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When I say that fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome affect everything, I DO mean everything! They can even show up in your skin, hair and fingernails.
Why? As usual, we don't know exactly. However, it could be due to several abnormalities, either alone or in combination, that some experts believe we have, including:
- Low blood flow/inefficient nutrient delivery
- Malabsorption of nutrients
- Mitochondrial/cellular dysfunction
This is one area where we need to look at the conditions separately, however, since these are among the few symptoms that don't seem to overlap -- at least, in the eyes of the medical community. As we know, we often have symptoms that aren't "officially" recognized.
What skin, hair and nail symptoms do you have? What has helped with them? Take the poll(s), and leave your comments below!
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I’m so glad you included hair loss – every time my cfs gets worse I lose all my eyelashes. It’s so frustrating! Then they grow back until another bad relapse.
All the doctors put it down to extra stress on my body and eyelashes aren’t ‘essentials’ so can be lost.
I have weak nails that split into layers, in addition to breaking easily. Dermatologist recommended 3000 mg biotin daily, and said it would take 6 months for the new nail growth to show the effects. Some improvement, but not complete, but I continue the biotin – not wanting to go back to the way it was before!
How do you determine if some symptoms, like the easy bruising, are a result of the illness or a result of the medications we take for it? Or in some cases, like mine, from aging (66).
I take gelatin cpsules, which seem to have a good affect on my nails.
Thank you so much for addressing issues concerning nails. For years I have dealt with terrible vertical ridges on my fingernails. In the past few years, the ridges have gotten so bad, they are raised and causing my nails to split along the ridge. My doctor is stumped. It is difficult to wash my hair and do so many other things, as the splits catch on everything. Nothing I have done has helped. I guess it is something I must live with, but knowing others also deal with this makes it a little easier, knowing I’m not the only one!
I do not have nail problems but know of many people without cfs/fm who have nail splitting.
Google ‘biosculpture nails’ they stop the splitting and they look good too
I’ve been getting mine done for over a year and my nails are healthier than ever. – Hope that helps 
I’ve had a lot of hair loss, maybe 2/3 less thick than it used to be when I was healthy, nail ridges, rapid premature skin aging, loss of collagen, tooth decay and gum receding etc. I wonder how common these things are among CFS sufferers. I’m only 31 so the degeneration has been really rapid.
i have hair loss really bad bruising and almost every other sympom that goes along with fibro and cfs, i do grieve for the once very active life that i once used to have,all i have to rely on is painkillers and anti inflamatories also deep heat rub, any suggestions that i can try will be helpful, thanks.
I have had nail ridges (horizontal) all my life. I used to feel so self-conscious when I was a teenager. I am 62 and have been getting artificial nails now for about 7 years. This has cured my ridges -or covers it up. It has also totally eliminated the terrible hangnails or split cuticles that I used to get and bite at.
Gerri