Fibromyalgia: 10 Tips for the Newly Diagnosed

If you were just diagnosed with fibromyalgia, most likely you have been battling pain and fatigue for awhile. While it can be relieving to finally have a name for your symptoms, learning that you have a chronic condition that you will most likely have to deal with for life can be distressing. Don't let pain keep you down. Small changes to your daily routine can keep you active and enjoying life. Here are ten tips to help you improve your quality of life.

1. Get enough sleep! There is some belief that fibromyalgia is caused by sleep disturbances so it is extra important that you do everything you can to make sure that you sleep as well as possible. Go to bed at the same time each night. Develop a bedtime routine. That will help your body to know that it is time to relax. If your bed is uncomfortable, consider getting a new mattress. If a new mattress is not financially feasible, a mattress pad and new pillows might help. Make sure that your bedroom isn't too hot or too cold.

2. Get up right away each morning. Lying in bed for much longer than eight hours is likely to lead to an increase in muscle stiffness. The best way to avoid this is to develop a routine of getting up at the same time each day. A regular rising schedule will also help you to fall asleep more easily at night.

3. Try hot baths. Soaking in a hot bath is an excellent way to relieve stress and relax your muscles. Thirty minutes in a hot bath (or even better a hot tub) can be a great way to start the day or a relaxing part of your bedtime routine.

4. Use gentle massage. Ask you partner or a friend to rub an aching back. Aching arm or leg muscles can even be massaged by yourself. The trick is keeping the massage gentle. You don't want to trigger a pain reflex, just to signal to your muscles that it is ok to relax.

5. Ask for help! This one is perhaps the most difficult but very important. There are most likely people in your life who would be happy to help out on an occasional or regular basis. Even asking for help with little things can make a huge difference. Can your partner bring you a drink so you don't have to stand up? Can your kids make their own lunches? Is your mom willing to run some errands for you when she is going out to do her own? Asking others to help you with simple things will give you more energy for the important things.

6. Make rest a regular part of your day. Although I recommend getting out of bed right away in the morning, during the day when you get tired, it is so important to rest! Rest can be lying down in bed with a book for half an hour or watching TV with your feet propped up. It can be doing a sitting task at work. Whenever I am tired, I do something to make myself more comfortable. That invariably leads to me having more energy for the next thing I need or want to do.

7. Don't be afraid of pain relievers. Talk to you doctor about what types of pain relievers might be best for you and then when you need them, take them. I know too many people who suffer because they are afraid of their medication. If you are worried about possible side effects, talk to your doctor and pharmacist about it and change medications if necessary.

8. Leave work stress at work. Life is hard enough without bringing home stress from a stressful job. This is especially important when you have fibromyalgia. Carefully consider each of the sources of stress at your place of employment and come up with a plan to improve things. Can you alternate physical and nonphysical tasks? Share sources of stress with co-workers. It will not be to your benefit to take all the worst things on yourself. If your job causes a lot of stress, see if you can cut back on hours or transfer to a different position or location. It might even be in your best interest to leave. Usually there are other options for cutting work stress, but if your job is making you sicker, it might be best to cut expenses for awhile and find less stressful employment or another way to support yourself.

9. Keep the lights on! Sunlight improves mood and reduces stress. Try to take a leisurely walk outside each day, or if you aren't up to it, just sit in a sunny spot and relax. Obviously there are times of the year in some climates where sunshine is a rare occurrence. During those times, keep your house as bright as possible. Turn on the lights when you get up in the morning and don't dim them until it is time to start your bedtime routine. You will find your mood brighter and have fewer fibromyalgia symptoms.

10. Learn to listen to yourself. The thing that has helped me the most is learning to stop regularly during the day to see how my body and mind are doing and then to do what is necessary to make myself more comfortable. So many things can make bad flare days worse. Learn to ask yourself if you are hungry or thirsty or need to move or rest. Have you been on the computer too long? Do you need company? It is too easy in our busy lives to just push past our needs, but in the end, learning to listen and respond to yourself, will lead to a happier, less stressful, and less painful life.