Hi! I'm new to both MFP and this group - my name is Carrie by the way! Anyway, it's so nice to see a group with people who have this in common with me! I do find that foods can really effect my fibro pain levels - and stiffness! One that that really pushes me is if I eat a lot of carbs. At first when that was suggested to me I thought it was a lot of hooey.....but then I cut carbs down. I don't completely cut them ofcourse, but I greatly reduced blatent carbs like white bread, potatoes, etc. I did find that as I did that (I was beginning my weight loss) that I not only lost weight at a good speed, I also felt SO MUCH BETTER! (I also cut sweet tea by the way, which had been my lifeline!) My pain level decreased quite considerably, my stiffness wasn't so bad, lethargy gone, I was moving better than I had in years. Well, then I hit 50lbs lost....went on vacation....then came the holidays and what do you know....I find myself here now, trying to get back on track. I only gained about 15 lbs back so I'm still down but I have - err had - fallen back into eating carbs, sugar, fast food, etc and guess what? My pain is back with a vengance! So, to me I'm thinking that my Dr has a point and that carbs / sugar might be an issue with my fibro! lol Yesterday was day 1 - I had a perfect day (except I was actually a little low on calories) and as crazy as it sounds, I can tell a slight difference in my pain/stiffness when I woke up this morning compared to what it had been. I also started back on my B12 Complex vitamin and my amino acids yesterday. Hopefully I can get this pain back under control!
Oh and I have also found that if I get into the habit of drinking diet coke, I can feel it! I generally only drink decaf tea but sometimes I'd change it up and have a diet coke and started to realize the connection!

Hello there! I have also noticed pop makes me flare up. Coffee and tea do not... Even with caffeine and sugar. I wonder if it's the HFCS? I cut gluten out of my diet this past October, and that has improved my Fibro quite a bit!

Hello! I was diagnosed with Fibro in Dec. 2009 - and after reading some blog posts about other people seeing a huge change in their symptoms by going gluten-free, I decided it was worth a try. I have been gluten-free since August 2010 and have noticed a significant reduction in my fatigue and pain symptoms. This likely correlates with those of you who have found that by reducing your carbs, your symptoms are reduced...I can eat gluten-free carbs without my Fibro symptoms returning (but I do know within an hours time if I accidentially eat something with gluten in it - my fatigue and pain come screaming back!). I know that Fibro hits everyone differently, and that different things work for each of us to ease our symptoms (or just to make life a bit easier to manage), but if you notice that by reducing your carbs, your symptoms are reduced, you might want to look into going gluten-free - it has made a difference for me. **And, with gluten-free becoming a weird fad these days, it is much easier to do than years ago (even just a couple years ago).

oh another thing that really messes with my fibro is whole milk. it triggers the IBS that goes with the fibro. to i have to drink 2% or lower.

@RileyRed - going GF now can be fairly easy with all the "convenience" foods that have come out in the past year or so. However, if you live off of the convenience foods - you better have a hefty grocery budget, cause it will at least double it. But, the good news is, that if you're willing to put the extra effort in, eating GF can be done reasonably too. I went out to my local Goodwill and bought a breadmaker for like $15 - and when I'm having a sandwhich craving, I'll pick up a bag of Bob's Red Mill wonderful bread or cinnamon raison bread mix and throw it in the breadmaker (makes the house smell wonderful too). Everything I've tried of Bob's Red Mill brand has tasted wonderful.

I've tried to mix my own "all purpose flour" but nothing I've been able to combine turns out quite as good as what I can make with the Betty Crocker GF cookie and cake mixes or the GF Bisquick mix. There are also more and more choices out there for GF pasta (that really doesn't taste much different than plain white flour pasta) - I have become a bit partial to the Tinkyada brand (sold in bags). If you're looking for store bought bread (and bread type items), the best I've tried is Schar - but be warned, it's a bit spendy. I have learned that when I am craving pizza, the Schar pizza crusts with a few items from the fridge makes for a much cheaper alternative than the local pizza delivery places (they charge more for less when it comes to GF).

I know that prices and availability vary from location to location - all the stuff I mentioned is available in the Minneapolis/Twin Cities area at Super Target and Cub foods. I have also found that Costco carries a fairly decent amount of GF products (and I have a relative who works there that scopes things out for me).

Going GF can be very tough if you're not noticing a difference. For me, I can feel symptoms return almost immediately when I eat something that has too much gluten in it. It's not always easy, easpecially going out to eat, you watch everyone around you enjoying normal pizza, or burgers with buns on them, how about all that pasta...oh, boy, making myself hungry just thinking about it! But, if it make a significant difference in your life, like it did mine, you will learn to get by, or just to find ways to make the same thing at home with ingredients you can eat!

If you want more info or whatnot, let me know - I'm more than happy to help out if I can!

Quote from a Palio site: called whole9life

Fibromyalgia:

“The thought of resetting my system so it didn’t crave (sugar/carbs) was my original (Whole30) motivation.  I had NO CLUE that God would use the Whole30 to bring total healing to my physical and mental ailments!  By my third and fourth weeks, I was completely pain free.  I was even working out in the gym, which I had not been able to do for years because of the fibromyalgia pain.  All of my joint pain, bone pain, and muscle pain was GONE.  My mind was clear. I was focused.  I had gone off of the meds a couple of years ago because of negative side effects.  Now I had all the clarity and body-comfort of the meds without having to use them at all!  I also happened to lose 14.8 pounds and kick my cravings, but those were minor compared to having complete relief from all of the other issues.” Bethann M., Pleasant Lake, IN  

You know, I think you are right about Diet Coke. I used to always go around with a friend that always drank Diet Pepsi. I started drinking it or Diet Coke. Now that I am thinking back, I was in a lot more pain then and we couldn't figure out what was triggering it. I bet it was the soda!