Differences in CFS and FM - Chronic Fatigue Message Board

arthelia · 02-17-2002, 02:02 AM

Hello! I'm a total newbie here!

I was "officially" diagnosed with CFS back in the late 80's. I was 29 then and just turned 44 recently.

Back in "those days" it was a miracle to just get a doctor to not laugh at you! Especially in the small town I'm from. When I finally found one who told me I had CFS and was not crazy in the head...that it was real...it was a huge relief. Now I wonder though, if I may have or also have FM and it was just not diagnosed. Many of the symptoms are certainly the same!

I just wondered what the general consensus is...are there some people who just have CFS alone and others who have CFS AND FM, or are they almost always realated?? Just wanted some of your comments on that.

My first 5 years with CFS were pure Hell, but with time, Vit B shots, and a stict diet that I followed (totally on my own and out of desperation) from the book "Yeast Connection", I finally started to bounce back and at least become functional again!

I still have bad flare-ups in the late summer and early fall. Molds and such in the air and lack of sleep both give me the same symptoms...a heaviness in my chest/labored breathing, muscle and joint aches and tightness and feeling of fuzziness in thinking, etc.

My ongoing symptoms yet today are burning in shoulder and knee joints,paliptations and episodes of tachycardia (that I take meds for), insomnia and irratic sleep patterns, stiff joints especially in hips and legs, sore but not swollen lymphs.

I get along fairly well now (although sometimes I wish I could be better), but if I get carried away / forget myself while doing yard work or excercise, I'm sick again and have to take several days/sometimes a week or more, to recoop.

The one symptom I am finally free of are the horrible headaches! In the early years I had the feeling like a tight band was around my head, which also throbed...that was terrible and I'm thankful those are gone!

I used to love the mountains and love travel to places like Colorado. Now high altitudes make me sick/fatigued and irritate my heart. Anyone else have trouble with altitudes???

Just wondered what anyones thoughts were on the link/simularities of CFS and FM.

Thanks!

Mrs Cookie · 03-09-2002, 12:18 PM

Hi Athelia!
I'm new to the board, don't even know if i can help you with your question, I can only tell you what I have experianced.
I have both CFIDS/FMS and I have had fm for a year this month, and the other for 7 yrs. I was hard for me to distinguish the 2 at first. with CFIDS my tachycardia starts in and i have awful headaches a sore throat and a low grade fever and I feel as though i have the flu, with the muscle aches also and it's hard for me to function.....no energy at all!

With Fibromyalgia, I have pain in my shoulders, neck, arm, back, hips, legs, elbow. hands....and the list goes on. with fibro, you never know on any given day where it will be when you wake up the next morning, depending on if you got any sleep the night before. I have been in a cfids flare for 2 weeks now andI haven't had a good nights sleep In while, even on all the meds I still have trouble sleeping, or I will sleep and the next morning I feel as though I hadn't slept at all. I also have irritable bowel syndrome, vetigo.....oh annd lets not forget!! fibro fog!.....I hope I was able to help you some...as it's hard to think right about now.

Hope You Get To Feeling Better!

Hugs Coming Your Way!
Cookie

Tawnie · 03-12-2002, 07:16 PM

My Dr. highly suspect that I have CFS. I have an appt. next month with a specialist in N.C. who hopefully will be able to determine if I just have CFS, or if I also have FM too. My symptoms change from month to month, but currently they are:
sore throat, allergy symptoms, nausea, headache, numbness in back of head, tachycardia, TMJ pain, muscle spasms of jaw & neck, and low grade fever.
It's always something new.

rhody · 03-17-2002, 10:13 PM

CFS and fibromyalgia are often combined with people suffering from mercury-silver dental amalgam poisoning. This is a topic that is personally important to me, since I have been cured of gum disease, loose teeth and fibromyalgia symptoms after having my eight dental amalgams removed. I can't say if this is what is causing your problems, but I can tell you all what has happened to me.

If you want to know more about this subject, please let me know. It impacted my life so much; that's why I write so much about it and other things on this health board. Before linking my illness with these amalgams, I changed to a healthy diet. I found that herbs greatly helped me also. But, when I got rid of those poisons out of my teeth, I got my life completely back.... I couldn't at times walk with the pain that I had, but now I run almost 20 miles a week.

It's interesting, although, I really didn't have CFS, but other people claim that they do. That's common knowledge. I guess I can say that now I'm a lot more spirited and do so much more, but I didn't have CFS to the point, where I couldn't work, for example.

There was one exception, when I experimented with anti-mercury components, but that is another story....

mbr22 · 03-18-2002, 07:36 AM

Hi rhody - what symptoms were associated with your mercury-amalgam fillings, or rather what symptoms were relieved after you had the fillings removed?

I have had chronic daily headaches in the forehead, behind the eyes, temples, jaw and a general "foggy head" type of feeling, ear fullness and pressure. Can't seem to find a cause or cure, and I do have 5 silver fillings.

At this point, I'll give anything a shot to see if ti works. Maybe I'll have the fillings removed. Any advice?

thanks