What is fibromyalgia, and what type of pain symptoms does it cause? Unlike other types of chronic pain, fibromyalgia includes a wide variety of seemingly-unrelated debilitating ailments.
If you suffer from arthritis, then you experience joint stiffness and muscle pain in certain targeted areas of the body. Likewise, people with chronic headaches suffer intense head pain and several other physical complaints.
Fibromyalgia, on the other hand, is more like a full-frontal assault on the body, by the body; an autoimmune condition in which you experience multiple types of chronic pain symptoms in various “hot spots” around the body.
There are three specific types of pain symptoms associated with fibromyalgia; they include:
Hyperalgesia
Hyperalgesia is defined as increased sensitivity to pain, resulting from peripheral nerve damage (peripheral neuropathy). With fibromyalgia, you typically experience pain on a much deeper level than others, as your reaction to pain is more severe, amplified by over-reactive nerve cells.
Causes of hyperalgesia may include severe vitamin B12 deficiency, as vitamin B12 is crucial for sustaining healthy neurological functioning, especially where the peripheral nervous system is concerned.
To ensure proper neurological health with fibromyalgia, it’s crucial to maintain normal vitamin B12 levels at all times.
Allodynia
Allodynia is severe pain caused by a normally-nonirritating stimulus that only affects the sufferer.
With fibromyalgia, you have difficulty finding comfortable clothes and sleeping restfully at night under heavy blankets, primary because allodynia makes certain tactile sensations unbearable. Scratchy shirt tags, tight waistbands, and itchy sweaters can be torture for somebody with severe allodynia.
For tips on dressing with fibromyalgia pain, read Choosing Pain-Free Clothes with Fibromyalgia
In addition to tactile hypersensitivity, you may also experience fibromyalgia pain resulting from non-severe hot or cold temperatures.
Paresthesia
Paresthesia is painful numbness and prickling sensations, usually in the hands and feet, also resulting from peripheral neuropathy.
If it seems like your arms and legs are constantly falling asleep, and you feel “pins and needles” while sitting, then it could be peripheral neuropathy.
Paresthesia is also one of the earliest symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency, as well as a common type of fibromyalgia pain. For that reason, doctors often fail to catch low vitamin B12 levels in fibromyalgia patients.
Since vitamin B12 deficiency is often a comorbid condition of fibromyalgia, doctors recommend checking your vitamin B12 levels regularly, in order to prevent severe depletion of vitamin B12.
Your turn!
Do you suffer from fibromyalgia, in addition to vitamin B12 deficiency? If so, what advice can you offer our readers?
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Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Fibromyalgia Pain Types
Can Vitamin B12 Repair Nerve Cells?
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Sources:
Understanding Fibromyalgia Pain
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