Living with Fibromyalgia

"Imagine waking up every morning," Amy Shephard says, "with a 103-degree fever and flu-like symptoms. Your body aches, you're exhausted."

Shepherd suffers from fibromyalgia.

She talks to FOX 7 News, while bouncing around in a swimming pool. She says water aerobics and stretching help her deal with her symptoms.

"I still want to run. But I can't run anymore, it will cause a flareup."

In 2005, Shepherd was diagnosed with the syndrome that has many doctors and patients scratching their heads.

"I was laying in my bed, talking to a friend on the phone, and all of a sudden, a wave of heat just washed over my body, accompanied by extreme pain, and it sent my heart racing at 190 beats a minutes," Shepherd describes.

Nearly six million Americans suffer from fibromyalgia.

"Recently, we've had three drugs approved by the FDA for the treatment of this," Dr. Everett Heinze said. He treats

Shepherd and many others living fibromyalgia--a syndrome he says causes widespread pain, sleep disturbance, severe fatigue, even depression.

"The interesting thing this is that some people think it still is not a real condition. A lot of people think it's a person who's depressed or anxious, and therefore they're having a lot of symptoms, rather than it being a true disease," Dr. Heinze said.

But Dr. Heinze says he very much believes fibromyalgia is a disease. He says it can be hereditary, or sparked by a virus or trauma.

Shepherd says she's starting to see signs the syndrome in her nine-year-old daugher, and is pushign for more research and awareness.

Governor Rick Perry will declare Tuesday, May 12th, Fibromyalgia Awareness Day in Texas.
Shepherd plans to be at the Capitol for that declaration.

"I've had a lot of people email me and say, you know, thanks for your information, it's been great," Shepherd says.

"Now we have really good treatments, we understand it more and more each day, so it's not a hopeless condition," Dr. Heinze said.

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