Symptoms

Symptoms

We all know Fibro is not just the normal World with a bit of pain thrown in. It is an entirely new World with over 200+ potential symptoms.

Whether you are just starting your journey or have been dealing with the condition for years this list will help you understand what “Fibro Strong” means and why all of us living with this horrible illness are “Warriors” surviving one hell of a life altering fight.

We have tried to get as much information about these symptoms as we can for you. Items in ‘Black’ have no other information (but we may get some at a later date) whereas items in ‘Blue’ are links to other pages with more information which you may find helpful.

(Please be aware some symptoms may overlap and be repeated. Also remember symptoms may vary person to person)

GENERAL:

• Activity levels decrease
• Cold hands and feet
• Cough
• Craving Carbohydrates
• Delayed reaction to Physical activity or stressful events
• Disk degeneration
• Dryness of eyes and mouth (Sgogren’s Syndrome)
• Family members with Fibromyalgia
• Fatigue made worse by physical exertion or stress
• Fibro Flares
• Frequent sighing
• Heart palpations
• Haemorrhoids
• Hoarseness
• Hypoglycaemia (blood sugar level falls)
• Increased Thirst
• Low blood pressure, below 110/70
• Low body temperature, below 97.6
• Low grade fevers
• Night sweats
• Noisy joints may be with or without pain
• Nose bleeds
• Often feeling cold
• Often feeling hot
• Poor circulation in hands and feet
• Profuse sweating
• Recurrent Flu like illnesses
• Severe Nasal allergies or new or worsening allergies
• Shortness of breath with little or no exertion
• Sore throat
• Subjective swelling of extremities- feels swollen but can’t find anything
• Sweats
• Swelling due to fluid build-up in the body
• Symptoms worsened by air travel
• Symptoms worsened by stress
• Symptoms worsened by temperature and/or weather pressure change
• Tender or swollen lymph nodes especially in the neck and underarms
• Tremors or trembles
• Unexplained weight loss or gain

CARDIOVASCULAR:

• Click-murmur sounds through a stethoscope
• Fluttery heartbeat
• Heart palpations
• Irregular heartbeat
• Loud pulse in the ear
• Pain that mimics a heart attack
• Rapid heartbeat

COGNITIVE:

• Becoming lost in familiar locations when driving
• Confusion
• Difficulty expressing ideas in words
• Difficulty following a conversation especially if background noise is present
• Difficulty following directions when driving
• Difficulty following oral instructions
• Difficulty following written instructions
• Difficulty making decisions
• Difficulty moving your mouth to speak
• Difficulty paying attention
• Difficulty putting ideas together to form a complete picture
• Difficulty putting tasks or things in proper sequence
• Difficulty recognising faces
• Difficulty remembering names of objects and people
• Difficulty speaking known words
• Difficulty understanding what you read
• Difficulty with long term and short-term memory
• Difficulty with simple calculations
• Dyslexia type symptoms occasionally
• Easily distracted during a task
• Feeling to disorientated to drive
• Forgetting how to do routine things
• Impaired ability to concentrate
• Inability to recognise familiar surroundings
• Losing track in the middle of a task or remembering what comes next
• Losing your train of thought in the middle of a sentence
• Loss of ability to distinguish some colours
• Poor judgment
• Reversal of numbers, words, or letters when you speak or write
• Short term memory impairment
• Slowed speech
• Staring into space trying to think
• Stuttering or stammering
• Switching left to right
• Trouble concentrating
• Using the wrong word
• Word finding difficulties

EMOTIONAL:

• Abrupt or unpredictable mood swings
• Anger outbursts
• Anxiety
• Anxiety Disorders
• Anxiety or fear when there is no obvious cause
• Attacks of uncontrollable rage
• Decreased appetite
• Depressed mood
• Fear of someone knocking on the door
• Fear of telephone ringing
• Feeling helpless and/or hopeless
• Feeling worthless
• Frequently crying
• Heightened awareness of symptoms
• Inability to enjoy previously enjoyed activities
• Irrational fears
• Irritability
• Overreaction
• Panic attacks
• Personality changes usually a worsening of previous condition
• Phobias
• Stress
• Suicide attempts or thoughts
• Tendency to cry easily.

