Tips To Get Your Loved Ones And Your Doctor To Understand Your Fibromyalgia
Greetings:
Trying to get family, friends, doctors, and Social Security to under-stand your fibromyalgia is often easier said than done.
I'm optimistic that the information on this page and your membership to The Fibromyalgia Digest will provide you with the wisdom and knowledge to communicate the effects that fibromyalgia has on you so you can convince the people in your life and Social Security that your fibromyalgia prevents you from working.
Let's address dealing with family, friends, and doctors first.
One of the core challenges with fibromyalgia is that in most cases it does not alter your physical appearance. Most people have the perception that disability is a physical alteration.Because you look "normal" to them, you have to provide rock-solid evidence to support the agony you are experiencing and that you are disabled.
So here you are, sick, tired, and frustrated because of the lack of understanding. This is a difficult position to be in.
As one of the first steps to overcome this, I encourage you to come up with a condensed statement explaining what you are going through. It does not have to be long; four to six sentences should do it. Here is an example:
Fibromyalgia is like suffering from flu-like symptoms 24 hours a day, seven days a week, intensified by pain that prevents you from sitting or standing for extended periods of time.
I'm not able to wash a sink full of dishes without taking three five-minute sit down breaks; nor can I lift a gallon of milk or run the vacuum.
Because of the pain, I'm not able to get a good night's rest so I'm constantly tired and take two 40-minute naps each day.
I am in hope that this will help your friends and doctors to understand your fibromyalgia.
Thanks so very much for putting your faith in me to help you cope with Fibromyalgia and Disability!
Sincerely,
Brian Therrien​
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