Symptoms Of Fibromyalgia - Why You Shouldn’t Ignore Fibro Symptoms
When looking for fibromyalgia symptoms what are you actually looking for? Many people will here about it and immediately assume they have it because of a symptom they may be experiencing.
The truth is, that symptom may actually be secondary to something else and to assume it’s fibro-related is a little folly especially without seeing a medical expert for diagnosis.
There are really four main symptoms to be aware of and when you’re experiencing all of them in virtual sync then it’s time to worry. Muscle pain without associated sleep problems or fatigue is not a reason to suspect symptoms of fibromyalgia.
Self Diagnosis?
So is there an official diagnosis for fibromyalgia? Well, self diagnosis is never recommended for anything medical - even doctors who diagnose their own ailments are sometimes frowned upon. If you suspect fibromyalgia symptoms are at play then get a professional opinion.
Reason is, because of the sometimes mysterious nature of this condition there doesn’t seem to be anything tangible to diagnose such as with a disease, many doctors may overlook it as a cause of the symptoms you’re suffering.
Sooner or later fibromyalgia will be put forward as a reason for the symptoms you may be suffering.
Identifying Symptoms Of Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia can be diagnosed if:
- A person suffers widespread pain over a period of three months or more.
- Pain in the form of muscle ache, muscle stiffness, sleep problems when you wake up feeling more fatigued than went you went to bed and fatigue.
- There are 18 trigger points in the body that can be affected.
- Widespread pain meaning pain in all four corners of the body but not necessarily all being affected at the same time. A person would need to be suffering pain or soreness in at least 11 of these trigger points.
- The trigger points are distributed at various positions on the front and back of the body. Other areas where trigger points are located are the buttocks, back and front of the knee area and there is also a trigger point located in the arm.
As we mentioned earlier, self-diagnosis can be particularly mis-leading and while there has been criticism over doctors expertise with identifying fibromyalgia symptoms in the past, reality is, they are much more qualified than someone who is untrained in all things medical.
In fact, doctors are now much more aware of the symptoms of fibromyalgia than they once were and while it’s still somewhat of a mystery syndrome, there are strong telltale signs such as the ones mentioned above which can point to fibromyalgia.