Fibromyalgia FAQs- 6 Need-to-Know Fibro Facts | Vitamin B12 Patch : Vitamin B12 Patch

What is Fibromyalgia? Here are top 6 frequently asked questions (FAQs) expressed by fibromyalgia syndrome patients, and answers.

If you’ve been recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia, then consider yourself in good company. About one in fifty Americans suffer from fibromyalgia symptoms, including muscular pain, fatigue, depression, and sleep problems.

Fibro fog, the tendency to forget things almost instantaneously, is another common complaint among fibromyalgia patients.

Q: What is fibromyalgia syndrome?

Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) is a condition closely related to Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).

With fibromyalgia, patients feel severe muscle aches and pain in specific points of the body, in addition to extreme exhaustion. Three to one, more women suffer from fibromyalgia symptoms than men do.

Fibromyalgia sufferers describe pain symptoms as hurting all over, burning sensations, muscular twitches, and sometimes, skin ailments, such as dry and itchy skin rashes, or extreme sensitivity to touch.

Also read Best Clothes for Fibromyalgia Pain- 6 Helpful Dressing Tips

Q: How do physicians diagnose fibromyalgia?

Since 2010, experts have isolated 19 specific pain points of the body that indicate fibromyalgia.

Prior to testing for fibromyalgia, patients must have been experiencing similar symptoms for a consecutive 3 months.

Before diagnosing a patient with fibromyalgia, a doctor will conduct a few tests, including:

Complete blood count (CBC) test
Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) blood test
Rheumatoid arthritis blood test
Antinuclear antibody (ANA) blood test
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy
Sleep electroencephalogram (EEG)

Q: What is fibro fog?

“Fibro fog” causes you to feel spaced out and tired. Sufferers experience frequent short-term memory loss.

That’s because sufferers of fibromyalgia experience cognitive problems, often because of vitamin B12 deficiency.

There is actually a high correlation between fibromyalgia and low vitamin B12 levels.

Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency are fatigue, depression, memory loss, and painful numbness or tingling in the hands and feet.

Q: Does lack of exercise cause fibromyalgia?

Avoiding physical exercise or leading a sedentary lifestyle didn’t give you fibromyalgia, but they can make it worse.

Even moderate, light aerobic exercises benefit fibromyalgia patients by lifting the mood, increasing blood flow to the brain, enhancing muscle tone, and increasing energy.

Doctors recommend individuals with fibromyalgia include gentle stretching routines and light aerobic workouts into their daily schedule. Tai Chi, yoga, and swimming are excellent workouts that increase flexibility without causing pain.

Also, read Staying Fit with Fibromyalgia: 13 Pain-Free Workouts.

Q: Does fibromyalgia cause insomnia?

It’s not often that you wake up feeling refreshed or energized, not if you have fibromyalgia.

Sleep disorders such as alpha-EEG anomaly are common among fibromyalgia sufferers. In studies, fibromyalgia patients had difficulty achieving “stage 4” deep sleep, due to constant brain activity. As a result, participants woke up feeling weary, exhausted, as if they had been up all night.

Some possible explanations for lack of sleep in fibromyalgia patients include: