Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia pain and symptoms like “fibro fog” can make every aspect of life a challenge. If you have fibromyalgia symptoms, visit Balcones Pain Consultants at their offices in Austin, Cedar Park, or Marble Falls, Texas. The highly skilled pain physicians specialize in treating complex conditions like fibromyalgia using the most advanced therapies. Call Balcones Pain Consultants today or book an appointment online to find relief from the misery of fibromyalgia.

What is fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia causes chronic, mainly musculoskeletal pain throughout your body, affecting the muscles, skin, and soft tissues. Stiffness, headaches, and tender joints are common. Fibromyalgia can also cause numbness and tingling in your arms, legs, hands, or feet.

In addition, patients with fibromyalgia have a heightened response to pain. They feel it more intensely (hyperalgesia) and may suffer pain from light touches that wouldn’t normally hurt (allodynia).

Fibromyalgia pain is typically ever-present, although it can vary in intensity. Some days you might have dull aching or widespread tenderness. At other times, the pain can flare up and become agonizing.

Besides pain, fibromyalgia can cause numerous other symptoms, such as:

• Memory and thinking problems (fibro fog)
• Extreme fatigue
• Difficulty sleeping
• Headaches
• Depression

You’re more likely to get conditions like IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) and arthritis if you have fibromyalgia.

What causes fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia’s causes aren’t fully understood, but research indicates that several factors could be involved. 

These include your genes (fibromyalgia frequently affects several family members), chronic tissue inflammation, nerve dysfunction (neuropathy), and autoimmune disorders.

How is fibromyalgia diagnosed?

You can’t diagnose fibromyalgia using lab or imaging tests. However, the Balcones Pain Consultants team has considerable experience identifying and treating fibromyalgia.

First, they exclude other possible causes of your symptoms. They perform a physical exam, review your medical history, and find out about your problems in detail. They might do tests or procedures to rule out conditions like arthritis or neurological disorders.

During the physical exam, your provider presses on specific spots around your body to see how you react. There are 18 pressure points in places like your neck, back, and joints, which are unlikely to be painful if you don’t have fibromyalgia.

However, pressing on these places when you do have fibromyalgia can result in concentrated, throbbing agony that can last an hour or more. This test isn’t definitive though; you could have fibromyalgia and not develop these pain points.

How is fibromyalgia treated?

There isn’t a cure for fibromyalgia, but it’s a manageable condition. Balcones Pain Consultants offer several therapies to help reduce your symptoms, such as:

• Pain medication
• Anti-seizure medicines
• Low-dose antidepressants
• Physical therapy
• Occupational therapy
• Psychological counseling
• Steroid injections
• Nerve blocks

Relaxation techniques, yoga, mindfulness, and lifestyle changes can also help.

When you find every day a struggle because of fibromyalgia, call Balcones Pain Consultants. You can book over the phone or use the online form to arrange a consultation.