Hi all! I'm popping over from the RSD area, where I used to post several years ago (I think my last visit was in 2006) until I got on top of the chronic pain issue (as much as one can!). I'm semi-diagnosed w/fibromyalgia now, along with chronic migraines, RSD, and Meniere's Diease. I'm not upset about adding one more title to my list, but I do have some questions for all of you experienced people here, so I'll share a bit.

Recently though, I've been experiencing this life-sucking exhaustion, that forces me to lay down and rest- just sitting upright in a chair is so painful in my muscles and within a few hours I HAVE to lay down. I feel like there is a huge magnet that is pulling my whole body down, or like I have these terrible lead weights. I try not to nap much, as I have such trouble sleeping anyway, but when some fool activates those energy sucking magnets, I'm done-for, and out go. I can't do those little naps either. I'm out deep for 2-4 hours on average, which is funny, because if I could sleep that deeply at night, I think things would be so much better!! I'm so tired most of the time that I end up sitting in my adjustable bed (it supports, and doesn't hurt my body). I do go out a few days a week for a few hours, but that wears me out. Up until my knee got worse (5 surgeries, now I have RSD) in July, I was walking 3 1/2 miles 3-5 days per week. I've tried several times to re-start walking, but it wipes me so badly for days afterwards that I figure I need to get a handle on this "fatigue" thing. Not sure why no one in the medical world named it "bone-crushing-exhaustion," as that more aptly describes it. At least for pain, I can take meds and not feel (my mind may also become quite numb, but the pain is addressable). I have NO idea how to handle this fatigue. I've read that I'm supposed to pace myself, but doing one load of laundry puts me back in bed for the day. UGH! Any suggestions?

My neurologist told me a year or two (yep, I', one of those with the brain fog) that he thought I had fibromyalgia, but now that I'm ready to address it, he has told me that he isn't qualified to make that diagnosis. He's the head of the neurology department, so now I'm at a bit of a loss. I worked hard to wean myself off of the morphine (for the RSD pain) and move over to Lyrica a couple of years ago, but my pain is now increasing again. I have Kaiser medical insurance, so I need to know who to ask to be sent to next for an "official" diagnosis, so that hopefully someone can help. Any suggestions??

I've found that ANY stress and I just loose it I am snapping at the kids, and hiding in my room. The problem is that stress triggers symptoms/flairs things up, and I've been working hard on loosing weight and getting more active over the past year, so I have very little left to give myself, much less to anyone else. What a horrible person! What a horrible mom! OK, thanks for letting me get that out. (Yep, I did just ask the doc for some meds to help, and he added Celexa, (and I also have Valium as needed) so hopefully that will help. I guess the added frustration of having no control over my body/my body betraying me is getting to me a bit. Thought I had delt with those feelings years ago, but I think that the fact that I have no where to turn is what has been the final straw (along with being so tired!!!) Does anyone else here have stress intollerance?

OK, I'm sure I'm made this post a bit too long, but its been a long hard fall (hee hee, didn't mean the pun!!! Perhaps I should have said autum?)
Thanks anyone who want to give their two-cents. -Maria

Hi Maria, while I can't even begin to imagine what your illness is, the severe fatigue and stress are probably linked.
You are under severe stress, for one reason or another, and this puts a huge strain on the body as it fights it.
The fight or flight thing.
Sleep will be disrupted ,broken and not fulfilling, leaving you ill prepared to face the day, so more stress is generated from frustration and annoyance.
Hard to say which came first, the fatigue or the stress, but you have to deal with both.
Often stress is caused by our inappropriate response to stimuli, and changing this behaviour can lead to a reduction in stress generation.
Learn to say no, allow things to go wrong, just accept things you can't change-that sort of thing.
Try to look at yourself when next confronted with a potential strssor, and note what your first reaction is. If it is to fight it, see if you can work on flight instead.
Everyone has stressors to deal with, you just have to learn the least damaging way.

With fatigue, this may be a sign of a deeper problem, and it warrants further investigation.
I'd suggest that you start to list all of your symptoms, using top quality websites, and then see your doctor.
To give you an idea of the scope that you need to encompass, have a look at this symptom list for M.E.
Not saying this is what you have; it's just a helpful tool to research your problems better.
http://www.hfme.org/themesymptomlist.htm