I think one thing that living with fibromyalgia, or really any chronic illness, does is reinforce the old saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” The most obvious relation is that when someone has an invisible illness their appearance rarely mirrors how they are feeling. We may see a person who smiles and looks [...]

This month a study was published in Proceedings B that showed laughter’s ability to reduce pain. Sounds fantastic, right?! In multiple experiments, people were given painful stimuli, such as skin contact with very cold temperatures, difficult exercises and tightening blood pressure cuffs. Their pain tolerance was measured, both before and after participants watched video clips [...]

Being raised by parents with very high standards improved my work ethic and character in many ways. On the other hand, it has made not pushing the edge of what my body can do even harder. Before I had fibromyalgia I rarely let my body get in my way of doing something. It didn’t matter [...]

Last week I had an appointment with a new Rheumatologist. Towards the end of my two hour long appointment he told me that I seemed cheerful and friendly. He followed it by saying, “That either means you are a really good coper or you push it so deep down inside that the pressure is building [...]