Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS) has been around a long time.
It used to be called by different names and some doctors still use some of those older names like fibrocitis.
Some doctors state there are different conditions or that there is not such thing as Fibromyalgia.
Basically, however, FMS is a chronic (all the time) soft tissue (not bones) condition.
Please note that I did not call it a disease.
Actually, it is a collection of several symptoms and they can differ from one person to the next.
Some of the symptoms, however, are common to most people.
A "syndrome" is a collection of symptoms.
If you break apart the name, it means fibrous tissue, muscle tissue and pain.
The good news is that having the diagnosis of Fibromyalgia Syndrome means you do not have a life-threatening disease.
This is truly good news! It seems that more women have FMS than men although men and children may also have symptoms.
It also has a family component.
Two or more family members may have symptoms.
In my mind, the family connection could be for other reasons than heredity.
Perhaps son is built like mom and has developed the same patterns of walking or sitting.
Maybe the whole family is exposed to the same environmental toxins (fumes from carpeting, cleaning products, even junk food) and share a sensitivity to those toxins or are being poisoned by modern life.
If you go to the doctor for a diagnosis for your pain, he or she may press the pad of his finger into several places on your body.
He is looking for "tender points".
If it hurts where he presses, that is considered a positive sign for FMS.
My experience shows that all of those tender points--which are muscle attachment points--are tender in any one of us who has poor posture.
I have never seen an individual who has a diagnosis of "Fibro" who has beautiful posture.
Sometimes there has been an injury or accident that causes posture to "collapse" and sometimes it has come from poor habits such as slouching.