Have you ever had someone say, "Do you really have pain or is it just in your head?" or "You can't be in pain all over, all the time?" or "Use this cream, it's amazing, it will cure you." or "Have you tried acupuncture, John down the road gave it a go and his all better. He said it was a miracle."

I'm sure you can give different examples but all saying the same thing. No one can understand how we feel unless they have the pain we have, no matter if you have Fibromyalgia, Lynne's disease, M.E., just naming a few. Unless you can experience a day in our bodies, no one can say, "Yes, I understand how you feel."

Some try to compare their day or few hours of pain to our constant pain and flare-ups, to which there are no comparisons. How can we explain to them that it is not the same, when you get, "sure pain is pain, no matter who you are, it's all the same." but it's not all the same, it is so different, it's insulting but we can't be insulted as that can lead down a different path to how we started our day.

We are told to practice journaling, to write every day how we feel and where the pain is, and how bad the pain is. To talk about our feelings and what we did or are going to do. To be grateful. Yes, we are grateful and yes, we do feel good, not all the time.

Dear Diary

Today is a bad day, the pain is bad all over, we call this a flare-up, if I am to be specific: my upper arms, wrists, back, neck hurt all the time but my legs only hurt when I touch them or hit them off something, so I suppose they don't have pain at all. It is hard to concentrate on anything, I don't feel hungry and can't bring myself to do anything. I don't know why this has happened, I didn't try anything new food-wise, I didn't overdo my exercises plan, I didn't lift my baby girl even though it broke my heart not to, and I kept to my bedtime routine, even though I'd have loved to stay up with my husband, have a glass of wine with him and talk and/or help him get ready for the morning but no, I was in bed early and still I have a bad day. What am I doing wrong?

My feelings are all over the place, I'm angry that I can't help out around the house or even collect my kids from school. I'm scared it's going to get worse, What side effects will all this medication have on me later on. I want to cry as the pain is so bad, not out of pity, just to be able to do something that doesn't hurt and it goes with how I feel. What else can I tell you diary, IT's a BAD DAY.