are writhing in pain most likely get a full eight hours of sleep at night, try to take a lot of naps and rests throughout their day, and may not even have a demanding, challenging or even taxing job. This makes it hard to cope with fibromyalgia during the best of circumstances, but for someone living along, it is a recipe for disaster. The throbbing pain of fibromyalgia is of course identified as the most unbearable factor of this ailment since it prevents the person suffering with the disease from actually participating in daily activities most everyone else takes for granted.

Caring for a garden, painting the inside of a house, or even just making a bed becomes a study in pain management. The pain may be so severe that sufferers are forced to remain indoors, perhaps even remain in bed, and judiciously plan their every move to minimize the effects of the pain. A tiredness that is hard to understand by anyone who does not experience it first hand complements the debilitation fibromyalgia causes in the lives of its sufferers. Even patients who have found useful painkillers may not be able to make it past the feelings of fatigue. This is not the kind of tiredness that can be overcome with a nap or even a full eight hours of sleep.

Instead, it is the kind of tiredness that makes even the most normal tasks – such as placing a cup and saucer next to the sink – a task so immense that it is carefully weighed by the patient and usually not executed. The result of this fatigue is a sufferer whose basic household is slowly falling into disarray, and who have a home or garden that are going into disrepair. Sufferers living alone find that this leads to an inevitable form of depression. Fibromyalgia patients become slowly realize that they cannot depend on being able to engage in enjoyable activities for a sense of self worth. Instead, they must rely on the kindness of hired help or friends to do even the most menial tasks.

Before long, a patient with fibromyalgia who lives alone may find that she separates herself from other people, lives on her couch with pain as a constant companion, and has the only hope that tomorrow will not be quite as painful and fatiguing as today. There is little to hope for, and depression continues to grow. Intervention by third parties or professionals is crucial to increase the patient’s quality of life and also to ensure that she will take sufficient care of herself.

Patterns:

Fibromyalgia has been linked to disturbed sleep patterns and also insomnia. It won’t be an exaggeration if it is said the Fibromyalgia and sleep disorders go hand in hand. It has been estimated that that eighty percent of the sufferers experience some kind of disturbed sleep pattern with Fibromyalgia. The disorder of fibromyalgia makes the patient exhausted and fatigued. The disturbed sleep pattern in fibromyalgia further aggravates the symptoms in the patient. The human sleeping behavior follows a distinct pattern and there are stages in the sleep. In the fourth stage of sleep there is the deep sleep when the nervous system works to set the neurochemicals. But in the sufferers of fibromyalgia this stage is disturbed by pain and there is because of this a certain P substance is released in the spinal cord which works to make the pain grow in the body. Thus the patients of the fibromyalgia disorder do not receive enough deep sleep and their body remains under fatigue and stress.

When the patient does not get adequate sleep his symptoms grow and the feeling of fatigue is thus the general complaint of fibromyalgia patients. When the nervous system cannot set the muscles there starts muscle pain and even muscle ache. The normal sleep leaves the individual feeling refreshed but a FMS patient constantly feels tired and let down. Thus the lack of sufficient sleep makes the symptoms worse.

The autonomic nervous system:

The autonomic nervous system is the most important system in the human body because it includes the brain and the spinal cord. These two (brain and spinal cord) are called the central nervous system (CNS). The CNS works automatically, you do not have to make your brain function or your spine to do what it needs to do for your survival. The fact that you do not consciously instruct your body to breath or your heart to beat because your CNS controls those things makes it an automatic function of the body which is why it is called your “autonomic nervous system”.

The things that this system controls (you bodily functions) are those needed for your survival. You can then see that if there is a dysfunction (something is not working as it should be) that this occurrence would bring serious consequences to the body.

Our autonomic nervous system works together with neurotransmitters and the hormones in our body in order to have your body working in the manner it was designed to work. The autonomic nervous system controls different organs and numerous body systems including regulating the temperature of the body, maintaining the function of the bladder and bowel, and maintaining the heart rate in which blood is pumped to all vital organs of the body keeping you and me alive.

The autonomic nervous system has two parts or branches. These two branches communicate with the body by sending out messages in the way of chemicals called, “neurotransmitters.

The two branches are called the “Sympathetic System”, and the “Parasympathetic System”.

Neurotransmitters those chemical substances that are used by the Autonomic system play a significant role in fibromyalgia. The neurotransmitters are made up of substance P, endorphins, serotonin, and the hormones cortisol, the growth hormone, and norepinephrine.

The Immune System:

An over-active immune system is one theory of what causes fibromyalgia. Your body’s immune system is the defensive strategy taken to protect the body against foreign cells, viruses and attacking bacteria.

The immune system is a very complex body system. There are many different types of cells and proteins that make up the immune system. The immune system is made up of “the complement system”, phagocytes, and also lymphocytes (T cells and B cells). Every cell and protein in the immune system works together doing their own roles in order to protect the body. The immune system holds many secrets to a well functioning body or an ill body.

Living with Disabilities

Many people live with disabilities on a daily basis. Usually, it just takes a few tweeks to the way that they live and to the conditions of their world. Sometimes this requires special equipment or special arrangements. However, with a Fibromyalgia disability, there isn’t’ much that you can do with your physical space to help yourself.

However, there are many things that you can do to live better with your Fibromyalgia disability. First of all, remember that this is a disease that has many symptoms, therefore it is a disease that you can work on bit by bit. The first step to living with your Fibromyalgia disability is to create a lifestyle in which you are taking care of every bit of your body. Make sure that you are eating exactly the right diet and getting the proper amount of exercise. Rid yourself of vices like smoking and excessive drinking, which might contribute, and try to keep yourself in places that lessen your stress and make you calm and happy.

