If life is a bowl of cherries, why am I here in the pits?

[Travelinana]

As I read about the excitement of many of you making progress with your Alaskan adventure, some just downsizing to make travel less complicated, and all the Texas GTG'ers, I am feeling a little sorry for myself. I spent yesterday getting checking accts closed and one just stopping payment on checks in the CB, as I lost 3 checkbooks out of my purse, 2 business and 1 personal, 2 different banks. Boy, did I learn a valuable lesson about one of the banks. I won't bore you with the details but piece of advise; before opening an account find out the charge to stop payment on a check...it can vary enormously from bank to bank. I used the occasion to voice my displeasure with the bank that had my business accounts. If they had been professional enough to take me to a desk, let me sit down while we did this I might have spared every teller in the joint plus all the customers standing..I dare say, they lost more than me yesterday..I'm a nice person, most anyone you ask will tell you but I stand up for my rights when the situation dictates.
Today I got up feeling like a Mack truck had run over me, haven't made this announcement before but last month my pain clinic diagnosed fibromyalgia. To be honest, I don't usually do 'trendy diseases' but with every really bad thing eliminated this is what they came up with. Now I'm on a new med that I really think is helping, but not so much today. I am still winding down on the narcotics for those of you who remember my posts on this, I'm now at 1/4 of the original dosage, tramadol is now in my past and percocet is at 1/4 of original so I guess that's really less than 1/4. My doctor thinks I should relax and not worry about this much. I want to say a little more about tramadol (ultracet or ultram). It is very, very hard to get off of. I have read many accounts on this and find my suffering fell right in line with many others who gave it up. It was and is marketed and prescribed heavily because it is a synthetic narcotic (doesn't sound as bad so it's easy to say I'm not taking a narcotic).
I'm fighting all this so hard, I want to travel for 5 years, meet up with my forum sisters and just have fun. Pain is not fun! Has anyone else been diagnosed with Fibro? It just helps to share and learn you're at least just an average, slightly normal aging citizen.

[sharon]

Ahhh, so sorry Nancy that you're having to go thru all of this. Unfortunately I'm finding that the more we age the more we find wrong with out bodies. Fibro is a hard one, have a good friend with it and I know it's really painful. I found a website about a clinic in Las Vegas that's making great strides with this. I'm sure you're ready for a road trip and LV is fun. Plus we have Lotus there and she's awesome! PM me if you're interested and I'll see if I can find it again. Hope things start looking up for you soon! Big hugs to you!

[JudyJB]

So sorry about your fibromyalgia. Unfortunately, I cannot help you with that, other than I do know it is supposed to come and go, so you may well have lots of good years among the bad. You have done amazingly well cutting down on drugs, but you may just have to live with a certain level to get pain relief.

However, I did lose or have a purse stolen many years ago containing a checkbook, and it was much harder than losing a credit card or having one stolen. Have you reported this to the police as a possible theft? You should. My experience was that instead of just closing the account and reporting the checks as stolen, my lousy bank reported any check that came in as insufficient funds, even though the account was closed. (Once you close an account, you should not need to stop payment because that is their responsibility.) I switched banks later because of the way they handled this.

Someone tried to pass my checks for many months, and the bounced checks were reported to the credit agencies by the stores as my writing bad checks, so it would not hurt to notify them as well. For about a year, I could not write any checks at all without having the recipient make a phone call and my giving a password. Each time someone tried to pass a check, even though the account was closed, I had to send in a copy of the police report of the stolen or missing purse and a letter saying the checkbook was stolen. It was a mess!!!

Good luck getting this all straightened out.

[Rufflesgurl]

Nancy - sounds like you just need to get in Destiny and head out!! And, I've heard that the warmer climates are good for fibro. Take care of yourself.

Linda

[jthistle]

Hi Nancy,

I feel your pain because I live it too. I have had chronic pain since my early twenties. My doctor has mentioned Fibromyalgia but he and I together have decided to not formally diagnose me with it because I am only 35. A diagnosis like this at my age could mean a lot of years of difficulty with insurances and such. Even though I am in pain 24/7, I choose to walk it off rather than take medicine. After 10 years in the medical field giving cocktails of meds to people, I decided that I did not want to live my whole life like that. Was this an easy decision? Absolutely not. Being in constant pain is a horrible way to have to live and can affect every aspect of your life. Some days I feel okay and some days I can hardly walk. But I am married, have 3 children and two businesses to run so I basically cannot let anything hold me back.

How do I do it? Sometimes I don't know. For relief I have a great massage therapist. I have had bad ones, you need a good one. I also get Craniosacral massage which uses pressure points to promote healing. It actually keeps me going for a good 6 weeks after treatment. You won't find this kind of massage everywhere, usually at a holistic doctor's office. Finally I don't sleep basically at all without a Tylenol PM. A glass of wine or vodka and OJ help release the neck muscles pretty well too. Sometimes I just have to sit back, close my eyes and breathe. I think being able to relax helps reduce the inflammation too.

Just know you are far from alone out there. Jessica

[Nasoosie]

So sorry to hear you are not feeling well at all, Nan. My mother-in-law (ex, with whom I am still family) suffers terribly from Fibromyalgia, whatever this disease is. I am doing my own research collecting data from those who have been diagnosed with it, and even from those who have just suffered wih no diagnosis, and they are many. Did you ever have chicken pox as a kid, or even as an adult? I have a theory that, instead of just shingles being cause by that varicella virus that hides out in your spinal cord for life, sometimes a person may show symptoms of unknown origin, called Fibromyalgia.

Anyone out there who has had chicken pox, and has lots of unknown origin pain, please let me know.

