I find that exercise helps my fibromyalgia by giving me more energy and
loosening up my muscles a little. Yes it hurts to exercise but you have
to just work through that. I try to exercise for 30 minutes 4 or 5 days
a week. Now that the weather is nice I walk outdoors. If the weather
doesn't cooperate I use my ski machine plus do some stretching exercises
for my arms/shoulders.
Does anyone else with fibromyalgia find that exercising is beneficial?

I have tried massage therapy several times for upper body. The therapist
tells me I have knots up and down alongside my spine. The massages are
painful and I am not sure how helpful they are in the long run. I have
not tried a different therapist to see if the pain is less. This one
seems to do deep muscle therapy. My shoulders and back hurt as she is
working on them to the point that I have found myself gritting my teeth!
If anyone out there has found massage therapy of a specific type to be
helpful without being quite painful I would like to know about it.

 I am curious whether other fibromyalgia sufferers notice any difference
in how various diets affect their symptoms? Does a high protein diet
help more than a high carbohydrate diet for example? Does a high
carbohydrate diet give you more over-all energy or do you get energy
slumps? Any comments relative to this subject are encouraged.

 I am interesting in knowing if anyone is taking medication for symptoms
of fibromyalgia. If so, does it seem to help? What type of medicine is
helping for which symptoms?
I am taking cyclobenzoprine (Flexeril) at night to help my muscles relax
when I sleep. Otherwise I am prone to muscle spasms, especially in my
feet, legs, and back. These are very strong and painful. I must get out
of bed and dance around on my toes to decrease the pain in my feet and
calves. The medication keeps my muscles from feeling as stiff and
painful after a few hours of sleep. My sleep quality has improved
somewhat although I still semi-wake up several times during the night.

DonnaZ