These tender points are listed in the box on the left. The pain occurs in areas where the muscles attach to bone or ligaments and is similar to the pain of arthritis but the joints are not affected. Fatigue is the other major factor in fibromyalgia. Fatigue and sleep disturbances are, in fact, almost universal in patients with fibromyalgia. Depression, migraine headaches, dizziness, tingling or numbness in the hands and feet, and gastrointestinal problems, including irritable bowel syndrome, and bladder spasms are also common symptoms of fibromyalgia.
Many patients also suffer from hypervigilance, or an amplification of sensation.
Sounds are too loud, light is too bright, touch is too hard. M.D. About 40 percent of the patients she sees suffer from fibromyalgia. She said that part of the problem with diagnosing fibromyalgia is that there are often underlying problems, such as herniated discs or a chronic muscular pain resulting from trauma or overuse. It's very important that we diagnose fibromyalgia correctly. We have to make sure that everything else has been ruled out.