A morning shower -- it helps you start the day invigorated and refreshed, right? Um, no, not so much for many of us. A shower seems like a basic, simple thing, but it can pose major problems for someone with fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome.
I've seen a lot of comments here about how exhausting a shower can be. Why would a shower make us tired, sometimes even wiping us out for the rest of the day? Several of our physiological abnormalities could be playing into it.
- Exertion: Especially for those with chronic fatigue syndrome, even small amounts of exertion can be too much. A shower takes more energy than we tend to recognize -- you're standing the whole time, doing a fair amount of bending, stretching and reaching, and vigorously lathering up your head and body. When you consider that we often have to start an "exercise" routine with 2 repetitions of a simple movement, you can see how much work showering can be.
- Relaxation: The hot water of a shower can be relaxing, which is great in some ways. However, for those of us who deal with profound fatigue, it's probably not the best thing for us early in the day, when we're still fighting to wake up.
- Temperature Sensitivities: While the hot water may feel good, it can also get our temperature sensitivity going and throw off homeostasis. Our bodies have a hard time keeping us at the right temperature, so when we get heated up like that, it's a lot of work to cool us back down to normal. Some of us get so over heated that we sweat profusely after a shower.
- Dizziness: We're prone to dizziness, and the heat of the shower combined with the motions of washing can have your body working overtime to keep your sense of balance. I've had frightening dizzy spells in a hot shower -- very scary!
- Heightened Nerve Response: Especially in fibromyalgia, the pressure of the water hitting your skin can get your nerves riled up. It might not hurt while you're in there, but the stimulation on our over-reactive nerves could put them closer to the point of sending erroneous pain signals and making you hurt all over.
Some ways to deal with the showering problem include taking a shower at night, so the exhaustion is welcomed, or taking baths instead. Baths do pose some of the same problems, but you're sitting and not reaching or stretching as much, so they can be less taxing. A bath also tends to steam up the bathroom less, so you may have an easier time cooling off when you get out.
While I haven't had an extreme problem with showering like some people have, when I've been at my sickest I've relied at times on cleansing wipes. I buy them for my face, but they work well for this, too. Unscented baby wipes also aren't bad. I can use them to freshen up quickly and easily, especially on days that I'm not leaving the house anyway. It's not a daily solution, but they can put off a shower when you're just not up to it. For me, feeling greasy is a sure way to make me feel bad about myself.
What does showering do to you? How has it impacted your life or your self esteem? What has helped? What makes it worse? Leave your comments below!
Learn more or join the conversation!
NEWSLETTER | FORUM | BIO | TWITTER | FACEBOOK
- Fibromyalgia Symptoms List
- Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Symptoms List
- Cooking With Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Photo © Jason Homa/Getty Images
Yes! I don’t currently have too much of problem with showers but about a year ago, I was exhausted from taking showers. I would have to sit and rest for a couple HOURS after a shower. At the time, I explained it to my husband as a temperature difficulty. While standing in the water stream, my front would get hot and back would get cold. Turn around to rinse my hair and back side, then the front would get cold. My body would race to warm up the cold side and try to cool the warm side. Gosh, just explaining it tires me out! LOL
You forgot to mention one simple thing that can help – a shower seat or a bath board. Sitting down uses less energy, and is much safer when you’re dizzy.
For me, the hardest thing is washing my hair. Doing anything with my hands over my head is exhausting and causes shoulder pain. If I don’t have someone to help with my hair, then I rest my arms between each step – wetting hair, washing hair, rinsing hair. I also use a combined shampoo and conditioner, and cut my hair short.
Shower vs Bath
Showers are stimulating; they wake you up, get you moving, invigorate you. Perhaps, that is why they are so exhausting for someone who is already drained.
Baths on the other-hand are relaxing, soothing, calming. Just what a person need who’s in need of some restoration.
I’ve never seen this addressed and am quite grateful for the topic. My mom is fibromite too and we both have a hard time with showers. I ALWAYS have to spend an hour or two cooling off after a shower or bath. I sit in front of the fan naked. I wash my hair once or twice a week (not bad for hair) as holding my arms up like that is hard for me too. I have gotten down a five minute wash up that is less hard on me but it’s still a struggle to get myself in there… right now I’m procrastinating a shower I need before going out because the whole thing seems so exhausting.
Buying a hot tub was the smartest thing I’ve ever done for my cfs/fibro. But I can’t keep it as hot as normals do. 98 is good.
I still get tired from undressing and redressing, and even from just sitting in the hot tub letting bubbles do the work. But it’s a lot better than a bath, and infinitely better than a shower, which used to knock me out for half a day.
I wish they were more affordable, but if you have the resources, a hot tub is gift to your sick self.
It’s funny how I have to schedule in my baths/showers. Can’t do it in the morning, or I’ll be too exhausted to go out. So I try to do it at night, and get right into bed, head wrapped in a towel and electric blanket plugged in. Personal cleanliness does suffer with chronic fatigue and when I was still bedridden I developed cavities from being too tired to brush my teeth enough.
Now that I can sleep with Xyrem at night, good and deep, restorative sleep, I can at last keep myself somewhat clean and refreshed. Old people know this too and are careful about when they bathe. I don’t bathe alone in the house, I always wait till daughter or husband is around. I’m still afraid of passing out as I’ve fainted in the past.
I forgot to mention that I always bathe with epson salts, I get these from my pharmacy and they help with inflammation and pain. It softens the water and is an old-fashioned health treatment that my mother, who died at 90, ten years ago, always used.
I absolutely dread the shower/hairwash routine. I am barely able to drag myself out of bed in the morning and the whole routine adds over an hour to my already tightly scheduled day. I rely on those cleansing wipes many days. I take baths on the weekends and if I have some spare cash, I get my hair washed at the salon. My skin/scalp is so dry that I don’t need to wash my hair very often – so that is fortunate.
Thanks for bringing this topic up – because I am so hard on myself (aren’t we all?) that I keep thinking I’m just lazy about the shower. Now it makes sense.
Due to my roscacea, I’m not supposed to take hot showers. I miss the way the heat would help with my neck issues. It is a production number to get through the pre, during, and post shower routine, so I have to allow at least an hour to the process (though I don’t run the water that long! If I have an early appointment, I have to shower the night before.
I should shower and wash my hair more often, but since my hair has been failing out at an alarming rate, I’m very careful when I wash and brush my hair. Dr. is looking into causes.
I’m so glad to see this post because I thought it was only me! If I’m going anywhere before noon, I have to shower the night before. I’ve had FMS for 17 years, but didn’t start having problems with over-exertion and extreme fatigue until about 3 years ago.
Even with FMS, I used to be able to shower, wash my hair, shave my legs, put on makeup, dry and style my hair, dress and get out the door in an hour. I could even grab a cup of coffee! Now, I have to shower and lie down. Then I dry my hair and lie down again. Then, I may be able to style my hair and get my makeup on without being drenched in sweat if I turn a fan on my face.
By the time I’m done with the whole dressing ritual, I usually walk out into the den, look at my husband, and just cry! People wonder why I don’t get out more–they think I’m depressed. It’s just so much effort that I’m just to exhausted by the time I’m dressed. I never thought I would go out in public without makeup, but in the past 3 years I have because I just figured it wasn’t worth expending what little energy I had for the sake of vanity.
This is a great topic, taking a shower is exhausting, even with a shower chair, I have cut my hair very very short because can’t raise my arms long enough, and the heat does feel good but then like mentioned I am so sweaty afterwards have to stand in front of a fan and even in the dead of winter, after dressed and in the car will have the vents bringing in cold air, or have my window down from still being so hot. I can’t take baths since I had double knee replacement and back fusion can’t get out of tub, and I miss my baths where I could relax, so would like a hot tub but as others have posted they are so expensive. I also use baby wipes to keep clean in between showers which can be days, I have very dry skin and hair so works ok.
Great article! We all have the same stuff going on, right down to showering! Showering is difficult for me.
I have thick heavy hair, so washing & rinsing it is a real chore. And that is just my hair! I also have my body to wash! Then dry off & get dressed? Forget it! I stagger to the bedroom ,flop very carefully onto my bed & cover up with a sheet to keep me from shivering while I still sweat. After 10-15 minutes of that, I get dressed, while sweating still. Then I have to dry my hair. That takes 45 minutes & several hair claws to split my hair into sections to dry it as fast as possible while trying to stay cool. Fan blowing on me the whole time. Then I have to straighten it. That’s another 45 minutes to do that, with all the claws to do sections. My husband & daughter both help with the straightening because my arms are so wiped out by then from showering & drying my hair that I just can’t do it. If I want to do make up, that’s another hour. I have to stop sweating first. Then while trying to put on the make up, I have to have a fan blowing on me while I am constantly blotting sweat off my face, throat, & neck. I only do the make up part if I am going to be going out. I do not have the strength to do make up to be in bed. I used to shower every day, dry my long, thick curly hair into big beautiful curls, do my make up & go anywhere & do anything. It really messes up our self esteem. It makes me feel like total crap to not be able to shower, do my hair & make up on a daily basis. I like how I used to feel when I did that routine. Now it is a huge process just to do it a couple times a week. Thank God for diaper wipes & bath wipes for the in between days!! Oh, and the dry shampoo that comes in a can for your hair, for those in between hair washing days, it works great! So that’s my showering story. Tires me out just explaining it! Probably tires you out just reading it!!! This is just part of what fibromyalgia has done to me over the past 12+ years.
I am so glad to see this article. I have been embarassed by the fact that I cant shower every day like I used to. I never heard anyone talk about the shower thing until now. I’ve tried to tell My Husband the shower doesn’t help! I know He is looking to fix this because thats what Men do, I am done for the day after a shower. Thank You again, the best thing for this crap is to know its not all in your head, & u r not alone.
