I’ve never posted about how I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. I feel very lucky compared to others, as mine was diagnosed relatively quickly, but seemingly for different reasons that I’ve read from other bloggers. Anyone else have skin problems?
Back in late February/early March I was sitting playing video games with my boyfriend when my face started to burn. My skin was hot to touch, so hot you could feel heat from a few inches away. I had no idea what was happening. It was painful but just about bearable. My boyfriend got ice cold wet towels and held them to my face while I went on playing to distract myself. The heat felt like it was moving around my face, so the towel had to be moved around as well. After a few hours it cooled down. I was so glad that it was over that I didn’t really think much about it.
A few weeks later, sitting watching tv again with my boyfriend, my arms started to burn. Then my face, then my stomach, my legs, it felt like everywhere was on fire. It was painful enough that even with dealing with Crohns/Ulcerous Colitis for most of my life, I started to cry with pain. I was scared, I had no idea what was going on. Again, eventually it passed, and I fell asleep there on my couch, exhausted from pain.
The episodes came more often over the next 6 weeks, I couldn’t find a pattern to them. There didn’t seem to be any link, any trigger I could avoid. I would wake up in the middle of the night in agony, the pain would be so bad I couldn’t bear anything to touch me. The burning sensation moved around my body like flashes, I couldn’t keep up with the ice packs.
This continued over a good few weeks, running along side trying to set up and run a small cupcake business. Even though I wasn’t really well enough for a ‘real’ job, I couldn’t stand just sitting around, doing nothing with my life. I found myself getting exhausted very easily, and my back would ache after only an hour or so of baking. I just put it down to a still weak body after being sick for so long, and I never connected any of the symptoms.
So long story very short, after several A&E nightmare visits, various stays in hospital over the summer, countless new doctors asking the same questions, I was finally diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. That explained the fibro-fog, back and muscle pain and fatigue. And the burning itching skin?
Still no answer.
The pain ” might” be related to Fibro, but no-one can explain how bad my skin gets when it happens. It looks like excema, but one of the meds I’m on for Crohns, would normally be used to treat that. So no-one knows why my skin is refusing to cooperate with normal cases.
I finally feel like enough tests are being done by the right doctor to find an answer but yet again it means I’m in hospital. During my favourite month of the year, during the lead up to my favourite day of the year, Halloween. Boo.
DoubtsKillDreams 