ObesityHelp

Hi Dolly you are a sweet wife to want to help your hubby! Mostly women have fibro but there are indeed men who get it! It is usually diagnosed by a rheumatologist or pain specialist. It's kind of more a process of elimination than an actual diagnosis. There are I believe 18 trigger points on the body where if they are touched they hurt terribly, much more than they should for the amount of pressure used to push on them. He may have a very tough time convincing the VA, I don't know how familiar they are with it. They will first have to determine whether it is arthritis which is in the joints or fibro which is in the muscles themselves. It can also manifest as a foggy feeling, just not thinking as sharp as in the past. There are just alot of other symptoms and they can all be from fibro or lots of other things. It can take awhile to make an actual diagnosis but there are several drugs that they might give him to try and see if it will help. There is Lyrica (can cause weight gain), Cymbalta and Savella. There are also other drugs but I don't off hand recall them. Myself I take a combination of Cymbalta, oxycodone and morphine every day and it helps, not pain free but tolerable. It also helps to be able to get good sleep so if he has trouble sleeping (many of us do) I use over the counter diphenhydramin every night to get a good nights sleep. If I can answer any more questions feel free to post here or PM me, I'm glad to help! Good luck to hubby!

Dolly,

I was diagnosed with fibro after many other tests. I saw a neurologist and was checked for MS as some of my issues mimic MS. I was put on meds and monitored for a few years before the diagnosis was finalized. My primary care Dr. made the diagnosis but the neurologist told me that was what he suspected but back then they did not diagnose fibro. Now they can. A rheumatologist can diagnose and medicate then will send you back to your primary care dr once a good medication plan is in place. I currently go to a pain clinic as I am fighting meds as much as I can. I take Lyrica and an antianxiety daily. I have muscle relaxers as needed and they are helping me find a replacement for my motrin as it caused me to lose my Lapband and once I have gastric bypass I will not be able to take it anymore. I was taking 2400 mg per day prescribed. I have patches and cream now for my pain. I carry most of mine on the right side, but my entire upper back, both feet and hips are the most common. I have pain in my left arm that was very scary as it felt like what you are told to watch for as a sign of a heart attack. I know there are many stories about how long it takes to diagnose some of them are many years with no help given. I like the national fibromyalgia site. There are some good books as well. There are some things out there that help with the pain such as exercise, I know that when I can get to yoga it is great. Walking is really good too. There is a five day elimination diet that is good for helping to determine if foods are part of the pain. Some artificial sweeteners and processed foods set my pain into high gear. I am struggling with my required weight loss to have gastric bypass and cannot do many of the recommended diets as they are all processed food. Sorry to ramble hope this helps. And your husband is not alone, there are more and more men diagnosed.

It very much sounds like fibro to me anyway! Try to see a rheumatologist or pain specialist to get a diagnosis. I know my teeth have gotten horrible but it isn't from fibro but because I have to taker alot of meds that dry my mouth out. You might check any drugs you take for mouth drying. I use some stuff called Biotene that you can get at most drug stores, it helps "lub" up your mouth. Also drink lots of water. Good luck to you and do keep posting and we'll try to help all we can.