I explain that it feels like I have the flu body aches only 10x worse and 24 hours a day.

I usually am not asked that question much any more but the one answer that I have given in the past that people usually seemed to "get" was telling them that having fibromyalgia is kind of like your body being allergic to itself or feeling like your getting the flu. Most people don't want an in-depth medical explanation; something simple that they can relate to works better.

I say that too

I tell people it is a disorder of the Central Nervous System. I describe it as the achiness and fatigue of having a horrible flu but it never goes away, and the pain can be way more intense.

I've been suffering from a really bad sunburn this week, front and back. My husband has a hard time understanding the fibro pain so I compared it to the sunburn. I asked him " If I were burned like this all of the time, would he better understand how I feel?" It hurts to touch, wear clothes, I've had a fever and headache, I haven't gone anywhere. It helped him to understand better.