Intro

[Guest guest]

Hi,

To make a long story short, my legs began to hurt when I was 5 years old. It

was

originally growing pains; but, I only complained about it at night because it

would keep

me up, so it was eventually diagnosed as Restless Legs Syndrome. Since I would

complain

about it being worse than anything possible for RLS, not one doctor or anyone in

my life

ever believed it was anything more than a ploy for attention. To add to the

perception I

was faking, I always claimed that no medication, pain killer, or sleeping pill

worked. My

health exploded last fall, and one test conducted revealed gene duplications of

CYP2D6

and CYP2C19 and my serotonin transporter is in the s/l form... adding up to a

drug

tolerance so high, I may as well be immune. It's a terrible thing to be in

severe amounts

of pain and have your body treat OxyContin as candy; to be up for days and

sleeping pills

don't work.

I'm 31 now, and what started in my legs, has since spread into my arms and

shoulders.

I've been completely debilitated for the last several years but was never

allowed to slow

down and was forced out of bed every morning. There's no time to be sick when

you

renovate and flip real estate. I basically lasted up to last fall. It turns

out I have

Fibromyalgia, caused by Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

The severity of pain I was in was related to my sugar consumption, and I'm

controlling my

health now with diet and vitamins. I can't rely on doctors and I can't rely on

medication. If

I were to find a medication that worked, I would be too worried of losing it if

I switch

doctors, or something. I'd much rather have some pain, than no pain and then

pain again.

At the point last January when I was suicidal, I found an article in the

newspaper about this

concoction of vitamins and minerals that a pig farmer developed in an effort to

stop his

pigs from flying into random fits of rage and eating each other. The pill helps

many

different conditions, Fibromyalgia being one of them. Pain was pain, and I

figured I had

nothing to lose. Well, I ended up not having RLS, and $400 later, I felt some

relief; but,

now I'm trying to customize it more for my health concerns, and I was wondering

if

anyone knows which vitamins and minerals would be good specifically for

Fibromyalgia.

Health Canada Controversy

http://www.pigpills.com/

Ingredients

http://www.truehope.com/_empowerplus/empIngredients.asp

[Guest guest]

HI JT -

I have a very similar situation at home. What has helped me the most was a

few things.

1. without getting too into religion (I know it's a touchy subject here) but

my faith has helped. If faith is not an option for you, then find something

you love outside your husband - that you can count on without fail so that

not all your needs have to be met by him. Everyone should have that in my

opinion, not just NTs and AS people.

2. Try and love your husband for what he is, not what he isn't. There are

plenty of men out there who are social and not easily overwhelmed, but they

wouldn't be as stable as my husband. Or as trustworthy. might not be

the epitomy of romance, but he loves me beyond a shadow of a doubt. I have

learned, through retraining what I thought marriage was going to be, to

ADORE for all the cards he does bring to the table.

3. Keep talking to people who are positive about their AS relationships.

Don't find a pity party or someone who is the first to knock your husband

for what he doesn't have.

This has worked for me. And trust me, I've been depressed about stuff also.

But at the end of the day, one man cannot fulfill me 100%. It's up to me to

do that and love what I can - which is a lot.

Good luck!

Frazer Paventi

Writer

Weekly Columns Include

Goodhousekeeping

Babycenter

Life Happins

Intro

Thanks for allowing me into the group!

Short intro:

I have been married to my hubby for 12 years and been together 14. We have 2

daughters (7 and 9 years old).

My oldest was diagnosed with HF Autism/ Asperger's when she was 3 years old.

She has come a very long way with the help of therapies and the GFCF diet. I

feel like we are in the calm before the storm ... the storm of the teenage

years. I homeschool both her and her sister.

A few years ago I had a lightbulb moment ... hubby was also AS. I talked to

hubby, we did some research and talked with a counselor. It explained so

much in our marriage!

My hubby holds down a full time job and is currently going back to school.

He does get overwhelmed very easily however he has come a long way. I am

very proud of him.

I am a teacher by trade but currently work at an assisted living home for

adults with disabilities. In the future I plan to get my masters in special

education.

My problem??

I am tired of being caregiver ( mom + therapies) to my hubby. I want to be

his wife. I have tried many things over the years. I am coming to the point

that I am exhausted , a little depressed and not getting my needs met. I

feel alone. From the outside looking in ...our family looks great. However

know one sees what it looks like from the inside and how much work it takes

behind the scenes.

I look forward to seeing how other couples deal with their AS families.

Thanks,

JT

[Guest guest]

Welcome JT,

As a teacher, I finally " connected the dots " from my students and

realized my husband had AS. Once I discovered that, it helped to make a

lot of

things fall into place. Finding this site has helped immensely. By

myself, I thought I was going crazy. I've also done quite a bit of

reading on the subject; some of

the best suggestions have been mentioned here. Since I just loaned mine

out, I can't go to the bookshelf and get the titles correct, but I think

they are both

from Kingsley Publishers.

I had a very lonely life with my husband and I think as he aged it

got worse. His world was very small. As for me, I'm very outgoing so

this was a

very difficult challenge. I found my relationships at work were very

important, as was work itself. I also speak on the phone with friends

when I have

time and try to socialize with them when possible. That's how I

coped....but it wasn't easy.

Use this site as another tool to help you understand the behaviors

and to help you manage your personal situation.

Eileen

>

> Thanks for allowing me into the group!

>

> Short intro:

>

> I have been married to my hubby for 12 years and been together 14. We

have 2 daughters (7 and 9 years old).

>

> My oldest was diagnosed with HF Autism/ Asperger's when she was 3

years old. She has come a very long way with the help of therapies and

the GFCF diet. I feel like we are in the calm before the storm ... the

storm of the teenage years. I homeschool both her and her sister.

>

> A few years ago I had a lightbulb moment ... hubby was also AS. I

talked to hubby, we did some research and talked with a counselor. It

explained so much in our marriage!

>

> My hubby holds down a full time job and is currently going back to

school. He does get overwhelmed very easily however he has come a long

way. I am very proud of him.

>

> I am a teacher by trade but currently work at an assisted living home

for adults with disabilities. In the future I plan to get my masters in

special education.

>

> My problem??

>

> I am tired of being caregiver ( mom + therapies) to my hubby. I want

to be his wife. I have tried many things over the years. I am coming to

the point that I am exhausted , a little depressed and not getting my

needs met. I feel alone. From the outside looking in ...our family looks

great. However know one sees what it looks like from the inside and how

much work it takes behind the scenes.

>

>

> I look forward to seeing how other couples deal with their AS

families.

>

> Thanks,

>

> JT

>