Fibromyalgia Tips & Tricks: All Over Pain

Welcome to our new series where I will be letting you in on all the tips and tricks I have learned over the years in dealing with Fibromyalgia Pain and symptoms. I will be covering as many symptoms as possible, so if there is a symptom you are struggling with be sure to let us know so we can cover it for you!

Episode One: All Over Pain

So, let’s get into our first episode. All Over Pain. We are going to start with one of the biggest and hardest to deal with, and that’s all-over body pain, muscle spasms, and attacks.

When you have Fibromyalgia, ME (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis) or MS (Multiple Sclerosis), your muscles all deciding to go into spasm at the same time is part of the daily issue. People hear these conditions and think, "Oh yeah that makes you ache a bit" with no real understanding of what you are going through.

Muscle spasms so bad you become unable to breathe, you feel the vomit moving slowly up your throat, you begin to sweat and almost wish you would pass out to give you some way of fast forwarding or skipping over the pain that you are experiencing. Sound intense? Well that’s because it is!

How Spasms Progress

When you suffer from Fibromyalgia muscle spasms start as a simple spasm, not unlike what you felt before which you can almost shrug off as a mere inconvenience, and most likely in your legs.

As the years start to pass, maybe you still don’t even know you have Fibro at this point, you start to notice those spasms become more frequent. They start to appear out of the blue for no reason, and with no real pattern to them. They start to become more intense, the cramping becomes worse, the sharp stabbing pain becomes enough to make you stop in your tracks and grit your teeth while you wince in pain.

And everyone around you? Well they look at you like you’re mad of course!

The “This Isn’t Normal” Moment

At this point you start to think this isn’t normal, is it? Other people don’t have this, do they? So you do what we all did, you start taking the supplements, you do the stretches, you buy the heated blankets, but nothing makes any difference, until one day you decide it’s bad enough that you will go to the doctor.

DUN DUN DUUUUNNNNN…..

We all know this story. You go to the doctors, wait about six months for an appointment to be told it’s “All in your head”, “Stress”, or “Old age”. So we are back to square one.

Meanwhile the spasms are now out of control, they have you bedridden, unable to work (or certainly on your way to giving up work entirely) and desperate for help.

You Are Not Crazy

Well the good news I can give you is that you have found someone who believes you, and knows you are NOT crazy. So let’s see what we can do to help you through this.

Let’s address the first big issue.

Muscle and Joint Pain

Muscle and joint pain are the bread and butter of Fibromyalgia, you can’t have one without the other. Joint and muscle pain can occur in Fibro sufferers (Fibromites) for all different reasons, which, let’s face it, don’t matter. The only thing that matters is: how to fix it?

The most effective way I have found to deal with this issue, especially attacks (full body muscle spasm and contraction) is Magnesium.

Magnesium: The Holy Grail

Ahhh yes Magnesium, the holy grail in a bottle. Magnesium is often cited as the most important supplement a Fibromite can take, often found in pill form. It’s highly regarded for its ability to soothe aching muscles and improve sleep.

But did you know that’s not the only way to get magnesium into your system?

Bath Salts

My favourite go-to method especially when I am having an attack is Bath Salts. That’s right, bath salts, but not just any bath salts.

Bath salts were not all created equally. You have what I call your “pretty bath salts”, which are a mix of colourants and fragrances with the main objective to look pretty and make your bath smell nice.

Then we have Magnesium salts which look like, well, salt. This is what you want. They have an incredibly high concentration of magnesium and, as the skin is the largest organ in the body, and capable of absorbing what it comes into contact with, it is able to absorb the magnesium from your bath.

This coupled with the hot water (as hot as you can stand without being uncomfortable or causing injury) can stop an attack in its tracks and gradually cause the muscles to release.

This is particularly great if you are having an "All Body" attack. Where it's not just one area that is affected, but the whole body. 

Magnesium Spray

But what if you don’t have a bath? Well, the most direct and effective way to get magnesium to the distressed area is to use a magnesium spray.

This can be sprayed directly onto the skin on the affected area for targeted relief. Just a warning though, don’t do this on broken skin because, ouch!

How Magnesium Works

This little mineral is like the body’s natural chill pill. It plays a role in over 300 enzyme reactions (yes, three hundred!) and is especially important when it comes to our muscles, nerves, and sleep.

When you soak in a magnesium bath or use a spray, magnesium can be absorbed through the skin — a total win if your stomach doesn’t love supplements. For those of us with fibromyalgia, muscle pain, or restless legs, magnesium helps muscles relax instead of locking up tight. Think of it as gently telling your muscles, “It’s okay, you can let go now.”

And the sleep part? That’s because magnesium helps regulate melatonin (our sleep hormone) and calms down the nervous system. The result: less tossing and turning, and more actual rest. Which, let’s face it, is pure gold when you’re dealing with chronic pain and fatigue.

Final Thoughts

So the next time you find yourself having an attack, or are unable to walk around because the pain is just too bad, get yourself in the bath with the magnesium salts. Trust me, it works.