Fibromyalgia is a long-term disorder that affects the muscles, tendons and other soft tissues, causing people who have been diagnosed with the condition to experience long term pain issues.
Pain management for the condition is possible and an important aspect that needs to be addressed in coming to terms with and moving forward with fibromyalgia, is being to talk to your spouse about the pain you are suffering and are likely to continue experiencing for the foreseeable future.
A better level of understanding
The level of pain that you can experience when suffering from fibromyalgia can at times be quite overwhelming. In simplistic terms, the pain signals experienced by someone who has the condition can be multiplied by more than five times more than a normal healthy person would register. It is important to get the message across to your spouse that you often have very little power over the “volume control” in your body that is amplifying the signals triggered by even mild pain or sensitivity to lights and noise. A better understanding of the variations you can experience will hopefully help them to show tolerance that you are not trying to be the center of attention, just attempting to deal with and control the rollercoaster of sensations that you have little control over.
Good days, bad days
As with any chronic illness there are days where you will feel able to cope more than others. It can be confusing and sometimes difficult for a spouse to accept that something you could not do on Wednesday, you are suddenly easily capable of doing on the Friday, just two days later. This is how it is with fibromyalgia, you are going to have good days and bad days, so a loved one has to come to terms with the swings and roundabouts.
Coping with stress
A common concern amongst partners, is that their loved one will not be able to handle any emotional sort of stress at all, as it will probably make the symptoms instantly worse. The human response to stress is emotional and also physical for all of us, and the standard response of a normal human body is to get a rush of adrenaline and a hormone surge so that it can generate a good physical response to the stressful situation. People who suffer from fibromyalgia do not have enough hormones to trigger the same response so they can develop other symptoms and it is important that your spouse understands that you have control issues resulting from this, so that they can help you through any difficult episode.
Fatigue
Sometimes your spouse can be frustrated by the fact that you are just too tired and exhausted to do anything at all. Fibromyalgia can strip someone of their ability to do normal functions such as cleaning the house, do any sort of exercise or even perhaps stay awake for any long period of time. This physical reaction to the condition should not be confused by your spouse as depression, laziness or any other similar state that could cause them to become frustrated.
Explaining all the symptoms and talking it through thoroughly with your spouse, will help them to appreciate your condition and hopefully provide you with the support that you need when you are having one of your bad days.
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