This is the first I have read about shower problems! All I can say is wow! This is right on the money for me! When I get out of the shower I have to sit down and cool off, stop sweating. I can’t put on make without sweating, do my hair without sweating. I have a fan, open the window when it’s 20 degrees outside. I also use my blow dryer on the cool setting to help cool off! I am almost crying. People still think this is a made up disease, Yet so many of us suffer from the same crazy BS!!!!! Thank you for this information, really.
Showering is very hard on those of us with fibro. I’m wondering if anyone else he developed hives from water now that they have fibro…..another unfortunate “perk” to having fibro for me but it doesn’t happen everytime I shower. If I go out of town, it’ll happen as soon as I take a shower some place new then I come home and it happens again. Exactly what a fibro sufferer needs, another reason not to leave the house. I’ve heard this is rare…..but surely someone else is having it happen too.
Staci, I have got hives from the tap water since I was a kid, I thought it was just me until recently. I was told its a reaction to some of the minerals put into the water supply by someone else who gets it as well.
I have put an outdoor chair in the shower to sit on now as I am scared of falling with dizzy spells. I don’t have a bath & would fall getting in & out anyway. I have that problem of overheating & sweating crazily when I get out. I want to have a shower to be fresh to go out, but if I don’t go & rest quietly after I bathe, as soon as I go to put makeup on or dry my hair I look like I’m back under the shower again! I stay in my underwear until the last minute while I get ready & even then I carry wads of tissues, even a little hand towel to keep mopping the sweat off my face neck & head for a few hours after I shower. I sweat mostly from my head, back & under my breasts.
I don’t have the option–we only have a shower and it is very small so I am always banging myself–elbows, knees, etc. (we rent and can’t do much about this) I used to have really long hair but now have a really really short cut which I hate and is ugly but I can’t wash or keep up long hair and it seemed stupid to wear it in a braid all the time. I shower at night because it’s too hard for me to dry off to get into underclothes! I wear cotton nightgowns so they help dry me off because it’s hard for me to get myself twisted around to dry everything. When it’s really bad I ask my husband to do my back, etc. because otherwise my nightgown sticks to me and I can’t get untwisted.
I am lucky in that I don’t suffer too badly with the fibro, and I love having a hot bath or shower, but I do sweat badly for a long time afterwards.
My shower is over the bath so I have to be careful not to slip, but I can’t use a bath mat because the bumps hurt my feet.
I finally have an answer to why I sweat so much and procastinate as long as I can about getting in the shower. It is exhausting to say the least. I’ve had FM for 17 years and I’m experiencing just about everything I just read about in these comments. If I close my eyes when washing my face, I lose my balance. I have found that I have to brace myself with one arm on the wall to keep my balance. I don’t shave my legs anymore because I can’t bend due to pelvic girdle disorder and washing my feet is the hardest part of taking a shower. Even though my showers have been reduced to 10-15 minutes, I’m totally exahusted when I get out and have to sit without my clothes and a fan blowing on me for at least 15-20 minutes. No matter what I do, I can only do a little and then have to sit, and then do a little more, and then sit. I don’t clean my house like I should. My dishwasher is a lifesaver. Bending over and picking up clothes to go in teh washing machine is awful. I’m still working a full-time job and I get up at 5:00 AM and leave the house at 6:20 AM. I’m home by 5:30 and I hit the couch as soon as I get all my clothes off. My husband walked out on me 10 years ago for another woman so I don’t have to worry about taking care of anyone but myself. I usually get home on Friday and don’t leave my condo until I have to go back to work on Monday morning. I’m embarassed to say, most weekends I don’t take a bath or brush my hair. It’s all I can do just to get myself something to eat. I hate so much that my life has been reduced to this. I was once a very active, attractive woman, but now I’m the complete opposit. I miss me!
OMG, I thought it was just ME!!! A shower just absolutely wears me out, overheats me, and now washing my hair (which is very fine, thinning due to Topamax, and only chin length) is starting to get painful for my arms and shoulders.
I started taking baths about a year ago more than showers because of the exhaustion factor, although the overheating thing and sweating for a while afterwards is still an issue.
I also find that I frequently will start sweating when I’m getting ready to go somewhere — while I’m trying to dry and/or style my hair, and while I’m putting on my makeup. Does that happen to anyone else? It’s *extremely* annoying, because I feel like I can never start out going somewhere looking nice, because I’ve already turned into a sweatball at some point before I’m even out the darned door.
I just turned 40 and was diagnosed with fibro and myofascial pain syndrome about 18 months ago, although my doc suspects I’ve had the fibro at least 20 years.
Still, I am SO glad to see this article, because I really thought it was just me experiencing these issues, especially as I’m going through menopause early, which isn’t helping! Thanks, Adrienne, for addressing this.
My shower bench has probably saved my life, given the number of times I used to fall in the shower. Taking baths bruises my lower back and spine badly, so getting a bench was the best thing ever.
What I really, really hate is going from a hot shower to a chilly bathroom to a cold house. I’m finally coming to terms with having to take my clothes into the bathroom with me and get dressed in there, despite the steam and stickiness. I really dislike the feel of dressing without being perfectly dry first, but in the winter it really isn’t possible without hurting myself via cold-exposure.
When I was a kid, we used to have a Shower Massage on a long tube that meant we could sit in the tub and still use it to wash our hair. My current apartment has their shower head perma-sealed to the pipe, so I can’t replace it, otherwise I would consider it.
But yes, taking a shower is nearly as exhausting to me as cleaning my entire (small, granted) kitchen, so if it’s a day I have to shower, there goes a huge percent of my daily energy allotment.
I’ve seen a couple of mentions of rosacea and I wonder if it’s more common among Fibro people. I’ve had it, and it only went away when I switched to using African black soap (made with shea butter) instead of cosmetic cleansers. But, then, I’m highly chemically sensitive and allergic, so that may just be me.
I do find that the shower problem is even more insidious because the depression that goes with Fibro makes you more prone to ignoring vital self-care, such as showering, and if you don’t feel clean, then you don’t go out, which feeds the depression, which feeds the tendency to ignore self-care, such as showering, etc. ad nauseam.
I really, really hate this illness. I was diagnosed 21 years ago and symptoms date back at least 25 years to late elementary school, early junior high. I’ll take a few days-weeks-years of remission any day now, thanks.
Wow! I don’t feel like such a slug now. I’m feeling pretty fortunate to get a full shower 3x a week especially in the winter (can’t stand the cold bathroom after getting out of shower). I appreciate these articles so much, they help keep things in prespective (it can be pretty isolating) and offer great advice.
Thanks so much.
Wow, I had no idea other folks had trouble showering! I love the soothing heat on my neck and shoulders, but that same heat (plus the effort required for the showering process) totally wipes me out. I have to lie down afterward. I don’t wash my hair everyday. I keep it in a ponytail so I don’t have to touch it, which helps keeps it clean. Sometimes I forgo showering and just wash my face with a washcloth, and use wipes for my other body parts. This is such a disheartening illness to be stricken with.
Yes i love a hot shower. However i pay with sweating soo bad. And yes the dizzies. Umm a fellow Fibro friend suggest that i take an cooler shower.. Umm that really doesn’t help that much. Anyway, take care one and all.
bathing and showering is so exhausting. I need several hours to recover afterwards so i usually bathe at night.
I cannot take a bath as I can’t get out of it when I am finished. I have to take a shower, but it is broken, thank goodness, as it now hangs down and I have to use it as a hand shower. I am so glad to see that I am not the only one who has a problem. I no longer have the water beating down on my body, but the dizziness continues and oh, how I heat up! It takes about an hour and a half to cool down and now I know why! I used to take a shower at bath every day. Now I keep putting it off till my hair needs a wash and inbetween, use lots of baby wipes.
I am lucky to have bidets in both my bathrooms. Having traveled Europe and Asia extensively (in my past life before Fibro), I learned the benefits of a bidet as all the better hotels had them. On the days when I can’t shower I use the bidet. If you don’t have room in your bathroom to add one, they are available as an add-on to your toilet seat. Just google “bidet” under google shopping.
Showers physically drain me. Baths are out of the question, since I would need to have help getting back on my feet. At one point, I got so dizzy in the shower that I had to get down on the floor of the tub, before I fell down. At first, I had to use a lawn chair, one of those resin stack chairs. They used to be made of a better grade of plastic than they are now. The one I had lasted me at least two years as a shower chair. When that finally broke, I bought another chair that lasted less than 6 months before it broke. Same thing with the replacement. I borrowed a shower chair from our local independent living center and used it for a while. I asked my NP if she could order a chair for me.
Almost a year later, I still did not have my own shower chair, so I bought a chair of my own. Really, I couldn’t afford it; but I could not be without it and I had the borrowed chair for almost a year.
The chair helps a lot. If you get dizzy in the shower, try using a chair. I recommend it highly.
Excellent comments! Often by the time I’ve showered and dressed I am too fatigued to leave the house. Bending to shave my legs while standing up is such a bad idea due to POTS. Putting my arms up to wash my hair also causes a feeling of faintfulness.
I do prefer the epsom salt bath, maybe with a hydrogen peroxide addition after the initial soak. Then a quick rinse with the shower.
Getting clean is often my daily goal but frequently I find that I’ll get clean, dress and realize then that I have to get back in my PJ’s and back into bed. It’s frustrating.
My daughter thinks my quick clothes-changing ability is my Super Power!
I’ve been battling an infection from a surgical incision and as a result, no showering. I bought kits of eight wipes that are heated in the microwave and then used for a spruce up.
If they weren’t so expensive, I’d use them all the time.
I also have dry shampoo which is a godsend.
I use to love taking showers before CFS and fibro now I cringe at the thought cuz I know somewhere on my body it’s gonna hurt and I will be tired afterwards from the exertion of washing and drying off…UGH….
