The doctors keep giving me pain meds that I can do withtout. I have a high tolerance for pain. The problem is that I am, normally sharp and intellegent. I am opinionated and out spoken as well. I find myself not saying much these day b/c I have to think about my words and, somtimes, can't articulate what I'm thinking. I feel stupid. Help!!! LONG --- BUT well worth the reading.
Make the connection.
I am a nurse with over 25 years experience in this area and I have seen a lot of people with various illnesses caused from chemicals and fragranced products as well as VOC鈥檚 in their homes, schools and workplace. This problem is growing as more and more chemicals are being introduced and used on a daily basis.
We are now seeing more and more children with Asthma, Allergies, Hives, Eczema and many respiratory illnesses. I can not emphasize how important it is to educate yourself about MCS and the harm you may be doing to your health by using chemicals and fragranced products.
If you or a loved one suffers from Asthma, Allergies, Autism, chronic headaches, reproductive problems, Migraines, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia, you need to read further and learn about the signs and symptoms of MCS - Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.
Most doctors will not inform you about this because patients as a whole like to walk out of a doctors office with a prescription for some magical medicine and they do not want to be told that their expensive new perfume or newly installed carpet may be the culprit. So, the doctor will give you medications and many of these meds either do not work or cause other health problems.
Chemicals and fragranced products are often the root of all evil when it comes to your health. Many of the below mentioned items are common triggers to sinus, asthma, itching, headaches, Migraines and allergy problems amongst other health issues. Get rid of them and your lungs will thank you and you will breathe easier.
And, it is not only personal body or cleaning products causing havoc on your health鈥?many people become ill after wearing brand new clothing, dry-cleaned clothes, installing new carpet, painting, buying a new mattress or after home renovations because of the Flame Retardants, Benzenes, Formaldehydes, etc. used in these products. So the answer is NO, you are not imagining that 2 weeks after your home, office or classroom got renovated you started to become ill, get dizzy or have headaches. This is happening more and more these days and adults as well as children are becoming sicker and sicker.
Unfortunately, too many doctors compound the problem by prescribing chemical medications to try to alleviate the symptoms of an already chemical overloaded body and they rarely tell the patient to eliminate the chemical offenders. How many times have I seen people in the grocery store with Bounce, Glade Plug-Ins and Febreeze in their shopping cart along with a bottle of Benadryl , Migraine Excedrin and a box of Allergy Tablets ? Why don鈥檛 they make the connection?
Here is a Brain Spect Scan Before and after a whiff of perfume:
http://www.ourlittleplace.com/spect.html
BIG NO-NO鈥檚
No Bounce or dryer sheets
No Febreeze
No Glade Plug-ins
No scented candles
No Fragranced Products on Body, Hair or Clothing
No Smoke
No Dander
No Sprays
And remember, it is NOT the smell it is the Chemicals that make up the smell. So, even if something is "Fragrance Free" these products often mask the smell with another chemical !
More and more offices and schools are creating 鈥淔ragrance Free Zones鈥濃€?why do you think this is?
Feel free to contact me on this subject. I too have Fibromyalgia and Fibro-fog is enough to drive a person insane. What has worked for me is getting on depression medications, however I am bipolar in addition to having Fibromyalgia. Once I got on Depakote and Lexapro together, the Fibro-fog seemed to decrease tremendously. Also for the pain the only thing that I have found that works is taking Excedrin Back and Body, the mixture of medications in it really seems to do the trick for me when Vicodin and other prescription pain killers fail. I also take Probiotics on a daily basis, as well as a strong multi vitamin. All of these have helped me to think clearly, and feel like my normal self again, instead of always being in a Fibro-Fog. Good luck to you. Feel free to contact me directly if you have any more questions or need some support. Someone close to me has been dealing with the same problems as you for years. Finally came off all the pain medications which just caused that same mental block feeling that you describe.Without the pain medication he is back to his old self which is nice. His doctor put him on Cymbalta, although it's marketed as an antidepressant it has really helped him a lot with his fibromyalgia. As for the sleeplessness it has been more of a problem. He has taken Ambien and Lunesta. Ambien seemed to be the most effective for getting to sleep but didn't always guarantee a full night of sleep. Before the Cymbalta he had taken Lyrica (sp?) it worked really well but for him some of the side effects were too disrupting...such as sleepiness during the day. Recently it was reccomended he take a B complex vitiamin as well.
