Its nice to see articles that discuss causes, rather than just thinking that it's all in the patient's head. Fibro is painful enough, without having to have doctors look at you like you're making it up. Contrary to what skeptics may think- I don't like spending my money on doctor visits.
Doctors don't know what causes fibromyalgia. Current thinking centers around a theory called "central sensitization." This theory states that people with fibromyalgia have a lower threshold for pain because of increased sensitivity in the brain to pain signals. Researchers believe repeated nerve stimulation causes the brains of people with fibromyalgia to change.
This change involves an abnormal increase in levels of certain chemicals in the brain that signal pain (neurotransmitters). In addition, the brain's pain receptors (neurons) — which receive signals from the neurotransmitters — seem to develop a sort of memory of the pain and become more sensitive, meaning they can overreact to pain signals.
In this way, pressure on a spot on the body that wouldn't hurt someone without fibromyalgia can be very painful to someone who has the condition. But what initiates this process of central sensitization isn't known.
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