I have found taking a lukewarm bath at night helps me relax, sleep a little better and cuts down on the exhaustion and “heating up” I get from a shower. In the morning, I splash cool water on my face which seems to help me stay cool, and helps to ake me up.
Washing the hair is probably the hardest, then shaving the legs in the shower. I love taking a bath, but then when i have to get out it’s a struggle to stand up it’s painful either way we look at it. I too, have to sit in front of a fan because I get over heated in the shower and the bath. just one more thing to add to our lists of pain.
I have a hard time showering and getting ready to go out too. My lower legs itch really bad after a shower. I started using Eucerin calming cream about 8 years ago, after I get out of the shower I put the cream on and it does help. I just recently started using The calming body wash too. I was diagnosed with Fibro in Dec. 2008 but I think it started about 7 years before that. I also have CFS , it helps to know there are others out there that understand this awful disease. I also gave up using makeup before going out because it’s too exhausting. When I go grocery shopping I’m worn out by the time I get the groceries inside and then I still have to put them away. I also get horrible migraines that last anywhere from 24 to 72 hours, so life isn’t good anymore. Anyway it’s nice to have people that understand to talk to.
nice to c im not on my own with this showering soexhausting , yep i 2 at one time could shower wash hair dry style hair make up dress and be out in an hour NOT ANY MORE have not been out socioly for 5 months cose to exhausting to get ready , i all sl have cubicle shower , gettin in over bath was to risky , i do need to by a shower seat cose of dizzyness and weakness , i to allso use baby wipes a very lot , what a good invenstion be lost with out them , yes feel like a wiltind daisy when i start to get my self dry , and the sweat is pouring off me then the next mins im realy cold yep who wud think gettin a shower dose this to us , onlt felow fibros and ME suferers , hugs love to all xxxx.
I’ve had ME/CFS/FM for 26 years. In the early years, showering was like an olympic event for me. I had to rest up for it. Then as soon as I got out of the shower I threw on a robe as quickly as possible or if really wiped out just crawled under the covers partially dryed off – with a towel wrapped around my hair.
An hour later I would have rested enough to do my hair and finish my preparations for bed or whatever it was I had to do afterwards.
These day since I’m in my 70s now, the showering issues are back but not quite so severely. I use wipes A LOT!!!! I wish they made them larger. Fortuntely I don’t have oily hair so I can get by with washing it once a week.
When I’ve told non-ME/CFS/FM people my issues with showering they have this look of disbelief. It used to bother me but no more. I don’t care didley squat what someone thinks.
I thought it was just me. I had no idea.
Talcum powder can also be used as a dry shampoo to absorb grease, seems to work just as well. I find bathing/showering far too exhausting to start the day with, so I do them at the end of the day if I have any energy left, and if I haven’t, then it doesn’t get done. I have more of a problem with temperature control in the bath; if I get the water temperature just a bit too hot, it makes me sweaty, ill, dizzy and gives me a stinking headache. Last time I had a chest infection and had been in bed for a week, I managed to drag myself out of bed to go to the doctor to get an antibiotic. To emphasise how ill I was, I said I hadn’t been able to do anything all week. Doc said “It can’t have been that bad, you’ll have had a shower every day?” I said “No, I’ve not been well enough to even do that”. Well, if you’d seen the look of revulsion on her face… Yes, doctor, it’s called being ill…
Wow! I was diagnosed last June with fibro. For about a year I had the same problems with showering and couldn’t figure out what was wrong. My doctor put me on Cymbalta and I have more good days than bad. The shower issue isn’t the problem it used to be but I never had related it with fibro until I read all of the posts! I never thought that I would ever have to take a medication like Cymbalta but it has been a wonder drug for me. I am still able to teach 1st grade and do some light housework without too much after pain. I am sad for those of you who can’t even enjoy the simple pleasure of a shower because I remember those days that I went through the whole exhaustion thing and it was misery.
My problem with the shower has been, until recently, that the hot water hurt. I would have to take almost cool showers which does nothing good for the muscle spasms. Recently I can stand the hot water again so I crank up the heat to loosen up the muscles in my back from sleeping.
Something interesting that I found out a few years ago after being diagnosed with POTS is that hot showers cause your blood vessels to dilate, which pools your blood in the lower half of your body and away from your brain- that’s what can be causing the dizziness. I also have had trouble with showering for about 10 years now (I’m 30) and it is so nice to see that I’m not the only one! Fortunately my skin is dry, so my hair doesn’t get greasy easily and my skin does not get oily, but I do wish I could shower every day without it taking 2+ hours to get ready…
Profuse cranial-facial sweating has always been a problem for me and it is becoming increasingly worse. Showers contribute to the temperature regulations problem and I, too, tend to sweat profusely after a good hot shower — which I love! This has been going on for years.
Back in the day when I was working and it was possible for me to exercise during lunch, the major draw-back was that I sweat so profusely after exercise and shower that it made it impossible to get dressed for work again.
It is good to learn why this is happening. Of course, now I want to know how to make it go away
Thank You!! I’ve been feeling really bad about not wanting to shower. I didn’t understand why I hated the idea of showering. I felt so bad during and after showering i’ve been skipping quite a few. I was diagnosed with fibro 6 yrs ago and i still dont understand what’s happening to me. I have all the symptoms mentioned above. Now i have some tools and advice to help with this problem. Thank You.
I’m sure many of you are going through this too, but I haven’t been able to shower in years. Sounds horrifying, but the few times I’ve tried have been further disabling( a sudden weakness and loss of balance). Once I almost fell out of the shower through the curtain, and luckily I caught myself on the sink before I hit the floor. I pulled some muscles and relapsed for weeks.Plus the stress/fright of it was horrible. Most people laugh if I tell them this, but it’s far from funny. I now wash my hair in the sink, and “sponge bathe” myself. Having this illness in additon to CFS for so many years has changed my life in ways I’d like to forget, but the fatigue, pain, weakness that comes on suddenly with very little warning, cognitive impairments, etc. make that an impossibility! I truly hope there’s more treatment for this soon. No one should have to live like this.
Beth- You said it all: “I MISS ME”!
It is so refreshing to see that others are having the same showering issues that I am. I shower, come out exhausted, sit in front of the fan to try to cool off (I practically live in my t-shirt and shorts). Then I plop down on the couch and watch TV. Showering and grooming has just become such a tiring chore. Albeit necessary, I shower just to end up asleep on the couch.
* This is to Staci: Yes, I look like a lobster for hours if strange water hits my skin.
To all of the rest: … so many times I have tried to explain to my closest friend why I’m too tired to shower; only to have her say”all you have to do is get in and let the water come down on you”. Hardly comes close to what we go through!
I am so amazed at this… I didn’t know anyone else had these same problems…I have struggled for over 25 years with my showers. I would sometimes be brought to tears just trying to raise my arms to wash my hair. That is not so much a problem now…but just getting into the shower is an excruciating ordeal…my fatigue and weakness is so bad now and I am mostly in bed all day. I struggle with the dizziness and feeling like I’m going to pass out…definitely cannot have the water too hot and yes, I’m very hot after the shower. I had several months this last year where I was in tears from exhaustion associated with my showers…don’t know if anyone has experienced this…reduced to tears from the exhaustion…I would just sob until I could sit down and rest. I don’t hardly take a shower anymore unless my husband is home, so that if I feel like I am going to pass out he can help me.
Oh, and I forgot to mention that, yes, I have hives when I shower….I tend to have them all the time, but they are definitely worse when I shower. A friend of mine mentioned that she has this problem and it actually has a name ….I don’t know what it is, though.
I can’t tell you how relieved I am to see that others have this problem and it is another wonderful aspect of FMS! For years now I have had to let my hair air dry because after a shower I don’t have the strength and energy to deal with a hair dryer. I have to put my make-up on in the car with the air conditioner on high!! People look at me funny..especially when it’s freezing out..because I go out with no coat on and then turn the air on to finish getting ready. Back when I was still able to work I would go and sit on my porch with snow on the ground to put my make-up on. That really got the looks..lol!! Before my fibro got so bad these last few years, you would not have caught me in my own yard much less in public, with no make-up on and my hair not done! Now, some days I do good to just get dressed. It’s such a relief to know that this isn’t just me being lazy about a shower! Thank you so much for these articles. They help so much!!
These articles are some of the best yet!
I too have the same problem as the rest of you….too tired to shower then toooo tired and hot to get dressed…..I sit in front of fan to cool off enough to get dressed too….after I have rested of course! And no way Im taking a shower in the a.m. it just aint happening!!
I had to cut my hair short also…I just wear it curly alot..and I wear head bands on days I cant fix it…..and they hurt my head….does that happen to any of you….sad when a headband and glasses hurt your head.
Well Im looking foward to winter myself so I wont sweat as much…….make up goes on better stays on better….I use bare essentials and it is better than liquid for me.
Well many blessings to you all…….I sympathize with you all……hope you all have a stress free Thanksgiving.
soft hugs
Thank you, everyone! I have been suffering from showering for so many years I lost count. I thought the sweating after the shower was hot flashes and I just had to deal with it. By the time I got my hair dried it was soaked again with sweat. Now I air dry unless I have to go somewhere looking decent. I am totally exhausted after a shower and light headed. My arms ache from holding above my head to wash my hair and they are useless for a couple hours afterward. I have to sit or lie down for an hour or two after a shower, so as many of you, I use lots of baby wipes. And, yes, I also wish they were bigger. I don’t know what POTS is, but I had a circulating blood volume test years ago that was grossly abnormal, meaning that the blood was pooling in my extremities and had a really slow return rate to the heart. Is that POTS? I’ve told drs. about it and they look at me like I have 2 heads. I have been thinking of getting a shower bench and am now convinced that is the thing to do. Big soft hugs to all.
