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Fibromyalgia and Sleep Deprivation
A Sleepless Night Crawls By
By Nicholas Rummell
When I asked Judy Fry about the connection between fibromyalgia and sleep difficulties, she suggested that I try something that would help me to understand the level of fatigue and exhaustion she felt.
Diagnosed years ago, she knows all about FMS and trouble sleeping.
Fry suggested I get my own glimpse of her world by going without sleep for one night and then going about my own usual and busy regimen the next day. This way, she said, I would experience first-hand what it felt like to have a moderate case of fibromyalgia.
I decided to break the objectivity barrier of journalism and insert myself into the story.
I spent a night awake in my apartment. Of course, I couldn’t simulate the incessant pain that accompanies sleeplessness in fibromyalgia, but as I found out, sleeplessness is bad enough.
Here is how I felt during the night:
1. Extremely jealous of my neighbors, who were snug in their beds.
2. Bored. While I could have gladly spent the night out partying, waiting for the sun to rise, it wouldn’t have been accurate. Many people with fibromyalgia are too exhausted to go out, and spend their sleepless nights within the confines of their homes.
3. Lonely. I wanted to call my friends down the street, my girlfriend in Boston, anybody who might be able to share the endless night with me. I live alone, as do some people with fibromyalgia, and at four in the morning, my apartment seemed like a cell.
The next day, I felt like this:
1. Easily frustrated when things didn’t go my way. One (of many) incidents was an occasion when I snapped at a school librarian because I could not access a database for one of my classes.
2. There were periods when I felt exhausted, as well as periods when I spoke almost too rapidly to be understood.
3. I watched the clock most of the day, anticipating when I could go home and finally crash into bed. Again, I enjoyed a luxury people with fibromyalgia do not have. Even if they go to bed and sleep, they may or may not wake up refreshed.
Despite my efforts, I realize that I did not face one of the greatest challenges that people with fibromyalgia face -- the daunting fear of not being believed.
Most of the individuals with fibromyalgia I interviewed said they face some form of disbelief at their condition from others, sometimes even their own doctors.
They constantly hear, "You’re exaggerating." "You can’t be that tired." "Wow, you don’t look sick at all today."
If nothing else, I have learned that people with fibromyalgia don’t want sympathy; they want empathy.
They want their family, friends, and coworkers to understand the intermittent flares of pain, the stiff joints, and the countless bouts of non-restful sleep they face.
And they want a good night’s sleep. And that’s one of the last things they are likely to get.
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