Hello, welcome, and no, there are no cures, and natural remedies are often chancy. Some are scams. Others contain the herbal version of, well... Cymbalta. I had to go off that in three days, but I have non-fibro issues that contribute to that fact. Many here have no issues with Cymbalta, otherse do better on Lyrica, or Savella, or Wellbutrin, and some use other meds entirely, if any. (I have no meds for fibro. Drat.)
We here tend to "go to" Fibro for Dummies, which can recommend a lot of therapies to make part of your daily routine, everything from diet and exercise to meditatoin to acupuncture. It is all trial and error, unfortunately, no matter what guidance we use. I had 8 years of fibro remission for no reason anyone has yet figured out, and have spent years trying to figure it out again!
My basic mantra (which everyone here will tell you is boring, sorry).... Just try to work on baseline good healthy habits. It won't cure fibro, but it helps your body deal with pain, stress, meds, etc., and that's good for everyone. I myself grew up on a farm, lived on scrach cooking, and by avoiding processed foods, I find I am less likely to "flare". Hydration, gentle exercise (reallllly gentle), and just getting support. COming here daily helps a lot of us, even on our "not so bad" days, b/c hey, where else does someone get it when you say, "Worrying I'll have a bad flare if I...."

Since fibro is neuromuscular, it's usually rheumatologists and/or neurologists who diagnose it, after ruling out every other possibility. THat can be exhausting, but is valuable. People have been told it's fibro, and it's celiac or thyroid or MS. And people told it's MS or so forth can turn out to have fibro. Thus, getting it confirmed by more than one reliable doctor is *vital*. General practice doctors often diagnose and treat fibro, but they're not really qualified to distinguish it properly.

A lot of us also journal our pain or symptoms or whatever, to try to detect patterns. Often, a pattern can help us avoid triggers of pain, or develop better therapy plans.

Anyway, ffeel free to jump in on daily check-in, where we vent, chat, ramble, and keep in touch. Again, welcome to the board!

Welcome to the board!! I agree with Leo, get the book and read up on it. Also you can google ways to cope with it. Me? I just come here and cry to the board lol

I am sorry that you have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. That is a tough thing to hear. As said above, there are many sources of help, and trial and error over time will help you find the approaches that work best for you. Welcome to Daily Strength.

Welcome to the group! I will echo Leo with "no." Only certain classes of prescribed medication work for the type of pain caused by Fibromyalgia. It is Neuro muscular as opposed to an inflammatory disease.

I recommend the book " Fibromyalgia for Dummies" too.You can purchase it on Amazon.

A key point to remember is that the longer a chronic pain cycle continues, the harder it becomes to manage or stop. You deserve a better quality of life. None of us love taking pills but the other options are worse. Good luck and take care.

Hi Mrs Jeans and welcome to the group. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 2012. At that time I was practically bedridden, on FMLA and in unrelenting,, severe daily pain. It's been a long journey, but I was able to get control of my fibromyalgia and am able to work full time again.

First and foremost, there is no magic pill for fibromyalgia. Research has found that a multifaceted approach is the best treatment for fibromyalgia, and that incorpating many natural therapies can be very beneficial.

I use an integrative medical doctor to treat my fibromyalgia. An integrative medical doctor is a regular medical doctor who is also trained in natural medicine. She has been instrumental in helping me to get control of my fibromyalgia. Integrative medical doctors are able to use specialized tests that are generally out of the scope and sequence of regular medical doctors. They are trained to look at the whole body and look for vitamin deficiencies, adrenal dysfunction, nutritional deficiencies, gut imbalances, hormonal imbalances, etc.

I have created a regimen that has addressed the above mentioned imbalances and deficiencies. I have that diet is very important with regards to helping to improve fibromyalgia. I follow a paleo diet and have eliminated various foods that can exacerbate fibromyalgia such as: gluten, sugar, msg, dairy, soy, grains, and some night shades. My regimen also consists of various herbs, supplements and vitamins such as: vitamin D3, magnesium, co q 10, b-12 etc, I also do Aqua therapy weekly as part of my exercise routine. Heat therapy has also helped me tremendously. (hot tubs, heated pools, heated blankets). Massage therapy has also helped to keep my muscles loose. Another life saver for me has been medicinal cannabis. I use a vaporizer, oils, rub on creams, edibles, and tinctures. The only prescription that I take besides medical marijuana is low dose naltrexone made from a compounding pharmacy. You can read studies about it on-line. It shown to be helpful for fibromyalgia, aids, cancer, multiple sclerosis etc. It works on the microgilial cells in the brain.