Like you all have said, I have the sweating problem, too. I thought it was a menopausal thing, although my 20 yr old fibromite daughter sweats alot, too. I wash my hair every other day, and when I’m not up for that, I use the dry shampoo spray. I sweat after my shower. I sweat after I get dressed. I sweat when I put on makeup. I can’t even wear foundation, because I sweat too much. I just put on eye makeup. I usually only dry the front of my hair to style it and let the back air dry, or I’m too sweaty. I carry a hanky with me at all times because my face and neck are always sweaty. It’s so embarrassing. I also deal with the dizziness. It’s really nice to know I’m not alone.
Showering and bathing arre both energy drainers, but muscle relaxants- so essential after restless sleep/too deep sleep/no sleep et al! Have found for myseelf 1st and then with all parients – having a cup of chamomile tea even if you are tired, (with fresh tea bag and pre-boiled in thermos flask water from night before), ‘settles the central ‘accepting ‘ naval blood releasing area, calms us, allows one to BREATHE, before taking 1 step off bed. Make this a habit ESP in AM and before sleep repeat. iN THE ShOWER – USE A PLASTIC CHAIR WITH A PIECE OF FOAM TO SUPPORT BACK +1 FOR BUTTTOCKS: the head and torso, STANDING on tired legs and feet just cant cope! Sitting this way, the v warm water with a specific chamomile + rosemary liguid soad, + soft sponge, a GENTLE hand to squeeze that soap all over your body and down to toes will DISSALLOW YOU TO BEND, OR FOR ARMS ABOVE SHOULDERS- USE AT SIDES-oUT OF SHOWER Switch off taps and leave towel at the ready, AND GO AND LIE DOWN WITH TOWEL DRYING YOU OR SIT on dry soft surface AND LET TOWEL DRY YOU. Thereafter you will want to use a pure lavender and geranium lotion to PAT GENTLY onto skin not above head, but arms around sides and downwards movements. NOW GET DRESSED. NO SLOUCHING IN PJ’S – DEFEATS THE PURPOSE OF THIS SHOWER LUXURY, AND THEN EAT AND DRINK BREAKFAST. Bath: SAME AS ABOVE=LESS AM FATIGUE, BRAIN HEARS ‘INTENTION’ TO MOVE SLOWLY AND BREATHE EASILY, FEED INSULIN SO IT DOES NOT RISE, AND FEEL HAPPIER WITHIN THE ANS AND MUSCLE SYSTEMS. All who do this AM AND PM know the difference – time to start helping yourself FEEL ABIT better daybyday. I Sharon Levin http://www.fibromyalgiasa.co.za
Wow! I never thought about most of this. My very hot showers in the am have helped ‘loosen’ me up so that I can move. Then I typically try to stretch back and hamstring muscles while they are warm (they tend to be looser then). But I can also relate to the ‘sweating profusely’ after showering and taking some time to cool down and to the extreme fatigue that sometimes leaves me feeling wiped out and drained. I have also noticed that in the last 2 or 3 yrs I have stopped showering daily or taking multiple showers daily, probably subconsciously because of the negative effects when undesired. I tend to do a ‘monkey bath’ with a wet washcloth – cleaning up without the stress of showering so that I am still sanitary. Thanks for a great article. These are very supportive and bring keen insight and understanding into the disease process for me.
I have all these problems and it does help to know that I am not the only one dreading bathing. My biggest problem is the for two days after showering I have intense skin pain and itching. It just starts to calm and then I think that I should shower again. Also dressing is painful and exhausting. I have developed a strange wardrobe of long knit lounge dresses that are somewhat acceptable if someone comes to the house but are also comfortable enough for napping. I cannot tolerate anything tight around my waist as it increases burning of skin. These are not things the rest of the world can understand so I am pleased this subject came up.
If I am going somewhere I try to take a shower the night before. If not the I take one every 2 or 3 days and use flushable wipes in between.
I also wear cotton nightgown and robe sets around the house unless I am planning on guests.
I have a foot bath in the bathroom that I use to wash my feet and legs properly because I simply cannot bend down in the shower to do so. I cannot use the bath tub unless someone is at home because it is high sided and I get tripped up very easily even with a grab bar installed.
I think we all go along with beth and Gail–I miss me!! and so does my family and friends. I’ve been aware of temp sensitivty for a few years. Just to get clean esp in the summer, I take luke warm showers and as the temps outside goes down the temp of my shower can go up some. People have often commented on why I have so many fans around the house, well this is why and I use them year round. I let my hair grow long so I wouldn’t have to spend so much time styling it. usually let it air dry for the most part and will finish it with a blow dryer to keep the frezzies down. then it’s up in a pony tail. I have found this easier than a short style that my need more styling. Besides if it’s really short i look like a little silver marble on top of a big barrel.
THANKS ADRIENNE FOR POSTING THIS (AND ALL YOUR POSTS)
THIS IS INDEED ONE OF THE MOST UPSETTING PROBLEMS THAT WE HAVE. i AM TOO EXHAUSTED TO COMMENT MUCH NOW BUT I JUST WANT TO SAY HOW SHOCKING IT IS THAT WE ARE LEFT TO SUFFER IN THIS WAY FOR YEARS AND YEARS – SUFFERING FROM JUST TRYING TO DO THE SIMPLE NECESSARY THINGS IN LIFE.
I AM WRITING A BOOK AND I SHALL CERTAINLY MENTION THIS PARTICULAR ASPECT (NO NAMES FROM HERE i SHALL USE!). PEOPLE JUST DON’T KNOW WHAT WE SUFFER DAILY – LET ALONE THE MEDICAL PROFESSION ….
Oh my!!! I have “joked” about this with other fibro friends!!!!
Not just what you mentioned, but also the necessity for follow-through once in the bathroom. You can’t stop part way through to take a break or change activity, it has to go, well, pretty much the same everytime!
It leaves us in our pj’s late in the day (for those of us who can no longer work)
I agree with the evening shower, but sometimes it just has to be during the day. I just try to give myself plenty of slack time, to just sit on the toilet afterward or whatever I need to do in order to regain myself! Thanks for talking about it!!!
I found the only way to have a shower and enjoy it without exhaustion was to sit on the floor of the shower!!! i have been doing this now for 17 years!!! if i am in a ‘hurry’ i usually kneel down!!! i just cant stand for long without support!! also in the kitchen i have a chair and i sort of kneel one leg on my chair whilst i cook etc it just takes the pressure of standing!!! ive also been doing that for about 16 or 17 years, just a daily coping thing!!! like when i attempt to vaccum i always kneel down, hence my knees get sore but at least it lessons the strain and i at least feel like im doing something!!! good luck gals xxxx
Thank you so much for this article and all the responses! Beth, when I read in your letter,”If I close my eyes when washing my face, I lose my balance,” my mouth dropped open and my spoon just hung in mid-air. I thought I was alone! I also thought perhaps it had to do with aging- I am a grandma, after all. I had really been starting to get concerned about it lately. Now I feel like maybe it really is a part of this disease. I often have dizziness, but this is the worst time by far.
And as for the sweating… I do take morning showers, and it does leave me exhausted, shaky and sweating, as Mom always said,”Like a butcher.” It takes so long to go away! But I must feel clean to I go to work. I usually shower every other day, and use what Grandma called a ‘bird bath’ and Mom calls a ‘sponge bath,’ on the opposite days. Simply stand at the sink and wash up from top to bottom with a washcloth and warm water. I rely on wipes for freshening up when I don’t feel clean. I, too, have gone to short hair- it’s just so much easier to keep up, and my arms don’t have to ache as much from tending to it. However, now I can’t pull it back when it won’t behave.
Absolutely everything causes profuse sweating for me!! Bend over to pick something up- sweat! (I also have bulging discs in my lower back, and I always thought they caused that.) Reach- sweat! Use any physical force- sweat! Sit- (again, the spine)- sweat! Walk- sweat! Last week I mopped my kitchen and shampooed the living room carpet- and I was so covered with sweat my clothes were damp. Then I feel weak and shaky and can’t catch my breath.
I work a telephone job and every day, even if the office is cool, my hair is wet with sweat to the point of starting to itch. I keep a fan on my desk at work, but I need it. I have started to wonder if my sweating is a cardiac symptom, since I am also overweight.
Thanks again for this very informative thread. We must stand together- if only to keep us from falling down!
On another note:
Does anyone else have the problem of extreme skin sensitivity? Sometimes in the evening, I feel like I am covered with what I can only describe as “live dust.” I feel like I am dirty, and it makes my skin crazy- and itchy. The more tired I am, the worse it is.
I want to add that I have switched to the mineral powder makeup, and find it feels so much better on my skin.
On another note:
Does anyone else have the problem of extreme skin sensitivity? Sometimes in the evening, I feel like I am covered with what I can only describe as “live dust.” I feel like I am dirty, and it makes my skin crazy- and itchy. The more tired I am, the worse it is.
Suzi…….I to have that sweating problem………I was thinking it was my anti depressant because that is a side effect………but I wonder…..I walk outside and come in and sweat so much I have to have a towel handy for about an hour…….it’s crazy; and I’ve been wondering if it was my heart because I too am overweight but I,ve done this for years….and had stress tests and Im okay….it seems to get worse as I get older I’ve noticed; and it’s not hot flashes….this is like I’ve really been working and how you work up a sweat? thats me. I wonder what in the world it can be? House cleaning only makes it worse….I have to change clothes I sweat so bad on the days I feel like cleaning. But its embarrassing going thru the grocery store…my face is red….Im sweating so bad….I have actually walked to the forzen foods and grabbed a bag of frozen vegetables and put on my face and neck! LOL…Im serious….its like a waterhose on my face and neck. I couldnt stand it any longer. I can just go on and on……I wonder if people would believe us if we all wrote a book about our experiences? We could have a whole encyclopedia……oh that’s old school…..Im telling my age here. I’ll just be glad when winter sets in. My sweating is a little less then…..if they dont have the heaters on! LOL
I have been fortunate to be able to have my bathroom remodeled so that I have a walk-in shower with room for a shower chair. This has been a blessing since my knees prevent me from getting up out of my beloved baths. Nevertheless, showering is still a challenge which, sadly, I can only manage once a week… sometimes not even that often. Washing in hair in the kitchen sink works for me… even if I then take a shower. It lessens the amount of time I am in the shower and keeps me from getting chilled. I loved our hot tub but getting in and out was dangerous because because of my knee problems. Like other writers, I, too only shower when not home alone. Also, the mineral power make-up is a real help. It’s gentle on my skin and quick to apply. Without it, I doubt if I would ever have the energy to “put on my face”.A month pedicure is also a necessity. This FM is not only painful, debilitating and inconvenient it is expensive!
