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seen me just sit. And I try not to let him know how much it scares me. I had a body that did things for years. At 14 I was in a car accident and crushed vertebrae. I was sent to Strong Memorial in Rochester, NY and was told they could operate but the pain would always be there so I chose not to have it done. I had learned at an early age to live with pain but nothing at all like this. This is torture, not pain.

I had worked in nursing homes, lifting patients. I had cut trees and cut it into firewood with a chainsaw. I helped fix cars, planted gardens, mowed lawns, moved furniture, have 4 children. I wasn't a sissy. And I had a brain. I went to college at 41 and got my diploma in medical records. I made quilts, clothes for all my kids and my husband, afghans, anything. And now, both body and mind have let me down. Was I suppose to be happy about this situation? Who could help but be depressed? Life to me was more than sucking in air and blowing it back out!

I have joined a Fibromyalgia group on-line and we give each other support, sometimes by just letting each other vent their anger for the day. We ask each other if this or that has happened to anyone else in the group. We compare medications and therapies tried and as with all things, there is not one concrete medicine to take for it such as insulin for diabetes. And, no matter what we try, the best we come up with is some pain that you can live with, not pain that goes away. The support group is a blessing because there is always someone who understands.

I think everything available to relieve pain has been tried by at least one of us in the group from acupuncture to massage therapy to swimming exercise to natural herbs to yoga and walking. Since my case is a little different than others, walking is out. Vitamin B12 shots help the brain. Eating a better diet seems to help along with more water. If anyone thinks of something else, such as cherry juice, we try it hoping it will help us also. But, as with other orthopedic problems, the weather makes a large difference in how we will feel.

My primary doctor is not really a believer in Fibromyalgia although he won't say that to my face. He has only been here 3 years and after my first few visits I would go home and print off articles for him from AMA and respectable hospitals, then hand them to him the next time I went. I love him dearly. You have to love your doctor when you see them as many times a month as I do!

My recommendations if you think you have Fibromyalgia are these:
1. Get a diagnosis.
2. Investigate for yourself everything you can about this disease.
3. Find a good support group.
4. If you find you can't handle it, don't be ashamed to get mental help.
5. Try anything that you think might help and give it enough time to make sure.
6. Find a doctor who you can love and lets you talk to him.
7. Forgive your family and friends for not understanding the pain you are in.

Learn more about this author, Linda Steinbiser.
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