UnTouchableFibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a long-term condition that causes pain all over the body. Alongside the pain, people often have a heightened sensitivity to pain, stiff muscles, sleep that does not refresh, and the exhaustion that follows. Many describe 'fibro fog' — trouble concentrating and remembering. Headaches, irritable bowel syndrome and low mood are common too, and symptoms come and go unpredictably. The cause is not known. Research points to differences in the way the nervous system handles pain signals, genes may play a part, and symptoms often start after something physical or emotional such as an injury, an infection or a period of stress. There is no single test for it and the symptoms look like those of other conditions, so it can take a long time to reach a diagnosis. It is more common in women and usually begins between 25 and 55, though anyone can get it. There is no cure. Treatment usually combines exercise and relaxation, talking therapies, and medicines. Fibromyalgia Action UK offers information and a helpline. The NHS says to see a GP if you think you have fibromyalgia. Source: the NHS page on fibromyalgia.
This is a plain summary, not medical advice, and it is not a substitute for talking to your GP or your clinical team. For NHS information about fibromyalgia, speak to your GP or call NHS 111.
People who have talked about it
1 story, each one written in our own words from what the person said publicly themselves.
Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga on chronic pain, and naming it fibromyalgia
Lady Gaga named her condition herself, on her own Twitter account, on 12 September 2017. She wrote that the chronic illness and chronic pain she deals with in her documentary is fibromyalgia, and that she wanted to help raise awareness and connect the people who have it. Four days earlier she had talked about the pain itself, without naming it, at a press conference in Toronto for the film. Asked what it had been like to open up about chronic pain on camera, she said it was hard, and that it was liberating too. She said a strong part of her believes that her pain does her no good unless she turns it into something. She said she hoped people watching who live with chronic pain would know they are not alone, and that the film would point them towards help — for chronic pain, and for anxiety and mental illness as well. She also talked about shame: that there is a degree of self-deprecation and shame that goes with being in pain a lot. She said she wanted anybody who assumes that a person who dances and sings could not possibly be living that way to know that she struggles with the same things, that she works through it, and that she does not have to hide it. Two days after naming the condition she wrote again, asking for people's grace and understanding and promising she would come back and perform soon. A run of European concerts was postponed. Nothing here is medical advice. Fibromyalgia affects people differently and no single treatment works for everyone. The NHS says to see a GP if you think you have fibromyalgia.
Photographs, in order: Lady Gaga by Carlos M. Vazquez II (CC BY 2.0).