In reading all the comments (sidenote: it’s great so many contribute their viewpoints and experiences to Adrienne’s thoughtful articles), it looks like sweating is a topic in itself. I have always been a sweater … and not the lovely soft cashmere kind or the wonderfully outdoorsy cable-knit type but the unappealing, oft embarrassing dripping from unwanted places kind. Prevalent in my teen and young adult years, lighter in my late 20′s early 30′s and now back with a vengeance in my 40′s. I initially thought its return was a result of being “that age” but, after talking to my doctor about it, he mentioned that certain medications (like the one I am on) can not only cause and increase in sweating but also a change in your body odor when you sweat. So now I can’t help but wonder how many of us experience this post-shower sweating based on exertion or temperation sensitives alone or are the meds many of us are on contributing to this problem more than we realize?
What timing this article came in. Just yesterday I was in the shower thinking… why does this bother me so badly? It liturally hurts to hit the water at first then to get used to the temperature for the rest of the body. It is crazy and sounds crazy to people that have no idea about our symptoms. Thank You for the article, it helps me to know I am not the only one suffering to do the simple task of a shower. -Jessica
REBEL RAT… and any others that talked about sweating while getting ready to go out! Yes, I too have this problem badly. My make up just runs down my face, I have now placed a small fan on my counter to blow on my face while I curl my hair and put on make up. It has helped a lot! Good Luck to everyone, It does help so much to know your not alone in all this, none of my friends hardly get sick, so it is really frustrating to me and I wonder why me ? all the time! I am often down for a week or two, then I function for three to four days and along those lines dreading a shower. LOL! -Jessica
thank you thank you thank you,
i too thought it was just me. i didn’t have the heart to read more than a dozen of the comments. they all sounded like me and it just made me want to cry. i have major depression. but i am glad to know it’s not that i am just a lazy slob. i too lost my spouse 10 years ago, and i say good riddance! i am almost 60 yrs old and have had this junk 16 yrs. i am so blessed, my son and his family took me in. i just sit in my room 95 % if the time. i can’t imagine having to get presentable every day and go to work. i couldn’t do it. thank the good Lord for baby wipes. God Bless all of you out there, just remember our best days are ahead of us.
Oh Kathy in east texas you have so much company! LOL…I never thought I’d see the day I would not shower every day….who would think it would be so much trouble…..it sounds ridiculous but we all know it is so very true. you’re blessed to have a son who cares.
TO WHOM EVER ASKED ABOUT HIVES IN THE SHOWER….I DONT HAVE HIVES..ALTHOUGH IT LOOKS LIKE THAT…MY PROBLEM IS YEAST….SO I GET OUT LOOKING LIKE I HAVE HIVES EVERYWHERE….I’VE STARTED USING TEA TREE OIL IN MY HEAD AND SHOULDERS(ITS SUPPOSE TO BE GOOD FOR YEAST) I JUST ADD A DROP…..AND I USE TEA TREE BODY SOAP ALSO. SO YOU MIGHT TRY THAT…IT HAS HELPED MY ITCHING ABOUT 90% I’D SAY. GOOD LUCK IF YOU TRY IT.
Wow! I, too, cannot take a hot shower or bath … sends my thermostat way up, and I feel awful and exhausted for hours … raising my arms takes its toll, too … i ice-pack an awful lot … helps regulate my “burning up”… Gyn says must be hot flashes … except these last for hours … any exertion gives me a burn … hot showers or baths send me to the ER for pain meds … my pain mgmt. dr. is so paranoid, he’s still working his way up … now, they have me seeing a psychiatrist (insomnia) and a psychologist … that’s old school, I’m told … none of this is in our head … however, stress does exacerbate all of our symptoms! if you’re like me, and your life has changed from productive to just pain, contact http://www.allsup.com or someone to help you get on disability … I didn’t sleep for six months and kept working … wrecked myself … prayers for everyone!
Like so many of the others, I must say “Wow!” and “Ditto!” I am so glad to know “It’s not just me!” Thank you so much for this article and bringing this subject to the light. Showers are absolutely exhausting. I dread them, but I also hate feeling icky without them. Most days, they are a production. Like everyone else, I have to rest in the middle and afterward. Now, I have to keep my hair short. I wear makeup very little. (It used to be that I wouldn’t leave the house without it.) Even in the dead of winter, I’ll turn the heat off in the house while I’m showering. (I live alone.) Then, I turn the A/C on full blast in the car as I drive to work. I usually wait till I get to work to use the blow dryer on my hair in the ladies restroom, as I’m too hot and sweaty to do it before I leave the house. I wish I had the option of bathing or showering (and washing my hair) at night, but my skin and my hair are very oily. I’d just have to do it again in the morning. I have to wash my hair every single day.
Once again, thank you so much for bringing up this subject. It’s nice to know you aren’t alone and this isn’t all in your head!
I also thought I was the only one that had this problem! A shower wears me out so much that when I’m not going out I skip it and just clean up a little. I get out of the shower and dry my hair, which causes a lot of pain in my hand and arm. Great exhaustion. After I’m done I start sweating so bad that you can’t even tell I’ve dried my hair. I also have tried cooling off in front of the fan, without success. I’m definitely happy to know I’m not the only one! Thanks! I don’t feel so stupid and alone now!
Thank goodness.its not just me. I thought i was going mad,it is exhausting getting showered. I have had fibro for 10 years its no joke America is more Fibro aware than Britain,but we are catching up slowly. i enjoy your emails
Thank you…I now feel halfway normal, whatever normal is! I was always the early riser, got out of bed running and kept going all day, but just this morning I had to convince myself to get up and take a shower and then go thru the whole routine of exhaustion and sweating and wanting to go back to bed! I very seldom wear winter clothing…I can start out in the morning with a turtleneck and by noon, I have on a short sleeve summer top! My doc said to take my tramadol first thing in the morning and then sit quietly for an hour or two until it takes effect…that’s when I read my e-mail! My mother told me I was born sweating, but in the last few years it’s so much worse and the shower is the worst. I often turn the heat off in the winter when I’m trying to clean the house. I also had grab bars put in the shower and I hold on the whole time but still get dizzy. My hair is short and I can’t get my arms up to put it in rollers, so it air dries. Just brushing my hair is so painful, I try to just run my fingers thru it.There’s no use my showering at night because I sweat while I sleep, too. One hint I was given…change the sheets on your bed at night so If you are exausted, you can lie down and rest all night!! It does help, but I’m sweating when I finish…we can’t win!!
Hello all….I was so relieved and thankful, to see how many comments were left last night on this issue. There was 38 when I last looked last night. 1st thing on my mind this morn (uhhum afternoon) was too see how many more would be on here. Now, there are double!! This is… HUUGE for me! The timing of this discussion is ans to prayer…. really….i have been feeling like a piece of sh*#….a useless human being, and not on my own, I’ve had support!!…….I ave abt 35 yrs experience with FMS/CFS. For the past 2 yrs. I just DREAD getting ready! Meaning bath or shower, hair makeup…omg!I just could not understand how I made this so hard for myself. Just recently, My”friend”of 40yrs.has disowned me:( !! I could NOT make it to her son’s wedding…. Here how it go’s, I conserve energy, not doing day before. Day of the wedding, I take a epsom salt bath&wash hair, back to my chair..have to drive to bank 2x’s(forgot the deposit 1st x)..back in my chair..put hot rollers in hair..back to chair.u get the picture ..ok now stress really building!..I’m going to miss church!!!I feel aweful!!3 hrs later have makeup on & dressed knowing I’m late for the reception:( I come out of bedroom tears rolling down my face, I just cannot do it!! I can’t go! I’m exhausted!next morn I get text msgs.! HORRIBLE,TERRIBLE things were said!! I’m still in shock!sorry for going on n on… at least there are people understand……thanks so much everyone!
once again, thank you for bringing up something I thought was “just me”!! Ii have cut my hair very short and only wash my hair once a week. it is highly painful and difficult to lift my arms above my head – again thanks for mentioning that -Ii was in a rental for two years and had to psyche myself up everyday to have the shower which I still dread. Ii now have my own place and a BATH and only shower once a week on hairwash days. a nightmare for me. i cannot bear getting out of a warm bath – not hot that is too dangerous for me – into a cold bathroom even when our summer temperatures are in the 30 degrees C. and then I start to sweat – but this is something new for me -I usually have to lie down for a while until I can continue and get dressed etc. Ii do not even own a hair dryer asIi could never raise up my arms for long enough to use it. anyway my hair is so thin now – am taking iron tablets, and molasses to try to remedy this – and I wear a lightweight wig so do not have to worry about styling my hair. thanks all of you for making me feel “fibro normal”. what used to be a pleasurable pasttime, is now so difficult and what used to take 1 hour now takes double that and i just cannot get up earlier in the morning as my body just refuses!! I must try again to bath at night, but usually I am just so tired that i flop into bed and that is that.