I would talk to your doctor, if you don't already it can be helpful to see a neurologist for help. have you been checked for sleep apnea.
it is common for people with fibro Yes it is a wonderful feeling going through mental sludge especially when you are used to being vibrant and mentally acute.
Certain pain medications contribute to the issue and then your not quite as "aware" and "responsive" as your normal cheery self. I discovered years ago to get me down to the bare basics of my medications of what was my "core" necessity medications and gave the others back with the prompt thank you but I have figured out what works for me.
Not ONE medication is good for ALL. It takes experimental trial and error to find the combination that works for your chemical make-up. Frustrating trial period but well worth the possible long-term benefits of discovering the combo pack. Realizing you will never be 100% pain free. It is getting to a point of management WITH functionality. So the fact you are pain tolerant helps as that is how I managed my pain (ignoring it to a dull ache). Also, I am not a fan of the anti-inflammatories as a treatment for fibromyalgia
What works for me as I do a high-stress analysis job that requires me to know both Federal and State laws for my job industry, so being mentally acute is critical for me.
1. Darvocet 100 mg. Base starter prescription strength for general management of pain. Taking the edge off of it and allowing up to 3 times daily for when pain is more than normal. Also it allows you to stretch out the dosage over passage of time as opposed to having in your system all at once. Take preferably at bed time as sleepin and "being still" is when muscles ache the most when waking up. It helps minimize morning aches
2. Neurontin - neuropathy for numb and tingly feelings. One of the side effects is mood elevation and enhanced libido like that is not necessarily a bad thing. Take in morning since it can cause mood elevation and interefere with sleep
3. Decent migraine medication for as needed for those rip roaring somebody left a knife in my head and forgot to remove it moments. I use Midrin as I found it less dizzying and less lethargy inducing for me
4. Sleeping. Tylenol PM when I cannot afford the deeper sleep because I really need to be alert the next day but it at least gets me into bed for some rest. Flexeril beginning prescription strength and sometimes can take up to 2 pills worth for the deeper sleep when I can afford to sleep in a bit the next day. The only side affect for me on Flexeril is if I take it for more than 5 consecutive days in a row, I am grumpy for no apparent reason. Taking sleep medication is a trick. I found for me to take it at a time about 12 hours before I have to be awake because it takes about 1-3 hours for it to kick in and sometimes up to 12 hours to get out of my system. So I take it no later than 8 pm so by the time I have arrived at work, it has worked itself out of my system for me to be alert.
5. Acid reflux - Prilosec/Nexium at night before bed time (acids are at there highest at night) and sometimes Pepcid OTC during day times to supplement the Prilosec/Nexium if it is not quite doing the trick (I was bad and ate too many spicy foods or too much soda) as Pepcid does not interact with either (confirmed with a pharmacist). If you get it dead in the night moment of reflux, then a slow drain swig down the throat of Maalox Cherry will coat the throat. Stay up for about 30 minutes to get the acids to settle before laying back down
Some anti-depressants can help, but it can also enhance the problem by creating depression and sludgeness as that is what it did to me after using it a period of time. Initially it helped then it became useless. The reason for anti-depressants is the hope of manufacturing more Serotonin in the brain which aids in deeper sleep cycles since our brain is so starved for it. However, that is only one part of the puzzle and partial speculation of medicine as the cause for fibro
These are what help me afford my functionality. I discovered a long time ago while seeking to be a 100% pain free, I ended up on 11 different medications and mounting more as then I developed other illnesses and side affects and was taking meds for those that it was making me more ill and leaving me less functional. I can sure relate to what you said. I've had FMS since 1982. My insomnia story is at www.fms-help.com/insomnia.htm. My 100 Tips for Coping with Fibromyalgia and Insomnia are at www.fms-help.com/tips.htm. For some reason, this illness seems to mostly affect highly intelligent, articulate, and conscientious people. Research is still in its infancy as to whether this illness is genetic or viral, but it has something to do with brain function - maybe the hypothalamus. See "Drained by the Brain" at www.fms-help.com/yuppie.htm. There are also some fascinating articles on my homepage at www.fms-help.com. Sleeplessness puts a lot of stress on our body and brain. (Sleep deprivation is actually a form of torture used in POW camps!) I hope you will find some meds that will help you sleep. A list of things I've tried for sleep since 1982 is at www.fms-help.com/sleep.htm. Everyone is different, but what works for me now is either ambien (cheaper since the generic zolpidem came out) or Lunesta (more expensive at $3 per tablet). |
