CFS: People don't know what I mean when I say I'm tired. A nap or a night's worth of sleep will not cure my tiredness. It's not about not wanting to do something...I truly cannot find the motivation anywhere. There's a reason it's called Chronic Fatigue.
FM: Yes, my muscles hurt. No, I didn't overdo it at the gym (as if going to the gym were an option). Aspercreme is not going to help it. I refer to my heating pad affectionately as "my boyfriend". This is because I'm always sitting or laying with it. Brain fog so deep that fog horns do not yet exist that are strong enough to guide me through this. Fibromyalgia won't go away just because I want it to.
MCTD: (Multiple Connective Tissue Diseases - including Psoriatic Arthritis) My joints ALL ache. I have si joint issues, bursitis in both hips, and never know from one day to the next how swollen each joint will be. I only know that they will all be some form of swollen, and also tons of forms of painful.
So, some of my pain analogies to help explain to the doctors what my pain feels like:
(Just to name a few)
*there's a vice grip on my bicep and calf
*I just got punched with a spiked brass knuckle
*my muscle is being ripped from the bone
*there is someone pushing out on my ribs trying to escape
*there are hot pokers being shoved into my joints
*being deep massaged by long razor blades
*my clothes are too heavy for me
*my body is trying to jump out of my skin
