Anybody who lives with Fibromyalgia or any chronic illness, will tell you one of the most debilitating symptoms is living with pain. For some it is a constant in their daily lives; for others it comes and goes.
Fibromyalgia increases the brains sensitivity to pain and causes inflammation of the brain – more so than in other people. Any Fibromyalgia sufferer will tell you that there are certain areas of their body which are very sensitive to pressure. It causes a lot of pain when these areas are touched.
I will never forget the first time my Doctor touched the tender points on my body to try and diagnose Fibromyalgia. (A common diagnosis tool is to check the number of tender points – 18 possible sites which are very sensitive to touch. I think I had 13 of the 18 points that when touched, I felt like I would hit the roof – they were so painful.) At the time I couldn’t believe the sensitivity of those areas. It’s no surprize that I don’t like having a massage!
Most Fibromyalgia sufferers will have a similar story to tell.
Living with pain:
Once diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, we need to work out how to live with pain. Along with a diagnosis often sufferers are told that the symptoms we now live with, will be present the rest of our lives.
I was once told by a Pain Specialist that it was helpful to think of a continuum, with pain down one end and fatigue at the other end. Fibromyalgia patients can place themselves somewhere on the continuum. I experience more fatigue than pain therefore I’m further down the fatigue end of the continuum. It doesn’t mean that I don’t have pain, but I find the fatigue more overwhelming than the pain.
Learning how to live with pain is a huge challenge. Knowing the pain will never completely disappear and that you’ll never know exactly when it will strike or how long it will last doesn’t make life simple.
Every Fibromyalgia sufferer/fighter/warrior – or whatever name they have for themselves, has to find a way to manage the pain that comes will it.
There’s a Buddhist proverb that says:
“Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional.”
At first glance, this proverb seems to be making light of pain. But when you think about it, it’s true. We can allow the pain to lead us into suffering or, we can learn to live with pain and find a way to have fulfilling lives.
I love this quote by Robert Gary Lee:
“Wisdom is nothing more than healed pain.”
When we can start to understand our pain, it starts to lose its hold on us.
I’m not trying to belittle anyone’s pain in saying this. I never want to do that. But there is a line of thinking in the current research that says the more we can understand our pain, the less it hurts.
This is where the link between the brain comes in…
The brain is such a fascinating, complex part of our body. We are only just starting to understand how it works.
Several years back I was introduced to a training process called the “Lightening Process” developed by Phil Parker. On their website, it says:
“The Lightning Process is designed to teach people skills to improve their health and wellbeing by looking at how the brain and body influence each other, and how we can use this information and skills to make radical changes in our lives.”
As a result of participating in the Lightning Process, I discovered new ways of understanding my Fibromyalgia. I also developed new skills to break some of the old ways I responded to my pain and fatigue. It has been life changing for me and yet I have a lot more to learn!
It was a very helpful process and it seems to be backed up by research more and more, as new studies are conducted in the connections between the brain and body.
So, what does this mean for us now?
Trying to make sense out of the pain that you live with daily, isn’t an easy thing to do. Most days it’s enough just to survive it.
But what if there is a different way of looking at the pain you live with, that might help to bring some relief? Wouldn’t it be worth trying to understand it more?
Do you have moments like I do, where you notice that when you try different ways of doing things, in spite of your pain, that sometimes you come through it okay.
The fear of what pain might come or the aftermath of fatigue that is usually there – doesn’t eventuate. What do you take away from moments like this?
Sometimes, being open to the possibility that I’m not completely “locked into” the symptoms of Fibromyalgia gives hope for the future. There are still choices that I can make to improve my life.
The effect of HOPE on the brain has been proven scientifically. As a result of the endorphins being released, hope can help block pain.
Please take the time to click on this link and read this story about Dick and Rick Holt. It will inspire you. https://www.terrysmall.com/blog/brain-bulletin-47-the-science-of-hope
I’m reminded once again of the quote I mentioned in my last blog (Check out the blog here: https://loving-this-life.com/2019/11/11/my-chronic-illness-5-things-i-wish-others-knew/ ) by Theodore Roosevelt: