my suggestion earlier today was to get friends ,,,family to read some of the posts here,,, i think that it really paints a picture for people, i know when i read other posts,,,i get a clearer pic of what other gals on here are going through,,,what is the spoon theory??

maggie,

It's written by a girl with another chronic illness (maybe CFS...I can't remember LOL) ....she used spoons to represent her energy to explain to her friend how she has to plan out her day, and hope to not run out of spoons (energy) for that day.....good example of how we have to pace and be careful not to overdo....you can google it and read the whole thing.....pretty cool!

HUGS :)

Sometimes the Explanations get to Long...If I am Gonna Explain it...I say the Muscles Constantly Feel Like ya have the Flu...with Occasional Misfiring of Nerves That Feel Like when You Have Burned urself...I never go into full detail...nor Long explanations....

The way I explained to sisters was it's like you're coming down with the flue, only every day. They have both had the flu and can understand. Because the symptoms are so similar it's the easiest way for people to understand
(((((gentle hugs)))))
Andrea

Here is a right here right now explaination of fibro.

It hurts to wear my clothes today, the feeling of my t-shirt touching my ribs is like fire on my skin, and the elastic waist band on my bands is making my lower back muscles spasm just from it touching that area. I wear most of my clothes inside out when I am at home cause the seams on them hurt when they touch me. I would love to go into work dressed insideout just to see the look on thier faces. LOL

I am like Dakota, I keep the explanation of it short. Flu symptoms is usually what I say. If it is family member that seems genuine about wanting to know what it feels like and what it does to me; I ask them to go to the computer and type in fibromyalgia then read. Trying to explain the many symptoms I have is way to long and I am sure they would lose interest rather quickly. No one wants to hear long explanations.

my best explanation is...
if someone asks what fibro is I tell them "if it's not one thing it's another."
when they ask what fibro feels like I tell them "remember when you had your worst ever case of the flu and you felt like you were dying?" "Add to that the time you overdid it at the gym or the first time you snow skied....how your muscles felt the next day?" They say "oh, yes, that sucks!" Then I say "So imagine you felt like that and then... you got hit by a bus!" That is fibro.

Some families don't care to hear any explanation at all. Believe me.

Mild Flu with bad flu muscle pain mixed with a Tequila hangover and that's just one part of Fibro.

i would say that soulddesires has pretty much summed it up!!!!! that's how i feel on a daily basis anyway,,,,,terrible isn't it??? who can really imagine that.....

I just ask if they know how to use Google.

I'm sick. Educating the world is more of a burden than I can handle.

I'd like to add that, besides feeling like SH** most days, we have to deal everything else that is thrown at us. There are medical professionals that still don't believe Fibro is real, commercials that make it sound like one little pill will relieve all that ails us, and all those kind and caring friends and family that decide" IT" is all in our heads and either call us cry babies or just drop out of our lives altogether.
Fibro is a lonely disease.
Ali

i tell people that it feels like somebody beat me up from head to toe and also that it feels like i'm being electrocuted(sp). and that on worse days it feels like they beat me up 2 or 3 times. and that i feel like that every single day of my life and when i do physical activities,it rains , it snows, its cold, stressful , bad humidity, etc, than it makes it worse....also.. or i tell them it feel like i was in a bad car accident and i was hurt from head to toe and can't move without pain and the rest or the stuff i wrote.

I don't have a dx of fibro. My appt is 6 weeks from now for my first step on the road of discovery, but everyone of these posts in one way or another describe what I've been feeling and what I've told my husband. Now I'm somewhat worried that I may actually have fibro, which of course I don't want.
Good side, all you ladies are here as support.
Thanks for the thread for the newbies and family members.

Here's the dragon thread:

http://www.dailystrength.org/c/Fibromyalgia/forum/1496996-dragon-grins

That was good Unduki. Thanks for the link. Damn dragon.