As a woman, dealing with monthly periods, body pains, and many unheard aches already poses a challenge. Combining these conditions with a pain disorder, such as fibromyalgia, bumps the difficulty to a higher level.
Being a woman can make you more prone to developing disorders such as migraines, fibromyalgia and lupus. In fact, 9 out of 10 fibromyalgia patients around the world are women.
Fibromyalgia is a chronic pain disorder where you might feel widespread pain and tenderness. To give you an idea of what fibromyalgia feels like for some patients, try to visualize these situations:
- You run 10 miles without stopping, and then you swim for another 10 miles.
- You didn’t sleep for a few days, and you need to finish reading a 200-page book in one sitting.
Upon visualizing these scenarios, you can see that fibromyalgia is a frustrating, tiring condition that heavily impacts a person’s life. Aside from chronic pain and soreness, other fibromyalgia symptoms include:
- Extreme fatigue
- Difficulty in concentrating
- Difficulty in sleeping
- Sudden mood changes
- Migraines
- Sensitivity to hot and cold temperatures
- Digestive disorders (Irritable Bowel Syndrome)
- Lethargy
Fibromyalgia symptoms vary from person to person. However, women experience these symptoms more severely than men. Pain disorders like fibromyalgia and lupus can make life even more challenging for women. Medical experts agree that fibromyalgia can amplify pain sensations. Imagine how this condition amplifies the painful changes women have to go through every single month.
Today, we’ll look at four real-world problems that women with fibromyalgia face and try to overcome. Later, we’ll take a quick look at a natural way for relief from fibromyalgia pains and symptoms.
#1. The Worst Menstrual Pain
If you are a woman or you know women, you are aware of the menstrual pains they experience every month. Menstrual pains (dysmenorrhea and cramps) can occur before, during, and sometimes after menstruation. If you are a woman diagnosed with fibromyalgia, it can increase menstrual pains by a hundredfold.
Fibromyalgia is a neurological disorder, which means that it affects the normal functions of the brain. The brain controls the release of hormones during the menstrual cycle. If a woman has fibromyalgia, it means that the brain will process painful sensations more.
#2. Harsher Menopausal Stage
Women, who are undergoing menopause, already experience symptoms that cause severe discomfort. Menopausal women have to endure mood changes and irritability, hot flashes, abdominal pain, breast soreness, and migraines. Fibromyalgia can amplify these symptoms, making menopause more uncomfortable and painful than it already is.
Fibromyalgia patients undergoing menopause can also suffer from intense body aches and tenderness. These heightened symptoms can lead to more problems with sleeping, cognition, and mood swings.
#3. Poor Bladder and Bowel Control
Female fibromyalgia patients experience changes in their bowel habits as well as problems urinating. Fibromyalgia patients may end up with a condition called chronic pelvic pain and dysfunction (CPPD).
CPPD puts sufferers at higher risk of painful bladder syndrome (PBS) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). IBS and bladder issues like PBS are prevalent symptoms of fibromyalgia.
PBS is a condition that affects the bladder, leading to the following symptoms:
- Pelvic pain
- Painful urination
- Pain during intercourse
- Bladder pressure
- Bladder pain
IBS is a condition that affects digestive organs, specifically the large intestine, and can result in the following symptoms:
- Bloating
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal cramps
- Flatulence
- Constipation
- Backaches
#4. Fibromyalgia Symptoms That Are Worse Than Men’s
Compared to men, women experience more severe and frequent fibro attacks felt throughout the body. Each of these attacks can last for hours and, sometimes, a few days. Women with fibromyalgia feel more pain than men because women have more tender points.
Tender points refer to areas in the body that feel sore and tender due to fibromyalgia. There are 18 identified tender spots in the body– some are behind the shoulders, in the arms, upper buttocks, and knees.
#5. Depression
Both fibromyalgia and lupus share chronic pain as a symptom. If you feel pain constantly, along with sleeping issues and chronic fatigue, you are likely to develop stress and anxiety.
Stress and anxiety are two of the typical factors that often lead to depression. If you are a woman with fibromyalgia, you might experience not only physical pain but also depression.
Dealing with fibromyalgia can also make social interactions difficult since the only thing you can focus on is the pain in your body. Essentially, fibromyalgia can get in the way of new experiences and time with your loved ones.
Break Free from Fibromyalgia Pains with Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care
Upon diagnosis, your doctor will recommend that you take painkillers, anti-inflammatory drugs, and anti-depressants to combat fibromyalgia symptoms. However, similar to how people experience this condition, the effect of certain medications varies for each individual.
These medicines are usually fast-acting, but they only offer temporary relief. This is why many patients with fibromyalgia are looking for other relief alternatives for chronic pain. Plenty has discovered a natural method called upper cervical chiropractic care.
The upper cervical spine involves the two bones found in the neck—the atlas and axis. These two bones allow head movements and protect the brainstem, which connects the brain to the rest of the body. Since these bones have more range in motion than other ones in the spine, they are more susceptible to misaligning.
Even the tiniest misalignment in the upper neck can add excessive pressure and irritate the brainstem, disrupting the signals sent to the brain. This disturbance can manifest as pain sensations felt all over the body, a classic symptom of fibromyalgia.
Upper cervical chiropractors are fully capable of assessing and correct misalignments in the upper neck. Correcting the misalignment can allow the body to recover and heal from the symptoms after a sustained injury.
Suppose you are dealing with fibromyalgia and lupus, and you want to experience relief from the pain they bring. In that case, upper cervical chiropractic care can give you the comfort you so deserve. Contact an upper cervical chiropractor near you today and discover what this natural method can do for you.
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