Chronic, widespread pain can often be the hardest and most frustrating challenge of living with Fibromyalgia. Typically, people with Fibromyalgia complain of “hurting all over” and because there is no known cure for Fibromyalgia, there is no way to remove the pain. Managing the pain is the only option given to sufferers with this medical condition. Support groups offer help to be sure, but if you suffer from widespread pain, you are the only person that can decide what treatments and management techniques work best for you.

For weeks you have been aching from head to foot. You have no energy, you can’t concentrate and you can’t remember the last time you got a good night’s sleep. You have been to the doctor a few times already and all he can tell you is what you DON’T have. You have read about fibromyalgia and even talked to others that have been diagnosed with the disease. Yet, so far, no one can tell you whether you have it or not?

Sound familiar?

I challenged a group of writers with chronic illnesses and chronic pain to write a letter to friends and family explaining their maladies. But I procrastinated about finishing my own letter, partly because “I’ll do that tomorrow” seems to be a part of my life now and partly because I don’t always understand what’s happening to my mind and body myself.

Things used to be so different. I used to be an active part of my community. That was when I sorely neglected family and old friends, so those active years are not part of the me you know. But those years were real, and I miss them horribly sometimes.

Stress and pain are irreversibly linked in fibromyalgia. For many people, some kind of stressful event is what initially triggers fibromyalgia. It often shows up after a serious illness, some kind of emotional or mental shock or with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). There is probably a genetic tendency toward fibromyalgia, and many people believe that stress unmasks the disorder.

Fibromyalgia is a very complex disorder and despite the ongoing efforts of modern medicine to reveal the exact factors responsible for causing it, the phenomenon is still shrouded in mystery. In the absence of accurate data on fibromyalgia, medical scientists can only speculate upon certain aspects of the disorder.

The process of diagnosing fibromyalgia is very problematic. Fibromyalgia generates a wide spectrum of symptoms but rarely leaves any physical traces, rendering doctors unable to diagnose the disorder clinically. People with the disorder appear to be in perfect health when they are physically examined and doctors are often tempted to conclude that fibromyalgia is actually a psychosomatic condition.