I was diagnoised with Fibromyalgia this week. I was diagnoised with Lupus approx. 10 years ago. I am 38 years old and besides being tired all the time and severe muscle and joint pain I have put on approx. 35 lbs. in the last year. I am very scared to go on any medication due to some of the side effects. Does anyone have any advice on medications that don't cause weight gain. Thanks for any and all help....I really need it.:)

i am on 7 different meds and i think that one of the most important thing to do is to drink plenty of water. also a good thing to do is have plenty of fiber in your diet to help keep the stuff in your body moving good.
although i should take my own advice on this one, exercise is super important. any movement is better than no movement.
my meds are Norco, Soma, Cymbalta, Requip, Rozerem, birth control pills, and high blood pressure medication.
i am 31 and have gained i think 20pds. i am now trying to lose and doing all these things listed and so far so good.
with our condition it is so hard to get the exercise that we need and it is so much easier for us to put on the weight wether its due to meds or not so i think if we can keep our wieght as close to what we need to we should be alot better.
good luck and i hope that this helps.
so how are you doing?
xoxo,
robin

Robin,
Thank you so much for your reply. I think I am overwhelmed and a bit depressed. I work out 6 days a week because it does help with the tightness in my joints and muscles, but I am having a difficult time with sleep and even though I am working out so hard (burning 700 calories each workout) I am still uncomfortable, bloated and gaining weight. My Dr. wants to put me on an antidepressant, but I am leary because of the side effects. Even though I dont feel well I know that "the present is not permenant". I am taking it one minute at a time. How do you manage your fibro? Do you find that your 7 medications help? I really appreciate your response. Have a great day and hope today is a good day for yoou health wise!

the meds do help. it has taken me a number of yrs to actually find what meds work best for me. some people will have their opinions on this matter because they may think that meds aren't the way to go but to each his own. i have been taking anti depressants since i was 18yrs old. i have tried so many and of course the all the new ones that come out. so far Cymbalta seems to help with depression but not with the pain. mentally i feel alot better but don't get me wrong i still have my moments.
to manage my fibro i get lots of rest. i stay home now due to pain so i really rest when i need to.
i also do yoga when i can and that is such a big help, so relaxing. there is this one show that comes on Oxygen called Inhale. it comes on super early so i use my DVR and do it when i am ready.
there is one thing that i do that i need to stop and that is drinking coffee. i love it and i know that it would really help if i stopped drinking it.
heat, heat, heat, luv it and it helps.
let me know if you any questions, my life is consumed by this illness and i do lots of research so let me know.
robin

I see a lot of posts talking about coffee ( I asume you mean caffientated) and avoiding it. I was drinking decaf for years ( got tachycardia when was hyperthyroid - now hypothyroid - had I-131 radioactive treatment in 1980) and recently started having some caff. coffee mixed with decaf in the mornings and I have found it really helps with the morning tiredness. Without it my legs are rubber until noon and go from chair to chair- have to go to work at 7AM so have found the boost helps.

One other thing - I see people post about Yoga - how do you get started? Is the show on Oxygen yoga or are there other shows on?

thank you Robyn so much....I appreciate your tips. Has Cymbalta caused you to gain weight or lose? Do you do your Yoga on tv or perhaps at a gym. I am thinking I need to lower my cardio and go with doing yoga. I appreciate all of your help!
Lisa

the show on Oxygen is on at 5am here where i am but i record it for later.
it is 1 hr and is all yoga. it starts out with a warm up then it gets your heart going with some great yoga moves then it has a great cool down and then meditation at the end. it does have commercials and i will usually have some water at that time. alot of the things i can't do but he will give you alternatives if it is to hard. you can go at your own speed to. i love the show.
their is this other one that comes on FIT tv that has a 30show. it is Namaste Yoga. really soft music and not high impact at all.
about the caffeine, i have cut out most of it and have cut down my coffee to just drinking it in the morning. when i worked it was an all day thing. i do have the occasional energy drink.
Cymbalta has not caused me to gain weight that i know of. i think many things have led to my weight gain. i had a baby in May, birth control pills, I don't work anymore so i am not as busy and junk food. i was just dx with High blood pressure and high Cholesterol so i HAVE TO start taking care of my weight. so far the 30's have been rough.
luv,
robin:)

