Free Article: Fibromyalgia Symptoms

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Spotting Fibromyalgia Symptoms
By Phillip Johnstone

Fibromyalgia is an arthritis-related condition wherein a patient experience widespread muscle pains and persistent fatigue. A patient diagnosed with this condition may experience pain in tendons, ligaments and muscles.

Spotting fibromyalgia symptoms can be confusing to doctors because this condition does not show physical signs. As a result, fibromyalgia is an often-misunderstood disease. Since the symptoms normally described by patients are common and laboratory tests usually give no results, doctors used to tell patients that their condition is normal.

However, medical studies have proven that fibromyalgia symptoms really do exist and the condition was officially legitimized in 1990. Today, patients are diagnosed with this condition when the display the two major fibromyalgia symptoms – pain in eleven or more tender areas and generalized pain for more than three months.

When To Seek Medical Attention

When your body frequently hurts all over and you tend to become exhausted easily, you may want to visit your doctor for tests. Although most tests commonly return without any specific disorders associated with your symptoms, there is a large chance you are experiencing fibromyalgia.

The most reported fibromyalgia symptom is overall, persistent pain. Most patients describe the pain as deep muscular throbbing, aching, stabbing or shooting. Some patients experience severe burning sensations and many reports that the pain, stiffness and inflammation worsen during mornings.

Another common fibromyalgia symptom is fatigue. While some patients experience only mild fatigue, others may suffer from severe fatigue that could cause them to become homebound. Most patients describe their fatigue as “brain-draining” because they feel too weak to concentrate or move their arms and legs. Sometimes, this fatigue can be associated by the lack of “refreshing” sleep a patient receives because of certain sleep disorders caused by fibromyalgia.

According to medical studies, more than 50% of patients with this condition, experience fibromyalgia symptoms such as recurring migraines and tension-type headaches. These symptoms are among the major complaints of patients because they cannot perform their jobs, schooling or other daily tasks.

Irritable bowel syndrome, including diarrhea, constipation, abdominal gas, persistent abdominal pains and nausea could represent fibromyalgia symptoms because these indicators are commonly found in around 60% of fibromyalgia patients.

Other fibromyalgia symptoms may include painful periods, morning pain and stiffness, temporary memory loss, chest pains, numbness or tingling sensations, dry mouth or eyes, dizziness, twitching muscles and other individual symptoms. If you experience most of these symptoms for more than three months, seek medical attention immediately to get a proper diagnosis and treatment.

Author Details:
Phillip Johnstone has been a sufferer of chronic fatigue since 1983, unable to pursue a normal career he spends what time he can writing for web sites about the problem.

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