Fibromyalgia can be a scary term to many who think they may be suffering from this condition. It is important to know and understand some of the early signs and symptoms of the onset of this disease. By knowing these signs and symptoms early on you can discover ways of life to help combat the pain and fatigue that are hallmarks of this condition.



Fibromyalgia is one of those conditions that are very hard to diagnose. The reason is because there are many other diseases that have many of the same symptoms. So, it becomes a ruling out game of other diseases to leave you with the fibromyalgia diagnosis. If you think you have fibromyalgia you may have to go to several different doctors to find one who is willing to get to the bottom of your symptoms and doesn't think that all of your symptoms are "in your head." This is a common line heard by many who suffer from fibromyalgia. This can make the whole process very discouraging and frustrating to the sufferer.

One important idea to take note and do is, start keeping a symptom diary. In the symptom diary, list how you feel that day, what you eat, if you have overdone activities, etc. This will help you and your doctor in the diagnosis process and make the process less stressful.

So let's take a look at the early symptoms of fibromyalgia to give you a better idea of what this condition entails and help you determine if you need to get in to a physician. Like I said before, the hallmark symptom of fibromyalgia is pain. At the early onset, you may think that your back is just sore or you just overdid it the day before. The pain of fibromyalgia tends to be in the joints and radiates to the muscles. These areas will feel tender when touched and are commonly called tender points.

Another hallmark sign of fibromyalgia is fatigue. The problem with fatigue is that sometimes we are too easy to brush this off. We may feel like we are just tired because we have had a hard day. However, fibromyalgia fatigue is different, it is deep and can cause what is known as brain fog, a little forgetfulness, unclear thoughts, hard to concentrate due to extreme fatigue.

Your body may also feel completely stiff in the joints, especially in the morning. Other factors that can cause your joints to become stiff are weather changes, emotional trauma, and other environmental changes.

Headaches are a common early symptom with fibromyalgia, as well. The range of headaches in people with fibromyalgia vary greatly. You can experience tension type headaches all the way to debilitating migraines. Headaches may come and go and can change in intensity.

You may be experiencing changes in your sleep patterns. You may have insomnia or wake up more often in the night than you used to. People with fibromyalgia suffer from really bad sleep patterns that exacerbate their fatigue problems. This is common with this condition. All of these are early signs of fibromyalgia and should be dealt with promptly.

There are other symptoms of Fibromyalgia as well but these are some of the most common. There are many treatments and lifestyle changes that you can make to help you feel better and start living again. It can be a frustrating process but the important thing to remember is that you can feel better and there is hope.

Copyright (c) 2007 Hailey Harris