Pain is real...

I have fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia means “widespread pain in muscles”. Pressing on tender points and getting at least 11 out of the 18 trigger points ( as seen in the diagram below), will confirm if one is afflicted by this dreadful, harrowing and unrelenting condition. I have 18.

But wait … there’s more!!!

See the many trigger points, shown as red dots on the diagram above. That’s how many painful “knots’ I have on my back. Thanks to “dry needling”, “steroid and anesthetic injections”, cold and hot compress, TENS, ultrasound therapy, NSAID’s, massages and understanding physicians (my physiatrists, my orthopedic surgeons and my anesthesiologists), I am able to control my physical pain.
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I found this photo in Facebook. Funny right? But TRUE! Last week, my hair did hurt. As I was about to comb my hair, the comb barely touched the hair and I felt this tenderness on the right parietal area of my scalp. The size of the painful area is about 1.5 inches in diameter, about the size of a big coin.

So, I googled my symptoms. My search led to this discovery. I had nummular headache or what is known as coin-shaped headache.

“Nummular headaches (coin-shaped headache): are generally of mild to moderate in intensity and confined to a small circumscribed area (side-locked). The pain can be continuous or episodic. Remissions are quite common & during remissions, the affected area may continue to be painful which may be minimal (allodynic, paresthetic, or hyperesthetic). These headaches typically are unilateral & commonly affect the parietal region. Some cases may be associated with underlying malignancies or diabetes mellitus. Treatment with botulinum toxin, gabapentin, or tricyclic antidepressants may be helpful.”

The treatment modalities for this headache are the same as for fibromyalgia. Even the medications (Lyrica, Neurontin and Cymbalta) are what I take for my muscle pain. I also read that this headache could also be treated with surgery if there is an underlying pituitary lesion. (Oh.. I don’t have that!) But I have Diabetes Mellitus since 1989.

Interesting huh!!!

My physiatrist, Docchito reminded me to do all my PT (physical therapy) treatment modalities.
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I’d do anything to alleviate this physical pain. What I do today will determine what pain I’ll have tomorrow.

Hmmmmm …. gotta go shopping after I paint, read, write, cook and bake. Don’t forget to pray betsisanders!!!

Pain is real. I choose not to be defeated by pain.

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[Thank you for the pictures from the www that I borrowed and used in this blog post.]