I feel silly adding a comment when there are so many right on point, but I’m in this *lucky* group of shower warriors. My husband loves my long, thick, wavy hair and we have a deal– he pays for the hairdresser once a week or I cut it short. It’s one of the sweetest gestures he’s ever done, understanding that I could never keep my “crowning glory” that I am so proud of without his help. It was the sweating that had me sit up and take notice. I am also noticing that when I go to put my makeup on, and have also turned to mineral makeup, I need a blow dryer set on cool. Like everyone said, what used to take me an hour now has to be structured into my day and if I must go out at night I shower in the morning because like the rest of you what used to take an hour now takes almost three. Thank you ladies for letting me know that I am not alone!
please excuse the lower case but the cat is sleeping on one arm.
for me anything but a quick shower makes me nauseous. it didn’t before cfids. the shower does wake me up a bit but to keep the overall exposure short i take “navy” showers, get wet then shut off the flow, add shampoo and also soap up, rinse shampoo and add conditioner as it soaks in i rinse off soap then the conditioner and i’m done. this also saves energy and water.
a nurse (german) once told me “you americans are too obsessed with cleaning yourselves”, she said that unless something was visibly dirty she washed, hair, face, hands, arm pits and crotch. her skin was healthier for not scrubbing off natural oils and she was in and out quickly (her words).
For what it’s worth.
Richard
Janie, I’m very sorry about your bad experience with your “friend” – who obviously isn’t a real friend to you. I’m sure everyone here understands exactly how you felt. You did try your very best to go – and that’s all we can do. As the years of illness go on, I am actually finding it harder and harder to accept how very un-understanding “normal” people can be about our illness, even people close to us and who knew us before we became ill and who should know this isn’t the real us anymore. People can be astonishingly unsensitive and uncaring, and it’s so hurtful. Increasingly I find it easier to just isolate myself from people – I guess that’s a whole other subject in itself.
Janie- I just had a similar experience but I missed my friend’s funeral. At least she could not be angry. However it was another humiliation. I had several phone calls and had to explain that i was unable. I do not know whether my explanations were accepted. I do know that this is life. I love all of you guys who are sharing my pain and frustration. You help keep me sane.
Richard- Hey a guy who loves his cat enough to type with one arm. Happens here too.
OMG…THANK YOU THANKYOU THANK YOU this is not a subject I have felt comfortable enough talking to anyone other than my husband. I feel so stupid that I have never thought of baby wipes. I do the ol’ sponge bath when it is just too hard to take a shower. I really sit and have to psyche myself up to get in the shower and then it is usually in the late afternoon when I know I can get into bed and shiver and sweat and calm my body down. I have never been a person who sweat so this has been a new experience for me. MY husband always says that my T-stat is broken. I now let my hair air dry and then just use a straightening iron in the morning if I have to go out. It does not matter what the temp is outside for me to sweat..it is more of a body malfunction of some sort.
I MISS ME TOO!!!! Lots of gentle hugs to all of you!
I started doing the water aerobics for my fibro and have found that to help tremendously with my ability to shower.
For the the few months prior to the class I could only take baths because I had tons of pain from the standing so long. I can’t take super long showers like I did before but I CAN TAKE SHOWERS now and without tons of lower back pain and that’s huge in itself especially since they are so much faster then the tub.
Now if I could get my face to stop sweating so much, I could go back to loving my shower time.
How do you do it? Just last week I was sobbing to my husband how unfair it was that taking a shower is like being hit by a car. You read my mind one other time, right after my sister made a big deal (again) because I was in my robe when she came over, because I couldn’t stand the pain of actual clothes like “normal” people wear. I sit and read these blogs and cry my eyes out because it’s my life right in front of me in print. On one hand it’s good to see so many others going thru it too-but really it’s so incredibly unfair because so many people(doctors included) still just don’t get it. Or believe it. Or even want to try. I’ve learned over the almost 15 years of dealing with it that people don’t like to admit that there’s nothing they can do to fix it, so it’s easier for them to just ignore it and carry on with their lives. If that helps them that’s great. I just know I would never have done it to my family members. When somebody gets sick I spend days online trying to figure out what’s wrong with them, but there are still members of my family who don’t know a thing about what’s wrong with me, and every now and then it still hurts my feelings. I used to have a life I loved, a job I loved, friends and a car and money and if they think I would choose what I have now then maybe they’re the sick ones after all. Okay-slowly, carefully climbing down off my soapbox now. Happy to meet you all. I’ll be back!
I have struggled since of Oct 1999 with ME and then Fibromyalgia. Due to several serious falls/collapses in the shower I no longer use one.
I am extremely lucky to have the use of an electric bath chair lift which takes away most of the problems of manoeuvring myself in and out of the bath although I do need someone on hand (usually my daughters) to help with my balance getting onto and off the seat but no longer is there is the major indignity and hellish pain of having to be lowered and raised in and out of the water (not to mention the potential strain hazards to both myself and my helpers.
My daughters wash my hair every night as this is a task that creates terrible pain in my arms, neck and also wrists. My hair is not dried but left in a towel and I am wrapped in a towelling robe to dry off as I cant stand my skin being rubbed. I powder puff sensitive skin baby talc lightly all over the parts I can manage,I am invariably exhausted by then and ready to get into a warm bed with my now damp hair wrapped up in a towelling hat.
I have had a terrible time with sensitivity of my skin where it was hot, itchy and extremely sore to touch. I mentioned the problems I was having to a family friend who also suffered from a skin problem. He told me before running a bath to make sure the water was as hot as I could get it. He advised me to run only hot water into the bath and allow it to cool naturally. He explained that chemicals added to the water supply (chlorine and similar chemicals) can be a major factor in creating a problem with itchy skin and that by using this method to fill the bath a lot of the chemicals are reduced by the steam – The bathroom extractor fan is run all the time whilst the water cools. I was rather sceptical about all of this but it actually reduced my itching considerably and has certainly got me wondering if I should get a filter for all the house water!
Blow-drying my hair is so draining, holding up the dryer and brush. Going shorter has been a necessity. Also if I choose to put on any cosmetics to look good, it’s sometimes exhausing b/4 I even leave the house–I take a rest first.
I want to mention something that happened to me a year or so ago that I found a solution to on the internet. I live in the subtropics and had and still have at times a problem with heat rash in the groin and under my breast. I began to notice an slightly foul odor about it and absolutely could not get it to clear up. I was about to see my doctor about it but after searching online I decided it might be a yeast infection from symptoms other’s had had. Someone suggested using Monoistat (brand name) cream on it. I did and it cleared right up so I did not have to go to the doctor. I am not trying to play doctor here though. If it does not work immediately please see the doctor.
Exactly.
I can relate to almost all of the comments made.
This is very interesting because I have a shower chair because I was getting very dizzy in the shower. Along with fibro I also have neurocardiogenic syncope which means i pass out. My doctor did link showering as one of the triggers for me passing out so I always have to be careful in the shower. However, I do find that I am so tired and just drained after I shower and get dressed. To the point that it is very hard for me to even leave the house. It completely wipes me out. I for some reason never connected it directly to showering itself, but it makes a lot of sense.
OMG!I too get exausted after a shower & overheat like crazy. I feel like I’m losing my mind , my body temp. is never right. It makes me feel better hearing that I’m not alone. Thanks, Diane
showering for me is a catch 22, i need one every day to wake me up but find it exhausting at the time if that makes any sense, i do need to rest for a while after, i hate baths although they are very warming they take too long and if i have a relaxing soak i feel more tired then ever,which for me still doesnt help with my insomnia,i find that if i do have a pj day once in a while which i love,it does make me feel grumpy as i dont wake up completly and also makes me feel grumpy as not nice and fresh, shower beats bath every time
I prefer showers, but I think that is cause I have one of those small tubs that are at the bottom of the shower. In my experience Trying to fit into the small tub and then being all scrunched up with half of me in the water and half out just plays royal havoc with my body temp. regulation. I end up hurting all over and get very grumpy. My solution is take a warm shower with a little bit of a cool off time at the end with some colder water. And if I am not doing well at all I get my hubby to help me wash off so that I do not have to bend and stoop so much.
Thank you so much for this article. I dread showering sometimes and thought that I was just being really slack. You have covered all the reasons why showering is hard for me – I’m so glad that I’m not the only one!
Hi, this really caught my eye, I thought i was the only person who found bathing and showering a problem!!
)…Happy bathing everyone!
Baths dont work for me, why?, I dont know!, but it causes me to become very breathless when i get into a bath, and the water doesnt have to be hot hot hot either, even luke warm is the same, as well as the breathlessness, i get pains in my legs….this started years before i became unwell with CRPS..though i did suffer and still do, from Angina.
Now…since the CRPS came along, i have had a very powerful shower installed..BIG mistke!..The power of the shower causes me to get breathless too, as does it cause pain in my bad leg, and also gives me headaches, and i feel exhausted after…so i tend to sit on the end of the bath ( lucky to have a good size ledge)..Oh yes, the shower i have is a fixture mixer type,,on the taps..how about that sooo powerful!..so, i sit on the end, with the hose in one hand, sponge,or flannel in the other, and wash my hair over the bath. what a parlarva, and how exhausting. Oh for the days years ago when i didnt even give a bath/shower a second thought, just jumped in
When I read most of these posts it was like …this is me. It made me want to cry. With so many of us that find this so disabling why can’t a cure for this inability to control our temperatures. My toes and fingers freeze in the winter while my head sweats, but also like many of you I too sweat like crazy with any physical exertion at all. Any temp over 71 and I can’t handle it.
I don’t care for showers but do take them at the gym before and after going in the hot tub or warm therapy pool. Exercise in the water is better on the Fibro and you don’t notice if you are sweating…or don’t feel like you are.
I do love my baths and sometimes if I have no where to go I take two a day to soothe my pain. I do have to lay down naked or in shorts with fans blowing on me to cool me off, dry the sweat and rest before attempting make up or getting dressed if I have somewhere to go. Have let my hair grow long and only have to wash it a couple times a week……it goes up or in a pony tail if it is hot out. Less styling with the longer hair helps so much.
