Dear Folks,
I just found this site while searching for "menopause" "sweating" and "muscle cramps" and I was surprised to find people posting about my other symptoms which have been labeled as "Fibromyalgia" by my family doctor whom I have a very high regard for however I keep thinking it's not fibro but something else because when I did searches for Fibromyalgia symptoms they were not as similar as all of the postings on this page which sounds identical to ALL of my symptoms!
What I found strange if not coincidental is the fact that we are all GARDENERS! I wonder if there is a correlation to our symptoms to gardening which was the only relief I found to my depressing state!!! But, could this be causing my symptoms or yours? I do not use gloves when I garden or mulch. How about you? I also have pressure treated fencing in my yard. My stiffness and soreness became a far more debilitating problem 5-6 years ago when I moved to my little cottage and began gardening on a much larger scale than before and for a lengthier period of time. I avoided the sun prior to 10 years ago too but I stopped getting a rash from the sun so I began to garden.
I believe my symptoms started around the age of 39 which is when I "started" gardening. I had a much smaller property and garden back then and one of the symptoms I had was pain in my arm muscles when putting curlers in my hair! It was also when I had major back surgery and I began to get stiff muscles upon waking up in the morning. When I moved to my cottage with a larger garden the Fibromyalgia type symptoms royally kicked in and I stopped menstruating at the age of 44. I am now 49 and feeling like I'm 99.
My neck hurts, bottom of my feet, calves, ham string, arm muscles, back pain, sciatica, eyes and my brain is affected too. I can't remember things that are current or past very well. This is not old age I'm a very young 49 . I used to be always happy even when things weren't going very well but after major stress causers for the past 10+ years I am just constantly depressed, no libido, no desire, no happiness...just pain and stiffness every day.
I am excited upon finding these postings and I urge anyone reading or posting to this site to please keep returning and maybe posting other symptoms and ideas as to what might be causing this. For all we know it could be China related...lead in our products, etc. Maybe "WE" can figure out what is causing us young 40-50+ year old folks to feel like we are in our 90's. My Mom NEVER complained like this.
In my next posting I'm going to post a link to a new thread that I'm going to start in which we could compare notes or symptoms in an orderly question and answer type of way and enable posters to add any additional symptoms or possible causes. I think most of you will like the format of the new page I'm going to start. It's going to be very interactive and hopefully very useful. I'm also going to do a little more research so please, please, please, check back in a couple of days for a new posting link and let's see if "WE" can find a cause or a cure!
Sincerely,
Eva
Q