No matter the degree of severity of fibro, nor the stress factors that may have induced it, it's important to recognize that it is a neurological condition in which the pain volume is utnred too high, DIRECTLY IN PROPORTION TO THE DISRUPTION IN DEEP SLEEP PATTERNS. This disruption prevents the limbic system fropm properly recharging so that it cannot properly regulate pain or sympathetic nervous activity. This is presented in a recent book, The Truth About Fibromyalgia...a must read if you want to understand the disorder.

I've been sleeping well for about 3 years now with the help of medication. If sleep was the underlying problem then I should be well by now. The belief that non-restorative sleep is the problem is a myth that was disposed of about 8 or 9 yrs ago. I think some doctors latched on to that because we all suffer from severe sleep problems.

We are all going to go up and down with our symptoms due to flares. Also we know that symptoms can come and go and move around.

There is no proof that this is a central nervous system problem either. My neurologist doesn't believe this and it will take a lot of years and training before most doctors are convinced of this.

Just grab information where you can and don't give up. Keep trying different things until you can at least find a way to be more comfortable.

thanks for all the info! i have to come back on here and read it through one more time (10 sec memory lol).... have had a busy day cuz Matthew is leaving for the airport in a few hrs. afterward i will come back here and analyze all the info.

just a quick comment, i do not believe that the levels of severity depend on our "tolerance". it can be mild for some and really disabling for others, it's probably more of a neurological thing than a "tolerance" thing.

I have trouble with both severity and stages. I do believe that with proper treatment, most of us can resume an almost normal life. We should be able to gain some control and even predictability--that is knowing what causes our symptoms to worsen and how to avoid some flares. We're not always going to have control and some flares can be very troubling, but that can't be a way to measure severity.

Understand that our muscles can become deconditioned very quickly and add that to fatigue, it can become quite difficult to move around. Exercise can really help with both these issues.

Please don't misunderstand when I refer to an almost normal life--I mean we don't have to be bedridden. It may mean we are unable to hold down a job in some situations but there are many that continue to work as well. It's more challenging and we often have to rethink the way we do things, but I think people with fibro do very well in that area.

FMS is not a progressive illness, so I don't believe there are stages. It may seem worse at times or you may develop a new symptom or even a combo of an injury and a flare, but these things pass, they do not progress.

Its funny because if you line up 10 babies that are ready for their first shots, some wail, scream and cry while others are unfazed. I went with my niece's 4 year old to get "school" shots. I held her hands while two nurses gave her four shots in both arms at the same time ! She told her momma. "I didn't cry but Auntie almost did !" I wasn't even getting the shots !

I don't get flare ups nor remissions. My pain is a constant 7 or 8 and has been since day one. I woke up feeling pain one day and it never left. I have been different weights (ranging from 130lbs - top shape - to 260 lbs - fair shape), worked full time and part time (finding working takes my mind off the pain), not worked, tried different RX's, went almost all the naturopathic treatments and supplements, etc. to no avail. I did have 5 glorious months reprieve a year and a half ago when I introduced mass amounts of supplements (B12, D, D-Ribose, 5-HTP, calcium, magnesium, Thryrosense, milk thistle ++) along with a low fat, low sugar diet. Unfortunately, it didn't last. I also have horrible fatigue and brain fog which are almost worst sometimes.

against what most docs i've heard say, getting PROPER SLEEP isn't the cure. it may help A LOT, but it's not the cure. same with exercise.

there is definitely an underlying CAUSE for our bodies to not NOT get good sleep (level 4 sleep) and why our muscles don't want to function for exercise. i believe there is something causing a lack of a certain protein that our muscles need to HEAL, and BUILD, and work properly. we can exercise all we want, but lacking that protein is not going to make much progress like a "normal" person's body would.

i will do more research about it and try to find what protein is needed. i'll also try to find more research about the brain levels etc.

so far there is NO cure for this, but if we can at least find a way to help HEAL some of the damage done, that would be awesome, right??

Yes, Bluesun. That would be awesome.

FMS is biochemical. Our neurotransmitters are not functioning properly. There are no cures for this condition, only treatments that may help improve our symptoms. Exercise helps promote the release of endorphins, the body's natural pain reliever. There are things--foods, meds, even things like giving of yourself-perhaps volunteering, that can help us to produce more serotonin. To Carriein--There hasn't been many days when I could say I was pain free. I just have found ways to manage the pain as best I can. I know what you mean about the fatigue and fog---they can be more debilitating than the pain. I've been having alot of fatigue lately as my fall allergies are kicking in and the daylight growing shorter. Exercise does help quite a bit, however, it doesn't eliminate it.