Welcome to FIBRO-ED
If you have Fibromyalgia you’ve come to the right place
Hi, I’m Rachel O’Donnell
but you can call me Rae!
If you’ve made your way to this website, it’s because you or someone you know are either waiting for a fibromyalgia diagnosis, suspects they have it, or are struggling to get some clear information about what it is and how to live with it.
Well, I’ve been there and it truly sucks doesn’t it!
I personally joined the ‘fibromyalgia club’ over thirty years ago and I can tell you it’s not a club anyone wants to join, but if you’ve been given membership, we had better make sure you become an expert in all thing’s fibromyalgia.
And I’ve developed this site to help you do just that.
You will see that the content on this site is written in simple plain English, not because I think you won’t be able to understand complicated terms, but because a whole array of terms will come at you thick and fast when you’re talking to your doctors, often with minimal explanation as to what they are or mean. The appointments are short, and the most valuable use of this time is to focus on improving the problem that you needed to see the doctor about, rather than ask for a lot of explanations of terms.
I can tell you from experience, when you’ve walked out of at least one of those appointments you will be asking yourself questions about what was just said, what they said it was, and many others. You’ll also find (if you have a collaborative and pro-active medical team) that you’ll be given a constant stream of terms relating to all the aspects of your fibromyalgia and some of the associated conditions you may experience.
One of the main reasons I developed this site is for you to have a readily accessible, easy to understand, resource that you can come to with information that will either refresh your memory, offer you clear information or find you a tool that will help you to improve the way you can manage the conditions that are impacting your health and your day-to-day life.
If this site can make you feel a little less overwhelmed, confused and let’s be honest frightened, it’s done its job.
On this website I will share details of what you should know when you receive a fibromyalgia diagnosis, what it is like to live with fibromyalgia and much more.
The information found on this site has been taken from my own personal experiences, the very latest peer reviewed research and proven tools that will help you to understand and live a little easier with your fibromyalgia.
The pages in the ‘About Fibromyalgia’ section of this website will speak to you about what it’s like to live with fibromyalgia, hopefully it will show you that the way you are feeling about your fibromyalgia diagnosis is perfectly normal, at some time or other we’ve all gone through many of these emotions.
The ‘Living with Fibromyalgia’ page will discuss important aspects of your care that you need to be aware of including the importance of informed consent as a patient, please take a few minute to read this. As a fibromyalgia patient it is extremely important that you understand your medication and treatment options.
You’ll also find a page that is dedicated to explaining all of the potential ‘Associated Conditions’ that can come along with fibromyalgia, the better educated you become on your condition, the better your discussions with your medical team about how to manage these symptoms.
Keep an eye on this section as it will be updated regularly with new information.
Over the next few months, I will also be releasing a series of Fibro-ed Foundations of Health programs which will assist you to improve your fibromyalgia, step-by-steady-step.
Each program has been specifically created and technically designed for those who not only have fibromyalgia, but to accommodate those of us that live with the associated conditions that cause us to be extremely photo and movement sensitive. These symptoms can make spending even the smallest amount of time online a challenge (and still occasionally makes me fall off my chair with dizziness if I’m not careful).
The Fibro-ed programs are being released in a specific order to ensure we lay a strong foundation, which will then allow us to move onto more ambitious work.
Every program has one purpose, to give you the information, skills, and confidence to improve your fibromyalgia and gain back some much-missed quality of life.
One of the things I and many others find so hard about having fibromyalgia is the feeling of being alone without knowing what is happening to them or where to turn. You end up feeling that your whole life, every moment of every single day is fibromyalgia. You wonder what happened to your life and the plans you had for your future. You also wonder if this is it, how your life will be forever. I’ve been there and I know what it feels like.
So, here’s my promise to you, I will give you every bit of information and all of the tools I have researched and used myself, that have helped people to improve their fibromyalgia. For me your journey is personal and I refuse to sit by and let other people waste years of their lives in a no-man’s land just for the sake of information and guidance.
I can’t promise miracles, but I can promise it will be worth the effort if you can improve how fibromyalgia makes you feel, especially if you can start to enjoy your life a little more.
The Fibro-ed site will give you access to information, educational tools, and fibromyalgia self-management programs, which include the Fibro-ed Method and the Fibro-ed Foundations of Health Programs to help you to get a better understanding of the many difficult and confusing aspects of fibromyalgia.
Through improving your understanding of fibromyalgia and using the programs and tools that are available on the site, you will gradually start to feel a little less scared and out of control, which will slowly improve your experience of living with fibro and any of its associated conditions.
Shall We Take This Journey Together?
Before we can start to learn how to work with our fibromyalgia, we need to get some understanding of what fibromyalgia actually is and how it presents (or how we experience it).
Have you ever heard or read the terms ‘comorbidities’ or ‘associated conditions’ when someone is talking about fibromyalgia?
What this simply means it that you are showing symptoms of another condition at the same time as having fibromyalgia. An example of comorbidity could be migraines, IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) or Raynaud’s Disease (we’ll talk about these as we go through our journey).
Each symptom we experience adds another layer to what we’re feeling; some might be minor but annoying and some might seem scary but actually aren’t serious at all.
Learning about these common associated conditions can take much of the mystery, frustration, and fear away, so, shall we start to learn more about fibromyalgia?
The Contents Of This Website Are Meant For Educational Purposes Only
If You Are In Need Of Medical Advice Consult Your Doctor
Fibromyalgia Without The Fear