For those who have been told that the pain associated with fibromyalgia is all in your head, there’s finally a study that rebuts the idea that the disease is psychosomatic (your brain telling you that you hurt) versus actually experiencing pain at the receptor point. Translation: it’s not in your head. The pain is real and it may be caused by how blood flows to nerves in your skin.
This study may be a breakthrough for those who are forced to self-report fibromyalgia as a disabling condition in order to secure disability insurance coverage. The breakthrough offers the promise of a medically-diagnosable condition noted by a higher-than-normal number of nerve endings near blood vessels in the skin.
In addition to providing medical proof that you are suffering from fibromyalgia and eligible for disability insurance, finding the source of the chronic pain may allow medical professionals to create better ways to control the pain or eliminate it altogether.
According to Intidyn, a biopharmaceutical company that has been researching the cause of fibromyalgia, those who suffer from the painful, chronic disease actually have an increased number of nerve fibers. These excessive nerve fibers, particularly in the skin covering the hands, may be why many women who experience fibromyalgia symptoms report sensitive palms. In addition, the excessive nerve fibers may be the cause of temperature sensitivity – particularly to cooler weather – in fibromyalgia patients.
The blood vessel bridges controlled by the nerve endings could also account for all-over aches and muscle pains. The flow of blood controlled by the excessive nerve fibers could actually be a mismanagement of bloodflow by the body, causing fatigue, soreness and inflammation.
Source: Medical Daily, “Breakthrough In Fibromyalgia Research: Pain Is In Your Skin, Not In Your Head,” June 18, 2013