The sweating is awful it makes me reluctant to go to outdoor events in the now nice summer weather. After the cold snowy winter we had….(I didn’t mind it at all) but my boyfriend wants to go places……….uugh the sweat just pours off my head and face and the heat makes me feel ill. I use to love the outdoors…I miss being me too. I want to be able to regulate my temperature!
Oh man, this is unreal – I am sitting here crying for you all- I didn’t know that so many have to go through this same thing as I and the people around you are like all the same everywhere – they do not understand and not even believe – think and even say we are lazy. I have been diagnosed with Fibro about 22 years ago at age 40 – before this it was just called “mental” or depressions and tendenitis, tennis elbow, not enough exercise! Hello! I can’t make it through the shower, have 3 school age kids, run my own business and household ….. exercise?? It took my husband like 17 years to understand and believe and than I lost him to a heart attack! Now I am livinging in the fog and state of guilt and confusion-
can’t afford the neurologist, meds or supplements, am to “unmotivated” to act like all the other widows in my age (63), and the mortgage company wants me to sell my house.
Showers can exhaust you. This was one of my first indications when I realized something was “wrong” with me. I would get my shower in the morning before going to work. I Started noticing afterwards, while getting dressed for work, I was so tired I would sit on the bed to exhausted to get dressed! Sometimes, I ended up laying down going back to sleep! I’m so glad you said something about the body temperature! I thought it was just me. The MORE I find out about this ‘condition’ the MORE I hate how its taken away my life!
Showers can exhaust you. This was one of my first indications when I realized something was “wrong” with me. I would get my shower in the morning before going to work. I Started noticing afterwards, while getting dressed for work, I was so tired I would sit on the bed to exhausted to get dressed! Sometimes, I ended up laying down going back to sleep! I’m so glad you said something about the body temperature! I thought it was just me. The MORE I find out about this ‘condition’ the MORE I hate how its taken away my life!
I dread taking a shower. If I stay in for over 5mins I start to pass out from the steam in the room. I constantley have to open the door to get air in my lungs, it’s like i’m suffocating in there. I have managed to find a good shampoo and can get away with washing my hair twice a week (the doctor doesn’t really care about my the state of my hair so that’s an upside
.
I cut mine short too, because it’s just too tiring to wash and dry. I can’t even brush it cause it hurts my scalp so much. My mum has had to come up after i shower many times to bring me lemonade, cause my blood sugar get’s really low, and I have low blood pressure too, and I faint and get black spots in my vision. Now I just keep lemonade bottles in the bathroom.
I also have a shower chair and those handles that stick to the wall to help me get up. I found baths where less exhausting but I couldn’t get in and out of it anymore, cause my joints are too stiff.
I never shower just before I go out, or I then can’t go out. I shower at night and then rest. I find that if I know I have to go out at night, showering in the early afternoon and then taking an hours nap, sometimes helps me so I can go out at night, although as many of you know you can wake up feeling worse, but i take the gamble.
I still can’t find anything to wash in that doesn’t make me come out of the shower, itchy and red. i’ve literally tried everything at the chemist, natropaths etc……I think the water also makes me break out in a rash…..It happens if I stay too long in the pool or ocean also.
I use a shower chair and have a great husband. When I started having trouble moving my shoulders and arms, I battled over whether to just chop off my hair. He hated the idea, so he just gets in the shower with me. We talk while he washes and conditions it I bathe myself. I know that kind of caregiver is unusual. It’s very nice to not have to strain already-sore muscles, and I have waist-long hair that’s in beautiful condition!
Thank God for this article! I am NOT alone! I rarely take showers/baths anymore because of the production of doing so. I do clean up, however. My hair is a lot healthier having gone down to washing it once a week at the sink, which is much easier for me. i then let it air dry. I sweat so profusely it negates the shower sometimes! My shower is odd in that it has benches built in, but i really can’t sit on them as they are too slippy. The water hurts pounding down on me anyway.
I’m glad I have some understanding people around me! I too am almost bed-ridden. I am searching for resources to help me out. I am diabetic too so need to eat regularly. I don’t know of too many services for people who are 37 and can’t function so I guess I will talk to my doc about it.
Oh my goodness! That is sooo what happens to me!! I thought it was just me and didn’t realize the fibromyalgia was behind it. I am usually exhausted, sweaty and sore by the time I shower and dress! Thank you for the awareness you have given me.
One of the first things I noticed was a increased sensitivity to the water,, it felt like ice picks were going through me, raising my arms over my head to wash my hair just leaves me breathless,, I have been told I have small fiber neuropathy, along with fibro,, since everything else comes back negative,, but I have alot of sinus and salivary gland problems,, so they thing sjogrens syndrome, my hands are uselss,, my arms are useless, i cant climb a ladder anymore,, I fall,, I fall when i walk,, my ears are constantly plugged up,, showeres take a hour to get ready for, I just dont have the energy to do it,, my family just seems me getting worse,, and doctors are so quict to shove us out the door,, being a man,, its thought of,, just man up and deal with it,, I really believe doctors just look at a man and think, tehre is no way this person is sick,, he looks to good, and If i hear you have had the million dollar workup one more time, i;ll scream,, I hate this disease and whatever other disease it brought along,,
geez, I never thought I would feel this way either! but I do, and I dread the routine also. at one time I too had long, curly hair that I would either wear natural or blow dry and straighten. in a fit of frustrated rage one day I cut it all off under the guise of doing good for others and donating the 11-12″ of hair to kids with cancer. someone somewhere always has it worse off than me and I needed to be reminded of this on that day. several months,ok, a year or so later, I have longish hair again and I have found a wonderful product: dry shampoo! you find it in the shampoo/conditioner aisle, kinda closer to the frilly ones that have lots to their product line. it comes in an aerosol can, you spray several inches from your roots, rub with warm hands ( I got those!!!) and brush! voila, fresh hair in a can-hehehe and this one actually smells good, citrusy like. try it out. another product that is a real saver is a hair dryer and round brush in one. those who have natural curls and want to go straight this is a one step wonder! imagine a round vented bristle brush, with hot air blowing throw it, and there is a cool mode too. very awesome!
every little bit helps! good luck y’all!
I am glad to hear that other people get tired from showering. I have to rest after I shower. I can’t shower early either; I keep putting it off until almost noon. I also use lots of baby wipes.
Also I should add that I too hate the day when I have to shower. I am usually not sure if it is my neck osteoarthritis or the fibro.
I prefer showers to baths, but I find it tires me out, and also when I get out of the shower, my skin itches all over, driving me mad for about an hour, and nothing will ease the itching.
I thought wow I’m not the only one. The shower feels so good
then the dizziness comes on and need to get out fast. It’s awful
when you’re so exhausted that now I wash my hair on one day
and shower the next.Also want to cut my hair but leaving the house
is another issue to cope with.
I didn’t know it was called a Navy shower – but the getting all wet with my hand-held shower, then soaping everything, then rinsing. Did you know you don’t have to repeat the soaping? I have used a blow dryer to dry myself off. I also put antiperspirant in skin fold area as well as corn starch afterwards. I think there is less problems inhaling than with talcum.
I sometimes use Dr. Bonner’s concentrated liquid soaps (has oils in it to moisturize skin) – I put a diluted amount on a cloth or in the sink and go over my hair (short again and air-dry style) and body. There is scented and unscented. I love the peppermint in the warm weather – I feel refreshed.
I will try the fan drying. Maybe get more wash clothes to keep costs down.
Has anyone tried hot shower followed by cold shower? I’m told it helps with pain management, but with CFS, Fibromyalgia and EBV, I am scared the cold could cause muscle spasms and relapse with my viral syndrome. Plus, it is traumatic to even step into the tub/shower without warming up the floor with hot water first. Also with low thyroid function I’m very sensitive to temperature changes. But I have chronic pain everywhere as well as acute pain and inflammation in my hands and knees. Anyone out there with fibro and/or CFS try the hot/cold shower, and did it help or hurt?
Yes this would be a tub spout. Sorry the reason i rlaely don’t cover this is because. there are so many different types, but I will in the future when time alow’s. Some screw right off and some you need and Allen wrench to remove them, some are make for 1/2 inch pipe and some for 3/4, some slip on. I would recommend you take a picture of it with your ceil phone and take in to home depot,. Loews or ace hardware and may be some one there could tell you what type you have.
Tina you are right the hands over the head awful I have hair to my waist so I do have issues with that so I never wash my hair every day.
I am very lucky as I do not sweat so I only shower every other day
I shower at night or LATE day… I almost never shower in the morning.
As for the poster who has the hot tub I am glad its working for you, that was the worst thing I ever bought makes me feel worse I get tremors I feel like I am going to pass out and the heat drains me I just feel plain exhausted after I get in I HATE mine lol.. and you cant bath in it because they dont recommend soap so thats out
Showering is one of my most difficult things to do. I do a lot of dispossable bath clothes, kinda like diaper wipes but thicker…and I’ll use diaper wipes too…and they sell a dry shampoo spray that works pretty good. Or I’ll use talc. I get 1-2 showers in a week. I just cannot do more then that. It’s a body killer…and a heart breaker. We are not alone…sad.
