Living in Chronic Pain and Seeking Advice [View all]

[EEO]

For over three years I have been suffering from chronic pain. My body is sensitive to touch and pressure (allodynia) to the point where a wrinkle in the sheet under me or a seam in a shirt can cause me pain. My muscles and joints are always sore. My sleeping has also suffered immensely and my once solid concentration and memory wavers. My body has become both a prison and a torture chamber.

Over the past year and a half I have sought medical help. I have seen dozens of specialists and been tested for so many illnesses I have lost count. After all of this my doctors have given me a diagnosis that annoys me greatly - that of Fibromyalgia, which is a diagnosis of exclusion. A diagnosis of Fibromyalgia is simply another way to say they have no idea what is going on with me or how to solve it, which their incessant tests and ineffective treatments simply reinforce.

At this point I don't know what to do with myself and my frustration is building to a dangerous point. My health is so bad I have been unable to hold a job for long without going out on medical leave again and this only adds to the stress I am under. I am reaching out to the DU community to seek advice and hear if anyone in our community has received a similar diagnosis to learn how they handled it.

Thanks for your time and help.