Hi Robin,
Thanks so much for the info...I taped "inhale" today with my DVR and did the Yoga this afternoon. It was a little challenging, but I had worked out at the gym earlier. My Dr. put me on Wellbutrin Sr twice a day...I am hoping it does not put weight on. I am 5'8" and weigh a whopping 169....I have never weighed this much in my life. Oh well, we will see if this works. So, how are you feeling? Hope you have a great rest of the day.
TTYL
Lisa

welcome lisa,
i also have lupus and fibro. been doing it for years. 12 years with fibro and 3 or 4 with lupus. it was hard at first. so many changes in my reality. weight gain was a problem. i am 5'5" and went up to 198 on the meds in the beginning. was in a wheelchair and really wondered what the next 40 or so years of my life were going to be like.
then one day i woke up and realized i had a choice. i could get proactive in my health so i did. life did not get easier, pain is still with me, yet i have such joy in my heart and mind. it took me 2 years to get my weight down to 125. i walked about with all that weight for 9 years. so hard on my tiny feet.
i take 10mg of ambien for sleep along with 50mg benadryl. also 1200mg of neurontin for restless leg syndrome.
sister i have had 3 strokes, i have 2 kinds of arthritis, degenerative joint disease and so many other things i forget them all.
for pain i take 500mg of vicodin. this is new since the arthritis got so rough.
i do not take antidepressants. for me there was a mourning period. a leaving behind of the me i knew and finding the me i was to become. i was not depressed, i was sad. there is a difference. only you know if you are sad or depressed. as you say, it will pass. and it does. we all find our way back to our joy. it is never gone, just buried under a pile of "oh God what do i do now?" stuff.
yoga is heaven. meditation has gifted me with a place i can retreat to when the pain is bigger than i am. it is there i find my power to smile, laugh and revel in life itself. pain has taught me so much about compassion and love. i will alway be grateful to my body for getting sick and showing me a slower, genteler way of living.
how fondly i remember oceanside. grew up down that way. now i am in northern california on a lake. close enough to smell the ocean in the fog.
know that you have found a place that is all yours and we are always only a key stroke away.
peace,
bluelakelady

i am so happy that you found Inhale. i love the music.
i know when i first do it am sore the next day in my shoulders from all the downward dogs, lol.
get this i am 5'0 and weigh 150pds. i guess i can blame some on baby weight huh?lol.
my baby will be 1 yr in May so i guess its getting to the point where i can't use that excuse anymore, hehehe.
i hope your new script works for you and keep us posted,
robin:wave:

thank you so much...you are such an inspiration. congrats on losing your weight. what a great accomplishment and as you mentioned i am sure your tiny feet are happy. you seem like a very special woman and i thank you so much for taking the time to repond to my message. i think for the most part i am scared. the not knowing what is going to happen next with the pain. like i said before i am taking it one minute at a time and once i get through that minute i go to the next. i will definetly keep you posted. it's a new journey for me one that i am not sure of now, but who knows some of the best things in life were not planned.
have a wonderful evening!
Lisa

hi lisa,
it's absolutely normal to feel fear at first. and sadness. it is part of letting go of yesterday and learning to look forward to that next moment when a flower may appear, or a bird, or a sunrise, that will make your day. sure there will be pain. you will learn to live joyously even in pain.
i discovered it is always my choice how i see my life. full or empty, i decide. i choose full. every day no matter how the pain expresses itself i lay down at night knowing i had a full day. maybe that day was spent abed with movies, or gardening or errands or doctors. lots of doctors.
only i decide if my day was wasted. it never is.
being afraid will only feed the fibro pain. it eats your stress and spits out huge pain. the more you stress the happier fibro is, eating away at you. see the cycle? only you can break it. fear is wasted precious energy you need. it really is not so bad having fibro. each day i learn more about acceptance and compromise. it has been 12 years now.
one thing that really helped me was getting my messed up life to a shrink for help. i learned new coping skills for living. i learned to set boundaries and keep them. i learned how to stop being an enabler and get rid of the other half of that sick equation. i learned to say no gently.
i found words to be so powerful. understanding the ways they are used has been invaluable to me. i spent 9 years shrinking and recreating my brain, my me. i graduated 2 years ago with honors.
having someone to simply listen for an hour is heaven. sometimes i miss that part. my shrink said i am a natural whereas he had to go to school. he said the tables had turned and i knew more than he. that was graduation day.
there is nothing special about me. if i can do this so can you. in time you will learn to laugh loud and long at the pain. you will find yourself saying, yea? trying to scare me fibro? nice try. ha!
have a wonder filled day.
peace,
bluelakelady

thank you so much bluelakelady. Yesterday was a hard day, but my pain today is much better. I am finding that heat is very helpful to my achy muscles. i hope you are doing well and have a great weekend.
Lisa