EQUILIBRIUM / PERCEPTION:

• Bumping into things
• Clumsy walking
• Difficulty balancing
• Difficulty judging distances especially when driving
• Directional disorientation
• Dropping things frequently
• Feeling spatially disorientated
• Frequently tripping or stumbling
• Not seeing what you are looking at
• Poor balance and coordination
• Staggering gait.

GASTROINTESTINAL:

• Abdominal cramps
• Bloating
• Decreased appetite
• Food cravings
• Frequent constipation
• Frequent diarrhoea
• Gerd like symptoms
• Heartburn
• IBS
• Increased appetite
• Intestinal gas
• Irritable bladder
• Nausea
• Regurgitation
• SIBO (Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth)
• Stomach ache
• Unexplained weight gain or loss
• Vomiting.

NEUROLOGICAL:

• Blackouts
• Brain (Fibro) fog
• Carpel tunnel
• Fainting
• Feeling spaced out
• Hallucinating smells
• Headaches
• Inability to think clearly
• Lightheadedness
• Noise intolerance
• Numbness or tingling sensations
• Neurotransmitters
• Seizure like episodes
• Seizures
• Sensation that you might faint
• Sensitivity to light
• Tinnitus
• Vertigo or dizziness.

ORAL:

• Canker sores
• Dryness of mouth only
• Difficulties with swallowing
• Gum disease
• Hoarseness
• Sore throat
• Teeth grinding
• TMJ syndrome

PAIN:

• 7 Types of Fibro Pain
• Abdominal wall pain
• Bad hip pain
• Burning nerve pain
• Chest pain
• Collarbone pain
• Diffuse swelling
• Elbow pain
• Exacerbated planter arch or heel pain
• Growing pains that don’t go away once you are done growing
• Inflamed rib cartilage
• Joint pain
• Lumpy tender breasts
• Morning stiffness
• Muscle spasms
• Muscle twitching
• Muscle weakness
• Pain that moves around the body
• Pain that ranges from moderate to severe
• Paralysis or severe weakness of an arm or leg
• Poking sensation in random places
• Restless leg syndrome
• Rib pain
• Scalp pain – feels like hair being pulled out
• Sciatica like pain
• Tender points or trigger points
• Tension or migraine headaches
• TMJ syndrome
• Widespread muscle pain.

SENSITIVITIES:

• Alcohol intolerance
• Alteration of taste, smell and /or hearing
• Hypersensitive to touch – Allodynia
• Sensitivities to food
• Sensitivity to chemicals in cleaning products, perfumes etc
• Sensitivity to extreme temperature changes
• Sensitivity to light
• Sensitivity to mould
• Sensitivity to noise
• Sensitivity to odours
• Sensitivity to pressure and humidity changes
• Sensitivity to yeast- getting yeast infections on the skin
• Sensory overload
• Vulvodynia

SKIN:

• Able to write on skin with finger
• Bruising easily
• Bumps and lumps
• Eczema or psoriasis
• Hot dry skin
• Ingrown hairs
• Itchy irritable skin
• Mottled skin
• Rashes or sores
• Scarring easily
• Sensitivity to the sun
• Skin suddenly turns red

SLEEP:

• Alerted sleep/wake schedule
• Alertness and energy best late at night
• Difficulty falling asleep
• Difficulty staying asleep
• Excessive sleeping
• Extreme alertness or energy levels late at night
• Falling asleep at random and sometimes dangerous moments
• Fatigue
• Light or broken sleep patterns
• Muscle spasms or twitching at night
• Narcolepsy
• Sleep disturbances
• Sleep starts or falling sensation
• Teeth grinding
• Tossing and turning
• Unrefreshed or non-restorative sleep
• Vivid or disturbing dreams and nightmares
• Waking frequently

UROGENITAL:

• Decreased libido
• Endometriosis
• Frequent urination
• Impotence
• Menstrual problems
• Need for an early hysterectomy
• Painful urination or bladder pain
• Pelvic pain
• PMS
• Prostrate pain.

THE LINKS TO OUR RESEARCH

https://fibromyalgiaresources.com/200-symptoms-of-fibromyalgia/