My daily pain levels used be 7-10, but now they are 1-3, with occasional flare ups. I wish you the best on your journey.

Please forgive me for the typos in my post, as it's been a long day.

Hello and welcome! Everyone else has already said what I could say for the most part. However, I will add in that Cymbalta has done well for me regarding mood but doesn't do a darn thing for pain issues. Also no bad side effects. That's my experience but of course everyone is different and can have more positive or negative from the same thing.

Hi! I just joined this forum but I am not new to Fibro. I was diagnosed in 2004. I was on fentanyl patches, Percocet, cymbalta, ambien, Effexor, and imitrex....During those yrs , I was mostly in bed...I had 4 kids, 2 youngest -boys and one daughter has severe cerebral palsy... stress was constant.... I also was married to a functioning alcoholic....his unpredictable behavior, in addition to his mind games were the worst stressor though! The cymbalta made me gain weight fast and it didn't help my Fibro. I wish I knew then what I know now!!!!! I would never had taken all those medications....When my marriage blew up after 24 yrs, I was very upset but remarkably, I started to feel better!!!! The constant stress of his disbelief, judgement, and martyrdom had sucked the life from me....I began to feel better!!! I had 18 great months( great to me, after living in my bed! Haha!!!)
Baby steps took me to weaning off the pain patches-over 18 months!!! And in the past 5 yrs, I have weaned off or way down on most meds... I didn't believe my dr when he told me I needed to exercise( gently) and reduce meds... now, I believe it!! Since you are at the start of your journey, maybe I can save you some grief by telling you this. Meds typically cause side effects that are just as miserable for you....
For me, doing things outside of my home helped lots! Getting out into the dating world got me moving more... meeting new ppl etc... I learned to pace myself .....plan your activity carefully and plan on resting....I used to bring a pillow and blanket to softball tournaments( my BF played) I would watch , eat taco in a bag, and go rest in the car w the AC running... now, I can do more than back then...tiny baby steps....
Eating healthy( 'ostly vegatarian) reduced sugar , no more pop, etc.... made those changes slowly.... Fresh air!!!
I started to do Spring Forest Qigong....got me out w ppl and gently moved my body and it nurtured my spirit.... I learned about energy healing, the power of positive thinking( I choose to reset when I start feeling negative- fake it until you make it!!!) be grateful for the tiny improvements, be greatful for anything and everything...beautiful flowers, smell of spring or fall, how sparkly the snow is....
Trust me, I was miserable when I was so isolated, and living in such a toxic environment. That's was the biggest game changer for me. Getting out of that energy draining situation!!
I take some vitamins....D3, b12, resveratrol , and a variation of natural dopamine agonists...tried different ones... I don't know if they work but I was on them during that 18 months of feeling so much better....I had a rough winter following the 18 months but when spring came, I kept making improvements....that's what helped me get some of my life back.... I don't work....I spend time w my kids( all grown now) and my boyfriend but I live alone and need the quiet space to recover from going out and doing stuff....I just try to plan a reason to get dressed and go somewhere most days. Being around ppl boosts my mood and temporarily makes me feel better....then, I scoot home for R and R....and I have a boyfriend who's a homebody, too!!! Lol!! Important !!

Hello MrsJeans, I all highly allergic to meds so I have to rely on natural remedies and yes, some of them do help and I don't sell them LOL I always encourage others to do a lot of research on their physical problems for safe remedies always looking at the side effects of both meds and natural remedies before deciding which is best for them. Good Luck!

Thanks so much everyone for all of the information. I'll start using this board more often to read about other people's stories. Fibromyalgia is so unbearable at times, so I'm really going to start putting into practice all the ideas mentioned above. I appreciate all of your help.

I've tried various meds to control the fibro pain, but they all have side effects that I couldn't tolerate.

In the last few months, I found these natural remedies that helped significantly:

Gentle swimming (which relieves my wide spread pain), hypnosis (which reduces my anxiety), and quiet (When I get home after work, I give myself quiet time, such as doing stretches on the floor and listening to soothing music---instead of watching TV or the news.)

Free "Fibro for dummies" download
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