Hugs Donnam. Understand how you must feel.
I’ve read that IC, IB are two common accomplices of Fibro. I have IC. I also have escalating TPO levels pointing at hypothyroidism (hashimotos disease). I think some of these conditions stem from one another and others like arthritis are clearly separate from fibro. But either way together they cause havoc. The fibro diet recommended on this site, may help you w arthritis, IC and IB bc it promotes anti-inflammatory diet and recommends AVOIDING dairy, e.g.,which contributes to inflammation (and arthritis).
Again hugs, and God’s peace.
Elaine, your lucky you have an astute and caring GP. My GP, although fairly young, is incredulous of FM. It irritates me greatly but she is good about making any referrals I ask her for so I stick with her...for now. 🤗
Your path to diagnosis seems much like mine except I have a good GP and no matter what kind of specialist I went to my GP was always right on with the things he would say. I just stop going to all of them but him. I couldn’t stand the pain clinic because there were so much pain involved! Basically now I just use CBD and some form. It’s not perfect but it does help take the edge off Of day to day living. Nothing helps when a flare up hits though
From what I understand people have Fibro for different reasons. For me it is believed mine stems from gastrointestinal issues. I've been taking the paleo approach in healing my gut and it has made a world of difference. A good read is The paleo approach: by Sarah Ballantyne PhD. Now I'm working on balancing my body's vitamins, minerals, and gut flora, probiotics etc.
I went to see a specialist at mayo clinic who specializes in fibro... She said fibro is a sensory disorder.. burning mouth and lips, muscle twitching, and dry eyes are all symptoms of fibro.