Curious if anyone else here is battling Fibro and/or RA

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lifesazoo
lifesazoo Posts: 118
in Introduce Yourself
We all have our obstacles in this journey. I was just wondering if there were any others with Fibromyalgia and/or RA. Medications that cause weight gain and not being able to work out like I would prefer are some of the the things I face daily. What about you?

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  • jadedzen
    jadedzen Posts: 221 Member
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    sent a friend request. I have fibro and been having a hell of a time trying to get my exercising in like i could before i was sick, and i miss it.
  • lifesazoo
    lifesazoo Posts: 118
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    How long have you been sick? I've had it for about 6 years now. I was going to the gym 3 days a week and had just started jogging the week before the bottom dropped out.
  • pg014
    pg014 Posts: 12 Member
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    I don't have fibro or RA, but I have systemic lupus (SLE). in the same family and treated with steroids and some of the same drugs. i was diagnosed when i was 15 and am a 12 year survivor! hard to lose weight, esp when you are on high doses of steroids, but you can do it. i'm down 30 lbs!
  • kris10stew
    kris10stew Posts: 38 Member
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    I gained a lot of weight on fibro drugs. (((hugs)))

    I ended up being diagnosed with a sleep disorder after many years. I do have a lot of pain issues, but I think it's a low tolerance overall and a lack of restful sleep, not fibro. I went off all meds 18 months ago and am finally trying to get that weight off. It's hard to work out when every pain is magnified, but I am so tired of carrying around this extra weight I am trying to push through right now. I am really afraid of hitting the wall. But I tell myself to take it day by day.
  • Starqueg
    Starqueg Posts: 39
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    I was told that I have fibro, but I'm not always entirely convinced. If I do have it, it's generally pretty mild since I got my depression treated. I got sick when I was 16 (29 now). I tire easily, and if I push myself too hard at the gym I sometimes end up feeling sick for a few days. Right now my forearms and elbows are sore from overdoing it on Wednesday, I'm guessing I'll feel better on Sunday or Monday. I've never been on any meds for Fibro, but one of my anti-depressants caused a large gain that I mostly lost after I went off of it and exercised. After that, between college life and BC, I regained almost everything. I'm off all meds at this point and trying to get back down to a weight that makes me feel good about myself.
  • pg014
    pg014 Posts: 12 Member
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    Have you guys had your vitamin D levels checked? I had mine checked for the first time last year (for the first time which is strange since i have sle, but apparently this is a new thing and you should really ask your doctor to check your levels) and it was dangerously low. I was put on 50,000 IUs of vit d 3x a week for 6 months, and it helped a lot with my symptoms, esp with fatigue and body aches. i dont know if the vitamin D actually made a difference with this, but i think it also helped me lose weight and keep it off.

    one thing that really helped me lose weight was being mindful of what i was putting into my body. i cut back on red meat drasticall. living in nyc, i was eating out/ordering out a lot so i limited that to once a week (if even that) and completely stopped all meal replacement bars/shakes. i added foods like greek yogurt with 6-7 chopped almonds in it (i prefer the vanilla non-fat flavor) and flax seed oil instead of olive oil. i also stopped drinking caffeine all together--no soda, not even ginger ale (even though it has no caffeine) and i stopped drinking juices since they are loaded with sugar.

    its hard and the weight will come off slowly, but once it does your entire body will feel brand new and all the hard work and effort will be so worth it! just stick with it!!!!! you can do it, just stay positive!
  • bhealthy92
    bhealthy92 Posts: 1
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    I have fibromyalgia and I also find it difficult to exercise and do the things you want to do. If you have any suggestions as to what you do please let me know, I will take any suggestions.
  • Bookchick887
    Bookchick887 Posts: 126 Member
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    I'm sorry that you must deal w/ fibro. I was diagnosed in early 1990's. Stress is a very high factor in fibro, so to keep it in remission I have to exercise, sleep well and eat well. I've never taken meds for it except aleve. I go to bed early and sleep as much as I can, eat well most days and walk even a little bit.
    I started walking this time just around the block every day and now am walking 3-5 miles almost daily. (I also had a foot injury).

    I lost 13 lbs while my fibro was bad, so it can be done w/o exercise. But now that I'm walking I feel better.
  • jadedzen
    jadedzen Posts: 221 Member
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    How long have you been sick? I've had it for about 6 years now. I was going to the gym 3 days a week and had just started jogging the week before the bottom dropped out.

    I've been sick for about 9 years at this point. before that I was a competitive dancer, martial artist and rock climbing and archery instructor. I miss my former life...
  • DawnMcUK
    DawnMcUK Posts: 53
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    I have both RA and Fibromyalgia, both diagnosed within last 5 years, and I find it very hard to exercise due to the way it works on joints and muscles. However as Bookchick887 can testify, I find normal activities such as cleaning, shopping and washing clothes etc. just as effective and because you don't approach them with the mindset of 'I must exercise', it can burn calories without thinking.

    That being said, overdoing it (as I have a habit of doing) can mean a few days after where I am inactive due to pain and/or swelling. It may be more difficult for us to shape up through exercise and activity, but by no means impossible. You know your own body's limits, so work out a simple activity plan that you can do at home.

    I am on and off steroids all the time, and develop the classic moon face almost immediately, so have actually refused them recently just because of the side effects I suffer. I also have weekly injections of methotrexate but have found no obvious side effects so far. My doctors prescribed Gabapentin for the fibro, which very quickly increased to the highest dose in order to ease it, albeit slightly. I have started to drop a few pounds a week so far, so losing weight is definitely possible with conditions such as ours, it may just take a little longer.

    Feel free to add me x
  • DORISGUDINO
    DORISGUDINO Posts: 18 Member
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    Hello,

    I have had RA for the past 12 years or so. I also have taken SO many meds, predinose, methotrexate, plaquinal and am now doing Remacaid infusions. I have gained 80 lbs in the past few years and am now trying to lose it.

    I have been on this site for the past month, and it has been a HUGE help. Very nice people here.

    I am struggling to exercise, since I have bad knees, ankles, and wrists its been really hard. I try to do something everyday, even if its just a little.

    I will send you a friend request. If you are still looking for weightloss buddies please add me,

    Good luck with your weight loss journey.
    Have a nice week-end,

    Doris

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