Once you have done these things, the next step towards living with your Fibromyalgia disability is to work on the different aspects of this disease. First of all, get yourself on a pain regiment to take care of the chronic and constant pain. This should be something that is okayed by your doctor, and be sure to follow his recommendations when it comes to dosage and how often to take the medication. Usually most of the pain can be managed with pain relievers.

Next, you have to deal with the aspect of the Fibromyalgia disability in regards to sleeping. Most of the time, you are going to have very abnormal sleep patterns and therefore you are going to be tired all of the time. You need to make sure that you have yourself on a sleeping schedule and stick to it. Create a period of time each day that you will be sleeping, and be sure that you are following through with this.

Your body will gradually get accustomed to sleeping at certain times, so make sure that you are able to do this. You also might want to look into taking anti-depressants as another way to combat your Fibromyalgia disability because many times they are helpful as well.

Risk:

One of the risk factor that has had satisfactory confirmation is the gender factor that plays an important role in fibromyalgia. It has been observed that the disease affects more women than men and the ratio has been given as 9:1, by this it is very clear that more women are prone to fibromyalgia than men. The statistics also confirms that women are seven times more prone to have fibromyalgia. In America there are at least 3. 4% women who suffer from fibromyalgia. The symptoms of women in fibromyalgia are also more acute than men and the most important is that women are at a higher risk of having fibromyalgia when they undergo menopause. The age factor in the development of fibromyalgia is also a very significant risk factor. The fibromyalgia disorder may strike at any age but it most probably occurs in the age group of twenty to sixty. Individuals in the ages of twenty to sixty thus are more predisposed to getting fibromyalgia. According to some studies it has been observed that the age of thirty five is the peak of the fibromyalgia disorder. Other studies show that women who are middle aged are more at the risk of getting fibromyalgia. In the study of one trial it has been seen that the condition progressed with age and the statistics showed that there is a seven percent more risk in developing fibromyalgia in the ages of sixty and seventy.

The study of genetic factors being the risk factor of fibromyalgia is a highly accepted fact by doctor and scientists. It has been almost a certain fact that members of a family who have had fibromyalgia are more predisposed to develop the disorder.

At the heart of this insult being added to the actual injury is the fact that the patients – given half a chance – would leap at the opportunity to get up and get moving. It is the unfortunate reality that fibromyalgia disables its sufferers, even as there are not physical signs or easy to discern reasons why a patient should suffer from the incapacitating pains and tiredness. Moreover, the misguided advice offered up by well meaning companions of the sufferer add to the emotional stress associated with fibromyalgia. It is frequently compounded by the insensitive suggestions and negative attitudes of those not suffering from or understanding the complete scope of the pain that is experienced on a daily basis by a patient diagnosed with fibromyalgia.

The personal tolls these kinds of interactions take on the patients require them to learn acceptance of their fibromyalgia as well as acceptance of their acquaintances. It is somewhat odd to suggest that a patient should embrace her fibromyalgia and learn to feel at ease with having the disease. After all, the disease is something to be fought, not celebrated or accepted. Then again, it is only when a fibromyalgia sufferer arrives at a certain level of comfort within their disease that they can acknowledge to themselves and others that no matter what it might look like on the outside, the everyday experiences of pain and fatigue are just as real and ever present.

When this kind of attitude is present, those around the patient understand that there is precious little to be gained by encouraging the patients – however ill conceived their attempts may be – to be someone they are not. Interestingly, this forces the patient to come to terms with their illness and refrain from living in a certain state of denial. Embracing fibromyalgia demands an acceptance of personal limitations just as it also requires patients to learn to advocate for themselves and speak up when others are making unreasonable demands of them. Not everyone believes that they can go ahead and live this kind of way. Some hold that they are by nature far more reserved and proud.

It is in this manner that the personal toll demanded by fibromyalgia can be minimized, even if it cannot be completely avoided.

Moreover, at times patients who experience fibromyalgia that is triggered by certain occasions or events cannot even point to a particularly stressful, demanding or even high impact job that may be to blame and subsequently left behind for a reversal of the condition. As fibromyalgia continues to take hold, the combination of pain and weariness makes everyday chores hard – or virtually impossible to continue — and it is only a matter of time until a certain level of nervousness sets in that there is no way a patient can continue to function in a normal manner within the family unit. It is inevitable that the soreness caused by fibromyalgia is the most devastating factor of the disease.

It usually pushes patients suffering with the disease from participating in a host of previously enjoyable activities. Such hobbies and outings include hands-on tasks, like gardening, planting, painting, writing, or even tinkering. At times the incapacitating pain brought on by fibromyalgia so severe that patients become forced to stay inside, become afraid to venture out of doors, and might even resign themselves to lounge on the couch or stay in bed, lest their activities give them any more pain and suffering than they are already encountering.

Incapacitation from fibromyalgia is of course a double edged sword and while the pain – or even just the fear of pain – is enough to debilitate the patient, the tiredness that goes hand in hand with this soreness serves to further heighten the debilitating aspects of the disease. In many cases patients find the fatigue worse than the pain. The former may be combated with painkillers or even holistic relaxation and acupuncture treatments; the latter, however, defies prescriptions and oftentimes also dietary supplements. Going outside and taking a part in some much loved outdoor activities becomes an exception, rather than the norm.

The overwhelming sense of tiredness brought on by fibromyalgia slows down patients to such an extent that it takes a lot of discipline and indomitable makeup to not utterly give up on a variety of activities and even the most basic household chores. This is amplified when the fibromyalgia sufferer lives alone and does not have a good support network to help out. More often than not personal hygiene goes by the wayside, and even previously meticulous housekeepers turn into sloppy – at best – homemakers.