Good morning everyone,
It never stops to amaze me how many people have FMS. I am very fortunate that I have not had many real bad bouts of the disease. I also have degenerative bone disease in my spine so I am never really sure which is which. I know the FMS will give me the strong aching like the flu when it hits. I have been on Amitriptyline for many years for this and I have just taken myself off it. That plus Paxil have a very strong sexual side effect that I really don't want to deal with the rest of my life. I am 60 and I still would like to feel like an active woman. They have a drug that works just like Paxil and does not have the sexual side effect, it is called Bupropion SR,(generic I am sure). I have started it and there is no difference in effectiveness. I have hypothyroidism,on estrogen since I was 27 and heart meds. All add to the weight problem. I have been thin my whole life until 5 years ago when I became less active from the pain. The low carb is my answer and I do feel much better on it. My lowest weight in 5 years was 168 and hightest 180. I am 171 now and have a long way to go to get this off. I do walking tapes at home and I go to the base pool for water exercise. It all helps with the pain management.
So after many trials with the doctor and meds, I take Celebrex 200mg at bed,2 Tylenol PM at bed, in the morning, one Prilosec,2 tylenol extra strengh, synthroid, lunch time, premarin,L-lysine,vit E.,heart med,calcium. That is a lot of medication but I am feeling good and as I said it took a long time to get where I am today with meds, and diet.
This is very long and I only hope it will maybe help someone else that has been trying to feel better. I also have colitis so it has been hard to get this pattern down pat. Hope all of you have a good day. Susan

Hi Susan, I'm sorry you have Fibro. I have Myofascial Pain Syndrome, which is a "cousin" to FMS.

It sounds as though you have a good med regiment, one that is helping you. I used to be on Paxil but my new doc took me off of it. He said there have been reports of weight gain with people who take it. Plus the well-known sexual side effects.

He changed me to Effexor SR. It was very difficult to make the change - coming off of Paxil is horrendous especially if you've been on it for a long time, which I was. I felt like I had the flu and I was so depressed, I truly wanted to die. I wouldn't have done it to myself, but I wanted to die.

Now that I'm on the Effexor, I'm doing so much better. Plus, I started Atkins so I'm losing the weight. Now if I could do something about this darned pain, LOL. I love to get in our pool - it really helps with the pain.

Take care!

Hi! I just found out that I had FMS yesterday but knew I had it for months. So far I'm only taking Amptriplyine 50mg and some muscle relaxers, Frovera for migrain, and Ambien to help sleep. I've only had the painful symptoms for the past few months, but had the IBS problems alot longer. Is anyone here take anything for IBS? Is anyone taking supplements instead of some of these meds that seem to work?

Wendy

I am a fellow fibro sufferer, and I have found alot of things from others on this board that are very helpful! In fact, when I stick to my eating plan (Schwarzbein Principle) I am almost symptom free.

Susan, I, too, have degenerative disc disease in my back and neck. What I have found works miracles for this is Glucosamine/chondrotain sulfate (I take Osteobiflex brand) and MSM. These supplements take about 6 weeks to really fully kick in,but once they do, they can really really help.

As for the fibro, the MSM works well for that also, but the most important thing for fibro is getting quality sleep. I have found that for me, taking a good calcium/magnesium supplement before bed is key. I took 5 HTP for quite awhile, but I no longer need it. Malic acid is another supplement that I take for fibro, and I wouldn't be without it.

I hope some of this information helped you!

-Denise

Thanks for the replies, I learn more and more about diet,medications,and bewares. I am sure that I feel better on low carb foods. I haven't been on one long enough to see to much change in my medical problems. The bone is going to fast in my lower spine and I am in a lot of pain with it. So a new drug (Celebrex) it caused my colitis to come back after a 5 month remission. I am taking myself off Premarin, on it since I was 27,hysterectomy,to many bad side effects from that and I am past the hot flashes. I am off Amitriptilyne, took it before bed, so to many changes here and I have been really messed up the past week. Sick and a lot of pain, so I haven't been on the low carb for a week. The doctor is still trying to get me on the correct medications for the problems. The thyroid has stayed great from many years and remains good. One possitive note. Today will be a good day, a low-carb day Have a great day everyone. Susan

Hi Everyone,

While my heartfelt wish is that fibro didn't Exist... since it does and I'm also dealing with it (for most of my life) I am really pleased to see a forum that addresses it AND lowcarb.
I swear I've tried just about everything I can, and then some. Through the incredible support of my parents we went to a clinic in Carrillo Mexico where I began a course of new medication not available elsewhere. Within a month my mother noted quite a difference in me - and spoke highly of these new meds. Me - I've been through quite a few "remissions" of varying length, so I took it more lightly than Mom. She told hte whole world how Wonderful I was doing.. which was actually true, for a while. So far, it seems that it was just one of the better times and now I"ve slipped right back into a bad flare (yippee . At any rate, I Have noticed some improvements when I was low-carbing previously, so I"ve just begun once again ( a week along now) and waiting to see what happens I also walk daily and try to increase the distance often. Again - we'll see : )

I'm sure most of you are aware of it, but amatryptaline is Infamous for weight gain. I quit it for that reason and that it didn't seem to help with my own situation. Basically - I'm trying to eat well (low carbin' , incrasing my exercise (starting Pilates - has anyone else tried this??), and get my life back in gear. HOPING to get a part-time job I"m in th e process of applying for - full time is just Way beyond me yet. I'm also applying for a gov't disability subsidy, but know the likelihood is slim since as we've all heard "Fibro is all your head...

Anyway - that's where I am, and it's a relief to be able to read of other's situations/remedies and have a chance to talk with others as well!

Best wishes for symptom free days to each of you!!
~Tracy