Symptoms in fibromyalgia can vary a lot. Patients suffering from the disorder most often complain of bad aches and pains similar to the one felt in a bad case of the flu. Some of them actually describe the pain as being gnawing and even burning in sensation. It is not uncommon for patients to actually feel achier and stiffer in the morning compared to other periods of the day. The intensity of the pain may vary through out the day and of course from day to day. Still all of the people with this disorder experience some sort of constant pain. Sometimes the intensity of the pain may be increased by factors like exercise, physical or emotional stress, poor sleep or even bad weather. Other symptoms that people complain about are numbness, tingling, and the sensation of swelling of the hands. Fatigue is also almost always present in patients, in different intensities.
Depressions has also been linked to fibromyalgia. It is not yet clear if it is the cause of the disorder or if it is a simple consequence of it. Some 20 to 30% of people with the disorder seem to always be depressed, regardless of the time. Even more strange is the fact that up to half of them will experience severe depressions and anxiety disorders at least at one point in their lives; this is compared to 10 to 20 % of normal healthy people. Other specialists have proven that depression in fibromyalgia has almost the same frequency of depressions in other chronic illnesses. The feelings of pain and severe fatigue can most certainly lead the patient in to suffering a depression. Some scientist believe that fibromyalgia and depressions are actually very similar and might actually have the same triggering mechanisms.
Some 40% of patients suffering from this disease also seem to be suffering from irritable bowel syndrome; this is a gastrointestinal disorder of unknown cause. Another very strange symptom is that of the restless syndrome; this is characterized by the unpleasant pain in the legs during the bedtime and the overpowering urge to fight the pain by actually walking.
The sad and frustrating fact is that fibromyalgia is quite hard to diagnose. In comparison to other illnesses like arthritis or osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia does not have or produce any visible changes. The lack of these physical signs has lead scientists and doctors to believe that the disorder and the pain where all actually in the mind of the patient. Despite all of these fibromyalgia has actually been proven to be a physical disorder that must be taken very seriously by both doctors and medical professionals.
