Personal Stories
Carol
Jean's Story
"Several years ago I noticed whenever I would tip my head back I would get
dizzy. I found doing several things like hanging curtains, reaching
in high cupboards, changing a shower curtain, working on the bulletin board at
school, or getting my hair shampooed at the beauty salon would immediately cause
me to become nauseous. I learned to
compensate for many of these things by using a step stool to reach high places.
Dr. Bochna arranged for my appointment at Mayo Clinic in Sept of 1999.
They found I had hyperparathyrodism, Chiari Malformation I, and
Fibromyalgia." Carol Jean
Downs
Connie's story
On a morning in January 1995, the local newspaper had a full-page article on two
women stricken with an illness called chronic fatigue syndrome. The
article descried how these two dynamic women were struggling with every aspect
of their lives because of their health problems. It then announced the
beginning of a support group for people diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome
and Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). Connie Pich
took a deep breath and said, "I'm not alone."
Elaine's story
"When Alice asked me to write a
testimonial about the effect my illness has had on my life I was somewhat
hesitant because of 'baring my soul' to everyone. However, after thinking it over, I decided what better way to
educate people than to share portions of the letters my husband and I had
written to Social Security to obtain my disability. This gives both the
perspectives of the victim and the support
person." Elaine Dodson
Gloria's
story
"I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia in March of 1997 after a period of
extreme muscle pain. I still
experience the muscle pain, but not on a regular basis.
By far, my most profound symptoms are those associated with Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome.
Harry's
story
"When my co-worker, Harry, was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, I thought to
myself, 'This is the worst case of
Fibromyalgia I’ve ever seen. There’s got to be more going on here.'
The main difference was his passing
out and the extreme pain. After his successful chiari malformation surgery, I wanted others
in our support group to hear Harry’s story.
My thanks to Kim and Harry for sharing
their story."
"One of the most difficult things I have to deal with is not being able to do things I used to do, such as carpentry and furniture upholstery. When I had a building project, I just did it myself. Now I must wait for someone to help me. It is hard to take." Joyce Jobgen