WELCOME / ACRONYMS / DISCLAIMER

Welcome to "Learning to Balance Life Changes."  Finding balance in your life, when you have chronic illnesses, can be very difficult.   Even after a diagnosis has been made, life often seems haphazard.  You are probably reading this because life has become increasingly difficult, and you need support.  Pain and fatigue, as well as other symptoms may have changed your life to the point you sometimes wonder where the old you is.

This blog is not just for people who have Fibromyalgia or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ME.  Although, you will often see these syndromes mentioned, "Learning to Balance Life Changes" is written for anyone who is trying to establish a new normal and learning to live with some of the crazy ups and downs of illness, not to mention the attitudes of people who do not believe you are sick.  Many people do not understand that you can be very ill, but not look sick.  This is called invisible illness.  Unfortunately, there are some well-meaning people, who cannot grasp or refuse to grasp the reality a person can look well, yet he/she struggles daily with real physical, medical illnesses.

Whether you have one illness or several that overlap, you may sometimes feel like you are walking a tightrope, and you are about to fall off. The purpose of this blog is to help you clear the confusion so common to those of us who have Fibromyalgia and other related illnesses, as well as to help you find ways to regain some ground and have a fulfilling life after diagnosis.  Most of the information on this blog will be about Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and overlapping symptoms. I hope you find something here that encourages you, inspires you, and helps you to know you are not alone.

There are many things common to people who have chronic illnesses, such as how do deal with work, family life, cleaning house, recreation, and other issues.  Since fatigue and getting things done is one of the huge issues for most people with chronic diseases, these will be some of the most frequently covered subjects.

A Special Note to Those Who Dislike the Use of the Word Syndrome in Regards to Fibromyalgia and CFS/ME:

Many people abhor the term syndrome, because it has taken the medical community a long time to recognize FMS and CFS as legitimate physical problems.  Since discussions on this subject are easily found when surfing the internet, I am not going to discuss that in this welcome.  However, I want you to know I feel your frustration, since FMS and CFS patients are often overlooked, have a mislabeled medical diagnosis, or spend many years  not knowing why they feel so bad.

Words and Abbreviations Often Seen On This Site

• FM or FMS.....Fibromyalgia
• CFS......Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• CFS/ME/CFIDS (often used interchangeably)
• CFIDS..Chronic Fatigue Immune Deficiency Syndrome, another name for              CFS 
• LOL.....laugh out loud
• ME......Myalgic Encephalomyelitis /Encephalopathy another name for CFS,            often used in the UK
• NASH...Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis