A flare for me is when I go for several days, or even a month, in pretty much constant pain. For me, it also includes being very fatigued. My worst flare happened about 3 years ago. At the time, I was tested for MS, and thankfully that came out negative.

Flares can be short...like a couple of days. I'm in one now from painting our bedroom. Anything extra that I do, causes a flare for me. Mostly an aching back and rib cage.

Hope this helps.

What I call "flares" come in larger blocks of time, but I have no idea if there is an accepted definition. I can have aches and pains that last a few days or weeks, but a flare (in my own experience/definition) is a period of horrible, relentless pain and fatigue lasting several months to a year. In my 15 years of being diagnosed, I have had three major "dark periods' or flares, each lasting over 9 months.

For me? Pain goes from a daily 6 to an 8 or 9 out of 10 and stays there for at least one day, if not several days, and my worst was months. Most of my flares are generalized (whole body) but I can flare in certain areas from overdoing it. The localized ones tend to calm down faster for me.

I try to do 40-45 minutes of gentle exercise a day, in 5 minute or 10 minute chunks, so it's not enough to "flare" me, and that helps---but nothing seems to prevent yet for me.

Hope that helped?

A flare for me is extreme pain that is more than usual, and last longer and more consistently. I hurt, I get shooting pains and what not, but when I'm hurting so much I'm pretty much useless, that's my flare. Of course extreme fatigue, very sensitive eyes, ears.

Flares are different for every one but it's usually when pain, fatigue, and general sensitivity flare up for a period of time longer than 24 hours.

LeoXS, I think what you describe sounds closest to what I experience. I can go from a 2 to an 8 on the pain scale and back to a 2 in a few hours. Most days I now feel sort of 'normal' and then BAM I am stiff and sore and brain fog for a day, and then BAM back to a 2 or 3.

The way I describe flares to people who don't have fibro is to compare it to having the flu and pulling every muscle in your body and no matter what you do or don't do, that's life for at least a few days.

A flair for me is any period of time when I don't feel well....potentially some parts of everyday....I rarely feel AWESOME ever.

So I think for me and many others Fibromyalgia...is just a constant bummer.

I think that a flair for me might represent the days when the pain in my neck, shoulders...hips is worse...or headaches...or forgetfulness is worse...but usually for me...its constant something - be it fatigue..grumpiness....pain....