Fibromyalgia and diet…hmm…
Well, eating healthy…sure it’s good for us…who doesn’t know that?…but the more important question for those of us with fibromyalgia…does it make a difference to our fibromyalgia?
Yes, that’s the question…because if it’s not going to make a difference for sure, WHY EVEN BOTHER? Why bother to (perhaps) give up or restrict a lot of those “bad” (decadent) foods we love(!!) so much if we don’t know for sure it will make a difference?
I mean, if nothing else has motivated us to eat healthy by now, why would the off chance that it may help our fibromyalgia motivate us? Especially when we already feel so crappy from fibromyalgia…food is one thing we can still enjoy…why deprive ourselves and give up one of our main comforts?
And how can we know for sure? Really, it can be such a subjective judgement, whether something is helping our fibromyalgia or not, can’t it? So…let me get this straight…we should take it on faith?…decide to give up all those delicious “bad” foods that we love on the OFF CHANCE that it will help?
Well I’m so glad I never had to make that decision! But if I did, after my trial and error living with fibromyalgia for over fifteen years now, I know what I’d pick…hands down!
So let me explain.
First of all, it’s always a no-brainer for me. If there’s a chance in hell it can help AND it’s something that’s healthy (and even advised!) to do anyways…I’m doing it! No question!
AND I actually LIKE that I have a reason (fibromyalgia) to make me do something healthy; it helps give me the willpower to do something that I know I should be doing anyways. In fact, as I’ve said before when I talked about my “combat mode” mind-set, (not that I’d recommend it, but) I’ve ended up so much healthier for having had endometriosis and fibromyalgia!
And the reason I never had to make the decision?…I was already doing it…I had been eating healthy for years already, when I first got fibromyalgia. If not even before then, I definitely started looking for ways to eat healthy back many years earlier in my life when I adopted my “combat mode” (as I liked to think of it) mind-set to help me fight endometriosis. With my “combat mode” mind-set, “I would try doing anything I could do to feel as healthy as possible in every other way”, and this certainly included looking for ways to eat healthier.
Sure I continue to tweak things; I seem to always find ways to improve…I like to feel I am making myself healthier each time I find something healthy to add to my diet and I even find it fun to try some things and see if I notice a difference in the specific thing they are supposed to improve (like a banana before bedtime each night because bananas are one of the foods that are supposed to help with sleep…and they seem to!).
But since I have never made a drastic change in the way I eat since I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, I have often been left wondering what role diet has actually played in my fight against fibromyalgia. I’ve seen others with fibromyalgia say it’s made a big difference for them…it seems that some even swear by the fibromyalgia and diet link and say changing their diet has cured them.
For myself, I guess I’ve always felt…I don’t know if it (directly) helps, but it sure can’t hurt!
And I felt that way right up until about a week ago…when I read an article written by a doctor about pain management…and this doctor discussed “the role of a healthy diet and the importance of exercise” INSTEAD of medications in managing pain. (which, by the way, is exactly what I’ve been doing….for fifteen years now…stumbled upon so long ago)
So it got me thinking (again) of the role diet plays in my fibromyalgia…and I started to REALLY think about it…and I realized it’s probably not just coincidence that I eat healthy AND I was able to start managing my symptoms well from very early on.
Yes, I’m definitely sure other factors have played a crucial part…I also exercised right from the start, even before my diagnosis. And I’ve worked hard over the years to “minimize it” and to learn to read the signals and react accordingly…and to change my thinking to sometimes live in “deliberate denial” and sometimes “fake it ‘til I make it”…to try to be positive and to try to become what I say. And I’ve worked on my sleep (haven’t we all!!), now more than ever.
Certainly, diet has especially played an even more important role since I got IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) a couple years ago. Once I got the IBS diagnosis and knew exactly what I was dealing with, I was able to manage the symptoms fairly quickly through my diet. When quizzed by my doctor as to my diet, I was told I was largely already eating the right kind of diet, so all I needed to do was tweak it a bit eliminating a few of the known hallmark offenders for IBS…my beloved coffee(!) and alcohol too (for quite awhile, many months) among them.
The pain, cramping and symptoms were bizarre for awhile…IBS setting off fibromyalgia pain setting off IBS pain. But my (already healthy) diet enabled me to get right on top of that…quickly…and my IBS was largely controlled (fairly easily)…and still is.
And when I say I eat a healthy diet, I am just eating pretty normal “generally accepted” healthy foods, nothing extreme, no specific diet limitations, anything in moderation…even treats here and there (have to have those!..knowing I can splurge here and there keeps me on the “straight and narrow” the rest of the time).
