An unwelcome diagnosis for my wife.......

Ian M.

New member
Last week, DW received an unwelcome diagnosis from her doctor in Dublin - a diagnosis of Fibromayalgia. This malady won't kill you but as Fallon says, on occasion it makes you wish it would! Every joint in her body is hurting and many nights (and tonight is one of them) she's unable to sleep because of a lot of pain in her hands, wrists and arms and shoulders, also feet and legs. Tonight, I've gotten up with her and she says that if I just rub her hands it helps a great deal. If anyone has any suggestions that may arrest some of her discomfort, we're all ears. She refuses to take a lot of the artificial pain remedies - things like Ibuprophen, that play havoc with the liver and kidneys. And there seems to be precious little that can be done to help her. Again, any ideas anyone has will be very gratefully accepted and acknowledged. Part of the problem Fallon is dealing with is having to waltz around with National Health to get help and answers! Not much help but an awful lot of B.S. Thanks in advance -

Ian M.
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Aww, Ian and Fallon - that stinks!!!

I don't have any personal experience with fibromyalgia, but I am a BIG fan of 800 mg. of ibuprophen.

I don't take it often, but when I need it, it really, really works! Now, I know that fibromyalgia is a chronic illness, and I'm sure long-term use of ibuprophen has it's side effects, so I would urge Fallon to follow her doctor's advice.

So sorry you both have to go through this, especially when you have to chase around little kids!

Lee
 

ChowderMan

Pizza Chef
Super Site Supporter
I know nothing about it....

but, if you search "Fibromayalgia diet" there's a lot that turns up -

some notable quack sites plus other stuff that looks to be sensible.
 

Johnny West

Well-known member
I know nothing about it....

but, if you search "Fibromayalgia diet" there's a lot that turns up -

some notable quack sites plus other stuff that looks to be sensible.

Good advice.

I've cared for patients with fibromayalgia and motrin worked for some. You have my prayers for relief. I'm sorry I can't be of more help.
 

Ian M.

New member
Thank you all for your kind words of advice and suggestions - both Fallon and I are hoping that an upcoming trip into a specialist in London may help to come up with some answers - but, as always, navigating through the muddy waters of National Health is no picnic!! Yes, Lee, dealing with the two kids is a real chore for Fallon but Kieran is trying very hard to help Mommy keep Sissy in line and help do things like picking up toys and staying quiet when Mommy wears out and needs to nap. That kid is a gem!! My Dad comes over daily and cooks for Fallon and the kids and I am able to bring a lot of things over from the pub and throw into the micro to warm up and that helps, too. One foot in front of the other - one step at a time, as Fallon always advises everyone to do.

Johnny, what kind of work do you do? EMT or in hospital type of work? Sounds interesting.

Saliha, both of us really enjoyed the photos of your summer cabin and of your dog and "her ball" which you included in a post recently. That was so cute. What kind of dog do you have? Fallon said she looks a lot like a dog that Fallon's family had when she was growing up and she said the dog was so loving and kind an animal, too. Always looked out for the little kids. I could sure use a dog like that with my kids toddling around all over the place these days. I never imagined that my daughter would walk as soon and as far as she's begun to do - two younger than four-years-old is a handful!!

Got a letter from a friend who lives in Florida and evidently, they are heading into the "monsoon" season, as he calls it - lots of storms that dump lots of rain on them. Too bad California's wildfire areas aren't getting some of that. Leni, are you at all effected by any of those wild fires? Hope all is safe and protected in your area.

Prayers and best wishes for everyone. Again, thank you all for your help for DW.

Ian M. :wave:
 

Johnny West

Well-known member
I'm retired now and do substitute teaching for one school district.

I was an LPN doing home care before going back to teaching.

I'm out of the loop on new treatments - at one time I was an
army medic and ward master but the new methods have passed
me by, especially with the new combat equipment that's available.
I had no clue.

With my own medical problems I've found the medical web sites
to be of great help before and after I see the medical staff. It helps
me in understanding what they are doing and what they aren't
telling me.
 

Saliha

Well-known member
My dog is a wire-haired dachshund. Hers the most famous hobby is run after a ball. If not after the ball, the stick works too. Or anything she can chase, like the neighbor's cat or the squirrel.

I saw from the dictionary that they are also called in English as "sausage dogs". I don´t wonder why...

125d1319833433-some-dachshund-humor-383514_10150332121770518_195939675517_8685998_778320279_n.jpg


:whistling:
 
K

Kimchee

Guest
Fibro is one of those maladies that is turning out to have many possible causes.
My wife was diagnosed a few years back. Since she's a scientist anyway, she promptly
started researching.
She found that she had all of the symptoms for a systemic yeast infection, which can cause fibro-like symptoms too.
So she consulted with a doctor. Took pro-biotics and I forget what else. I also embarked on a three month adventure of cooking with zero ingredients that yeast can feed on. Which meant no sugar. Harder than it sounds, but her fibro symptoms have pretty much disappeared.
So tell your wife not to give up hope, and if she's the type, to do her own research on symptoms and possible causes. She'll probably have to be pretty determined with the docs too, if she wants something she came up with considered.
Good luck!
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Kimchee, what a GREAT post!

I hope Ian and Fallon get to read it!

Thanks so much for sharing!

Lee
 

Doc

Administrator
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
So sorry to hear this Ian. Hope Kinchee's info helps.
 

Leni

New member
Thanks for thinking of me Ian. The fires are for the most way far away from me. There have been a few small ones here in the Valley but they were put out very quickly.

Sorry to hear about your wife. Hope the specialist is able to help her.
 

Jim_S

Resident Curmudgeon
Gold Site Supporter
Sorry to hear about Fallon.

Tell her we're thinking of her and we hope the specialist can help.

Jim
 

Ian M.

New member
Good evening, everyone - First of all, both Fallon and I want to tell each of you how very much we have appreciated your well wishes and encouragement for her during a rather trying time. We've been here in London since last I corresponded and have had numerous interviews with the specialist here. These people are tops at what they do, according to Fallon's doctor at home and sure enough, they found something we least expected!! To make the long, involved story as short as possible, Fallon has been plagued with psoriasis since she was a small child - mostly confined to her scalp, not all over her as some people suffer with it. However, it has led to a rather pernicious form of arthritis that is born and bred from the psoriasis! Neither of us had ever heard anything like this! Psoriatic arthritis - very like the rheumatoid (did I spell that correctly? Probably not) and equally as painful and hard to deal with. The long and short of it is that the doctor here says it's NOT Fibromyalgia but acts a lot the same and like Fibro, is not curable. Just pesky and much more easily controlled - a combination of diet and medications the likes of which we'd never seen before. They've started Fallon on a regime of something (now hopefully I'll spell this one right!) called Hyaluronic Acid - she takes three of these "horse capsuls" per day with meals and since it began the other day, she says she can tell some difference in the way her joints feel - much less pressure and discomfort as a result of these capsuls. This is a GOOD thing. We'll be here at the hospital in London for another couple days until the docs are sure she's headed in the right direction and is more conversant and comfortable with her diet and with the "work sheet" they've written up for her to follow. She says she begins to feel rather like a lab rat - but in a very good way.......whatever that means. In a nutshell, we're both feeling much more positive about how she progresses and the lessoning of the pain she's had. Now my dad is experiencing the "pain" as he and my Aunt in Dublin are babysitting our monkeys and as we understand from our phone calls home, all is chaos on the home front!! Aunt Maureen is having more trouble keeping "Grandpa" in line and him and Kieran out of mischief then she bargained on, I suspect. But Fallon and I got an entire laundry list from our son on everything that he and "Gampy" have been doing while we're away - it sounds rowdy!! Poor Aunt Maureen - but I suspect she's loving every minute of it. At 72, I sure hope so. But I'd never heard her use a swear word before tonight on the phone............

Again, many thanks to you all for your caring and encouragement. Friends are the very best medicine. Needless to say, we can't wait to get back to home and kids - but they've been really great here in London since we arrived, too. Wonder if our "Yank" accents had anything to do with it?

Ian and Fallon :bounce:
 

Ian M.

New member
Thank you, Bells, for your kind suggestion - unfortunately, not all OTC things sold in the US are readily available in Ireland but we'll surely look and see what we can find. To all who've offered thoughts and suggestions, thank you all very much. Just being at home has helped considerably and the kids are mighty glad to have mummy back with them again.

Ian
 
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