In the meantime, Nan, you have done super to wean yourself off the narcotics and false narcotics---but-----don't cut back so much you are always in extreme pain and can't do anything. I am no stranger to pain for the past month, and I know what that can do to your entire mind and soul. I am really looking forward to meeting you and Destiny as soon as possible, Nan, so stay in good spirits, even if you must use spirits to achieve that goal!

Sending good thoughts your way, and hoping something will click and your body will feel like it's only 21 years old again! Pain can be tolerable for short periods, and if you know it will eventually go away, as I know mine (broken ribs) will.

From a recovering me

[BirdbyBird]

ACK ACK ACK for the stolen check books..... that just sounds like the unwelcome gift that could keep in giving pain after pain In this day and age there does seem as if they should be able to come up with a better solution.

Regarding Fibro.... I have known several individuals over the years that have dealt with it in their lives. I do think that similar to MS....it effects different bodies differently. The over whelming tiredness and aching joints/pain ....have such secondary mental consequences. There is a lot out there on the internet to be read and many Dr.s with differing opinions. All you can do is what you can do, one day at a time. Allow yourself the support you need physically, mentally and "medicinally" to keep moving forward.

[Travelinana]

Talk about the gift that keeps on giving...I just realized by digging into some files that one of the checks that was stopped was my payment to AR DofF&A for state income tax owed. Isn't this going to be fun? I was channeled around until coming back to the first one I talked to...I said please just let me pay this with my credit card, can't it be that simple? Nope! I have to wait as long as 6 weeks to get my certified letter from the 'hot check dept'..She said I will then get to plead with them not to penalize me. I will say this was a nice lady and she assured me my credit wouldn't be affected and when they hear my reason I won't be penalized. We'll see! I am more and more certain that those checkbooks were taken while at Sq dancing Mon night. I was carrying a purse that fell open. Those checkbooks must have been too tempting to someone and I think I know who that someone was but I'll never make any accusations of course.
All of you are so sweet and I do feel comforted on this 'not one of greatest weeks'. I know a pill is not the fix all and I have resumed some swimming at our new community center. This bod could sure use a few strokes, swimming included!
The workamper seminar is next week and I'm attending, after that I'm out of here!!
By the way, I am leaving messages for Linda (biker chic). She's supposed to be coming to the seminar.
Nancy

[BarbaraRose]

Sorry to hear about all your problems! Seems like when it rains, it pours!

Linda is leaving Phoenix today and is still planning on attending the seminars, so keep an eye out for her! She is wonderful and very nice, so you will enjoy meeting her and spending time with her!

Good luck!

[OutandAbout]

Sorry to hear about the Fibro diagnosis. I have a friend with it also. I would imagine that your recent banking problems and stress have caused a flare=up. Hard to do, but stress does increase the Fibro pain. There is a lot more info out there now. Health food stores and the library are loaded with info, as is the internet. There is also much that can be done without medication, such as exercises and relaxing. Good luck with finding the right path to follow. Linda

[mitch5252]

..

Nancy, I'm so sorry you are having all this to deal with in so short a time.
That's a bunch to deal with.

I noticed there are several fibromyalgia support groups online.

..

[Suchomlin]

Nancy:
I have a friend who has fibromyalgia. She swears by a thing called Alpha Stim. Look it up on line. When I am back in the States, I am most likely going to buy one myself. A person with whom I work here in Korea, a PhD type, swears by it as well. It is this little gadget that helps with the pain and also helps with sleep. It is not cheap and I understand you would need for your physician to write out a statement that it is needed. I also understand that some insurance companies will cover the item.
Just to let you know that I loved your subject matter line and when I talked with my friend in Oro Valley I mentioned it to her, and she laughed heartily. Banks can be infuriating institutions, so very smug. I have started to bank with the on-line bank called Ally. I can reach them 24 hours on the phone and have found them to be always helpful.

Wishing the very best for your. Tatjana

[Bethers]

Ah, what a mess with the banks, and your pain. I hope you are very proud of yourself for how far you have come in getting off those pain meds. That is a very, very difficult thing you've accomplished. I know you still are on some, and mabye always will be - but cutting down like that must have been so very difficult. I'm glad to hear how far you've come.

I can't help with the fribo, but like already said, I know in some ways it acts like MS, and that's so different for everyone. I have a relative and a close friend (among others) with MS who have been struggling with it's ups and downs for years. Some years much better than others - that they say make the stuggles worth it.

Hugs to you.

[AlmostThere]

Adding my hugs, Nancy. So sorry for all the grief you are trying to manage.
Don't get me started on banks!

[Dawn309]

So sorry to hear about your trouble with the banks and checks.

I am proud of you for weaning yourself off the pain pills. About 10 years ago I was diagnosed with MS and understand about the pain. I was taking the maximum dosage of Neurontin along with Nortriptilyn and Hydrocodone for pain management. Last year my most recent MRI came back that my lesions on my brain were not necessarily caused by MS. My neurologist said without another battery of tests, she did not for sure if I did have MS, Lupus, or "one of the myalgias". She said all she knew for certain was that my lesions are disease related. I had to quit work when Chuck became sick and have no health insurance so still don't know which I have. When the pharmacist told me one month of generic Neurontin was almost $400, I said no thank you. I have weaned myself off all but the Nortriptilyn and Tylenol PM. To be real honest, I cannot tell much difference between the pain then and now. Like everyone else, I have good days and bad days. Hang in there. I am of the opinion now that some of the medicines we take may not be really making any difference.

Stress does not help, so try not to worry about problems that may come. I know you will deal with them if they rear their ugly head at that time.