So I read labels to avoid trans fats, limit sodium and sugar and maximize fibre, roughly to recommended levels (recommended healthy diet standards for everyone). I try to eat a healthy well rounded diet including lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fish, chicken and some red meat, among other things, with the odd thing added in for a specific purpose (like walnuts, because they are supposed to be an excellent “brain food”…and they seem to be!).
When I search the internet just now and look up “foods that fight pain and inflammation” for the first time, I find that (coincidentally) I already regularly eat many(!) of them (like blueberries, salmon and olive oil to name a few) just in the course of trying to eat a well-rounded healthy diet.
So I guess I’ve taken it for granted because I’ve been doing it for so long, but yes, now that I really think about it, eating healthy probably does most certainly play a role in how I’m managing to manage my fibromyalgia (well).
I know overall I FEEL better when I eat healthy, I always have…and I know that, because I see how “off” I feel when once in awhile, maybe on a vacation or a special holiday, I go off of my regular eating routine. And I always find, feeling “off” in some way, more often than not, translates into a domino effect with fibromyalgia and sets off a vicious circle of other fibromyalgia issues. So yes, eating healthy IS one more factor in the mix of things that I find are helpful to do to keep my fibromyalgia symptoms at a minimum.
How much is the “placebo effect” someone might ask? (whereby it’s helping because I believe it will help) Point-blank, I’ll just say that I DON’T CARE. I mean, we know eating healthy is good for us, period. So if it has the added benefit of helping my fibromyalgia symptoms, I don’t care why. If it’s simply the placebo effect, then bring it on, I’m fine with that, and I’ll keep believing so that I keep being motivated to eat healthy so I get all the benefits in all other areas of my health as well!
Why not?…seems like a win, win to me.
I’d even be willing to bet the placebo effect IS part of the benefit of eating healthy for my fibromyalgia symptoms. (and a benefit to anyone, with or without chronic illness!) I know I feel positive and pro-active when I make a diet change to eat healthier. I’m excited to see what change it will bring, whether I’m eating walnuts for more brain power to combat fibro fog or switching up coffee for green tea because of IBS or simply trying to take off a couple pounds to feel lighter and more energized. No matter how small a change it is, it’s a positive step that always swirls around in my mind throughout the day and lifts my spirits because I’m being pro-active…I’m DOING SOMETHING.
And feeling positive and lifting my spirits reduces stress which (like many illnesses) always seems to reduce my fibromyalgia symptoms too. So I’m getting the actual well-known health benefits of eating healthier plus it seems possibly a little placebo boost bonus.
And really…for me…it always comes back to…it gives me a reason to do something I should be doing anyways. Feeling better with fibromyalgia gives me the motivation to keep striving to eat healthy.
Yes, eating healthy is just ONE MORE WAY TO FEEL BETTER in my fight against fibromyalgia and any diet restrictions are a small price to pay for the improvements I see, in my fibromyalgia symptoms and my life in general.
Getting started is always the hardest part, but for me, I’ve been doing this for years (actually decades) already so I see the results, which makes it all the easier to keep doing it. By now I find it easy to visualize the future and know how great I will feel because I am eating healthy, and this helps keep me motivated and disciplined. I have a strong vision of what I’m aiming for…and it’s continued health and wellness.
So I think of how I’m going to feel…BOTH ways…the sense of accomplishment and success of feeling healthy and well…versus the sense of failure I know I’ll feel if I don’t do something that (basically) I know I should be doing. I CHOOSE SUCCESS…because by now…after fifteen years of fibromyalgia and ten years earlier with endometriosis…I want to feel good more than anything else…that’s it in a nutshell.
Yes, I WANT TO FEEL GOOD.
And what I know is real is that eating healthy makes me feel good.
So, YES to fibromyalgia and diet. No-one can take it away from me. It doesn’t depend on anyone or anything else. I don’t have to wait for anyone to approve it. It doesn’t cost me any more money, say to choose apples and carrots over cookies for a snack.
And it makes me feel some control…it’s one more thing I CAN DO to affect a difference in my fibromyalgia fight…and if there’s one thing I’ve learned over the fifteen years I’ve battled fibromyalgia…it’s to TAKE EVERY INCH I CAN GET…because over time I’m finding these inches are adding up…and I’m slowly, ever so slowly, gaining back ground I thought was lost forever…and now that I am…I absolutely plan to keep gaining!
And if I can…maybe you can too.