Oh my gosh! Finally someone who understands. Showering is absolutely exhausting for me and I sweat like crazy even with a cooler water temperature. I just wish my husband could understand how difficult living with Fibromyalgia and Chronic fatigue is. He’s the energizer bunny and I think he’s getting fed up with my invisible ailments. Please pray for me. Thanks
I am literally sitting here with tears streaming down my face after reading all the comments on how hard it is for people with fibro to shower. I feel vindicated and validated – I have hated myself for years for the decline I’ve had in my appearance. My entire life I showered at least once every day, washed and styled my hair and wore makeup, and had immaculate, fresh, pressed clothes. Every day. Now I’m lucky if I can get a shower and into sweat pants a few times a week. It feels so good to realize that I’m NOT crazy, lazy, or just a slob. I hate the choices I have to make – if I have to shop for groceries, then I know I won’t have the energy for a shower. So I go looking like a mess, which then worsens my self esteem. Many, many times I forego opportunities to visit a friend because I don’t have the energy to clean up and fix up that day….or sometimes I’m so desparate for a break that I’ll go anyway and then hate myself for looking so bad. I have a wonderful small support group of family and close friends, but none of them judges me so harshly as I do myself. Also, when reading about how many people have profuse sweating for long periods after showering hit a nerve – that is ME exactly….had no idea anyone else experienced this. I can so relate to the comments about having to go sit in the car with the air conditioner on full blast to cool down (even in winter) by the time I finished getting showered and dressed to go somewhere. Thank you to everyone who share their story. You have made me feel so much happier just knowing that I am not to blame for this illness and it’s awful effects.
Hi,I just looked up this info today. I have had fibro for many years ,as well as many other health issues. I’ve noticed over the years,showering is a painful task.I can hardly bring myself to do it each day.Baths are a problem as well,as I have arthritis and have a hard time with easing in and out of the bath with my arms and legs. I just noticed today that others share the problem of profuse sweating after a shower(with me,even a cool shower).It helps to know I AM normal,with just a dibilitating physical problem.(No it’s not just in our heads ,and a name for complaining of pain,as thought years ago.I am 44 and act physically like I’m 74.I have to remain active all day,until my “TV Time” on the couch with my “baby” dogs at night.To which then I can hardly get up. I have a bad night of sleep each night with the pain of fibro,arthritis,herniated discs,insomnia,sleep apnea ,and reflux. I was embarrassed to tell my husband, the other day ,finally, that I take “sponge baths” all week and shower on the weekends.It makes me feel like I’m disgusting and lazy.Coping with this helps to see others dealing with this problem as well.Also ,I did use to get dizzy in hot showers.Didn’t know the connection til now,even though I have vertigo.The water hitting on me is like needles at first. Also hear is another problem,I have OCD and wash my hands frequently.Even the water on my hands hurt.I have resulted in wearing disposeable gloves for anything messy,just to avoid getting wet.This forum was very useful to me.It’s nice to “put your finger” on an odd problem.I was suffering with embarassment over the whole ordeal. I guess that’s why ,we had a pool and I never would get into it…Makeup wipes also help me for washing my face,as that is painful with water as well. Even the “spongebaths” are painful and exausting,but it has to be done.Thank you all for your info.
As an add-on to my previous comment,after reading the 117 comments and counting,I also have trouble getting dressed physically.It hurts to twist and move to put on clothes,dry off,etc.I as well get dizzy when I close my eyes to wash my hair.This is a task as well with raising my arms above my head.(changing a light bulb is excrusiating) This has come on gradually over the years,but I think the Lyrica helps.As I don’t sweat as much and get as dizzy as I use to.Hope there’s hope for us out there. as this is embarrassing to admit to anyone who knows me.I feel foolish,and like a sloth.I usually get cleaned and dressed at around 3pm. each day.I procrastinate til my “deadline” This doesn’t work so well for my husband on the weekends who wants to go out and enjoy the day.It also affects me with my doctors’ appointment,etc.Thanks for listening.
I used to get “hives” from showering – since i don’t use soaps i’m guessing it was from the water. It happens leas now – i moved from the coty to the country and it settled a lot. I have a variety of skin problems – most probably related to nerve hyperactivity.
I only shower every secod day unless i can get away with more. Luckily i live in a temperate/cool zone. Wouldn’t be pretty if i lived in the subtropics or something.
Virtual ((hugs)) to all Fibromites.
Thanks for the validation! This is exactly why I always take my showers at night (when I can stand to take them at all). And the massaging shower head is wasted on me, because there’s only one setting I can stand and it’s not a massaging one.
I can relate about the “hives” too–I always thought it was like prickly heat.
I’m not aware of any particular problems with showering, but thinking about it, I do find showering in the mornings a bit of a rush. it’s the getting dry that is more difficult than the shower itself. I tend to “Strip wash” in the mornings, like people used to do before we all had modern plumbing and bathrooms, then take a bath in the evenings.
Hair washing I can only do once or twice a week if I’m using the dryer on it as well.
This is so interesting! I get what feels like hot flashes when i exit the shower! I sweat so much that i have difficulty putting my make-up on. I have a fibromyalgia diagnosis, but had not connected the two. Are people with fibro sensitive to heat?
I can only manage a shower about once a week (baths are even worse) as I can scarcely move and also with extreme arm and hand pain, it is so difficult to do. I always have a bad reaction afterwards too, so try andmake the shower late at night, to dive into bed. (not that I have not been there most of the day already). I cannot dry myself at all so have to call on my husband/carer for everything. I get a strong pain reaction and nerves just flare up and usually all the same for the next day, until it dies down a little bit.
Like one of the ladies, I use the wet tissues to freshen up during the week, or whenever needed.
rosefen
Thank you Adrienne to share this article….Oh my….I read some of the comments and I fit in all of them including the wipers….I come to the conclusion that’s impossible for me to have a shower and wash my hair in one lot….I do shower every second day alternating with mid wash (bidet)..I made my own !!! as for the hair…I bought a portable rubber shower head which can be attached to the laundry tap…I do wash my hair only once a week over the laundry sink, so that it relieve me from some pain from my shoulders and arms. Because I can’t handle to dry my hair with the hairdryer, I have a semi=perm to give my hair some bounce and will let them dry naturaly….the only time I use a comb its when I wash them and put a lot of conditioner….untangle and rinse…when dry I use some leave in conditione creamr by just shaking up my hair..and it s done..everyday I alternate the cream with a spray and a shake….I gave some notions as I care for my hair but rest assured that I will take aboard the night shower instead of the morning one….Stay strong ladies and although we are sick it feels good in not being a lone ranger…thank you for sharing….xx
I can only shower once a week, usually in the afternoon, but I wash my hair in the Kitchen sink twice a week. If I must wash my hair in the shower I use one arm for a bit then the other, instead of both at the same time. If I’ve had a really bad day I take a rinse off shower before bed and use a towel warmer to prevent chills. My hot tub is my sanctuary though. It soothes the nerve, both emotional and physical. Some days I can use the bubbles to work our a knot in my shoulder or back but most times I just soak and relax
Showers, they are just so exhausting and if you do tell friends who don’t have a clue, you end up wishing you had just never mentioned it.
Showers; honestly we must’ve been brainwashed into having to have so many of these showers by the media I think. My elderly relatives didn’t have them and they smelled sweet. (They strip washed) I am 62, live in the countryside, and thinking about it seriously, I don’t actually get dirty; OK hands, knees & feet. I wash (as an aunt used to say) “cat lick” every other day. The hairdresser told me not to wash my hair every/everyother day, (it was greasy) she told me to leave it a week (urgh) wash it, then try not to wash it for at least five/six days and gradually it would become less greasy. She was absolutely right. Try it. I now only wash my hair about every 9 days. Fantastic. and that is how long I can go until I have a shower. I am not a slob or lazy. I live life to the full as much as I can. I was widowed & re-married. After we had been dating about three times, it was obvious we got on really well so I thought I had better tell him about Fibro before it got serious. – kill or cure – I showed him a print-out of the symptoms and took a long breath and waited. (He had never been married) He said “I used to take youngsters out who were in wheelchairs, as a helper, so it doesn’t worry me” Wow! Then I said “I will probably never be able to sleep in the same bed as you as I toss and turn all night” His reply was basically “what I haven’t had I can’t miss!” We married six months later and then we found out he snores for England! Banished to the spare room straight away!
The shower exhaustion; I have read out some of these posts to him and he laughed; with me. Now he knows it is not just me making it up.
He says I have five different thermostats on me!!
We all cope best we can. Love to all of you and thank you for sharing all your coping strategies; it really does help. Night night.
I just found this article and am so thankful! I thought something was wrong besides having fibro. I am exhausted and in so much pain after a simple shower! I will use the advice of trying showers at night and keeping the temp down. Thank you
Taking a shower does exhaust me and makes me dizzy. I love baths, but getting in and out of the bathtub is not easy. I have learned to take showers with cooler water. That helps me not to be so exhausted.
I am so relived I am not the only one who does not shower everyday. After I shower, my body shakes and I sweat like crazy. Almost need another shower by the time my body adjusts back to the temperature. I do usually have to rest before I can dry my hair. It used to take me no time to shower and dry my hair . . . now it takes at least and hour and a half. I hate to go anywhere because it takes me so long to get ready and takes all my energy. By the time I am ready to go, I am so tired I just want to take a nap.
Wow! I’m in the process of being diagnosed with Fibro and tonight I was just googling why I feel so exhausted and still sweat a few hours after I shower and the first link that came up was this one. This sweating after the shower thing is a symptom that’s only just occurred in the past week and I never thought it would be related to fibro. I honestly thought it might have been because the house my partner and I are currently in is dirty (we are living with my mother who does not and will not clean up after herself or her animals) as being the reason why I feel greasy a few hours after showering.
A few times in the past my partner has walked in on me sitting on the bottom of the shower with the hot water running over me and just sobbing in pain. We are looking at buying a house soon and renovating and the first thing I said is that I want a shower that has a built in bench seat in it so I can sit down and shower. She just laughed because she knows exactly why I want it.
Since my doctor first said it may be fibro I have been researching non-stop and stuff that I thought was just part of being female and being busy with uni and work are actually all symptoms of fibro. It’s so nice to have some clue as to what is going on with me.
I appreciated this article, thank you! I am often too tired to shower – being beyond exhausted, lightheaded in the first place, and having balance issues makes showers intense. I do feel embarrased and ashsamed of my physical issues – trying to work on that.