I would like to know how others with chronic illness of fibromyalgia have survived a full time school schedule

Most important for your health is regular meals, and exercise. I recommend taking yoga, tai chi, or water exercise. Make it a regular part of your day. Also, make a point of changing position frequently when sitting for lectures!

It’s also critically important that you contact the disability services division of your college and provide them whatever documentation they need to provide you with whatever services you may need in the future-if things go really well for you, you will never need their services... However if you for example catch a cold and that triggers a Fibro flare, you may need their assistance to take tests that you missed because you were out of class with a cold.

Keep regular hours at home, and do your best to maintain a reasonable school, social, and home life balance. Don’t sacrifice your social circle for getting more homework done, don’t sacrifice your school commitments for spending time with your social circle, and in my case I found that having a relatively clean environment help me avoid allergy events.

If you have a pet, make time to go for a walk every day because walking is the single best exercise for you, next to tai chi and yoga . If you don’t have a pet consider getting one, because they can make your day so much better,

I was diagnosed and disabled when I was 35… I’m 60 now, and I do the best I can, which is never as much as I want LOL. I hope that I’ve been able to give you some ideas to help you- classes in tai chi and yoga allowed me to retain mobility and improve my health although they did not do a darn thing to make college algebra any easier !

Hi! Have you considered requesting accommodations from the schools disability support office (DSO)? This could give you some flexibility. Also, you may want to consider the time of day you are taking classes and when you typically have flare-ups. I work with students with chronic health conditions who are transitioning to college (www.accessiblecollege.com). Making the connection with your DSO is a great first step.

I would suggest first (if you haven't already) to get connected with your state's vocational rehabilitation program. Besides finding and providing accommodations for disabled persons, this program usually works in conjunction with SSA's disability determination services. I mentioned this in case you have already pursued SSI or SSDI. SSA will help with accommodations, too, since their goal is to get people working instead of receiving disability benefits. Most states also have organizations called "independent living resources" that can assist with accommodations, too.

From the disability standpoint, SSA views fibromyalgia as a mental impairment, and this is why it can be difficult to get approved for benefits with fibromyalgia. SSA will evaluate mental impairments before evaluating physical impairments. I mentioned this to share that it is very important to address ANY issues that are considered mental impairments. Things like chronic and severe fatigue will be less considered a physical problem, and more a mental problem since fatigue will affect focus, memory, and ability to retain information. Keep track of how many good days you have versus bad days, and even how many hours in a good day you feel you can focus and retain information. Note things, too, like when pain peaks, when you "crash" from fatigue, and when you lose focus. Consider (especially if you take any type of narcotic pain meds) the time of day you may have side effects from medications.

Lastly, most higher education establishments have a department to serve disabled students. This department would be able to help create a plan for accommodations so that both school schedule and fibromyalgia symptoms can be addressed.

I hope some of this may help!

It is essential that you maintain balance emotionally and physically. Long school hours and stress will want to through you out of balance. Find time to take small breaks, do gentle stretches after a few hours of studying. If there is an exercise you love, integrate that. Exercise often reduces fibro pain and will reduce stress simultaneously. Also, surround yourself with positive supportive people. They can give you that helping hand when you have a flare and don’t seem to have it within yourself to pick back up and keep going. Maintain an attitude of gratitude. There is a direct link to positive states of mind and reduced stress.

As others have said, definitely stop by your Disability Services office and touch base with the staff there: in addition to accommodations, they may be able to connect you to resources specific to your college or help you form a support network with other peers.

Additionally, consider integrating online classes into your workload when possible and don't be afraid to take lighter course loads if it would help you! My course load varied from 7 to 17 depending on how I was doing at the time and how my physical health was: college is not a race, and there's no one right way to do it! I encourage you to make your college experience what it needs to be for you. Don't feel obligated to do exactly what your peers are doing.

Good luck! You've got this.

Contact your school's Disability Resource Office before you speak with your teachers! When I was in college I spoke to our Dean of Accommodation and she helped me understand that there were all of these support systems available for me. That way when things were more difficult I had a support system within my college that was there and I knew what I had to do to get help. It was also helpful for me because it meant I didn't have to explain my condition to every teacher, someone from the DRO would do that for me if and when necessary. There should be a policy in place to support you. That way if you have any problems with teachers you have an office to back you up. Also you may only have to share as much as you're comfortable with about your illness while still getting the accommodations you need to have a happy and healthy college life.