Re: Intro- newbie Kathy from Massachusetts. I call myself K2

[Guest guest]

hi all thanks for letting me be a part of this group and what you all are

talking about as for you symptoms sounds just like me life to a --t thanks for

everything amy

Re: Intro- newbie Kathy from Massachusetts. I call myself K2

Welcome K2

So glad you found us.

I understand what you mean about not being taken seriously when you have a happy

go lucky personality.

It is indeed the invisible disorder.

My character is to laugh when I'm nervous and smile and make jokes when I'm down

and or in pain.

My late father use to always tell us to fake it till you make it. So I always

try and look and act " GOOD " when I'm not.

This hasn't always helped.

Anyways once again welcome.

K2 <hechobesyahoo (DOT) com> wrote:

Hi, I couldn't open any of the attachments I received as a new

member, Yahoo kept saying it was unable to open & try again later.

So, I hope this freestyle intro is ok.

My name is Kathy, I live in Massachusetts, in a long-term cohabiting

relationship with the same guy for 22 years, and we have no kids

except for two big dopey dogs and a cat. He has two adult kids, they

are my " step-children " . I am vice president of my boyfriend's

company, and as such work really long hours and am a high-achiever

type personality.

I've had chronic pain for many years some going back to childhood

(migraines and primary dysmenorrhea) , and chronic neck, back and TMJ

pain from a car crash in 1980 when I dislocated my jaw and had no

follow-up treatment, thus it never healed properly.

In 2004, I traveled to Ireland followed by another trip to the

Caribbean and I caught some weird virus and I started getting

indescribable fatigue and chronic sore throats and IBS. I traveled

again a year later to California, and the same thing happened again,

and after that I just never got better. In addition, I've had

several small " accident-prone " situations such as falling while

walking my dogs, tripping on carpet and falling on my face, stuff

like that over the same time period.

I've had a frustrating experience getting diagnosed because I tend to

be a very happy-go-lucky kind of person and I think doctors have

perceived this as " nothing wrong with " me. Conversely, I've had

several doctors tell me I'm " just " depressed, even though I know the

difference between the physical symptoms I'm experiencing and

depression since I've been going to counseling practically my whole

life. A rheumatologist that I went to twice really was awful to me,

very dismissive and would groan and complain when I took out my notes

because of my cognitive problems I couldn't remember things I wanted

to tell her. She said there is nothing wrong with me except for a

sleep disorder. I disagreed, saying that I thought disordered sleep

is a SYMPTOM of FM, and we just can't agree. She did, however,

prescribe Vitamin D and calcium for pain. It hasn't helped at all,

and actually produces dizziness and flares up my IBS.

In November, I received the closest thing to a diagnosis: my new PCP

talked and listened to me and we discussed FM, and she prescribed

Trazodone which has helped give me more energy during the day, but my

sleep is still disordered and I'm still in chronic pain and countless

other symptoms -- you name it, I've got it.

I get flare-ups every day, some days are tolerable, others I can

barely function. The pain bounces around, and will concentrate in

one area for a few days or a week, and then move on to a different

area. The fatigue is at times unbearable, and at others I hardly

notice it. All of my episodes are repetitive and somewhat

predictable.

I could go on and on. Glad to be here. Thanks for listening.

K2

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