Do Support Fibromyalgia Support Groups Do More Harm Than Good?
After I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 1997, it was suggested to me that I might benefit from joining a fibromyalgia support group. My first and only experience with a support group was a jaw dropping experience; I realized immediately that this was not the place for me, and that those who were present at this meeting worked very hard at validating each others perceived disabilities. Oh, don’t get me wrong, the pain of fibromyalgia is real, very real indeed. I’ve had tears pouring down my cheeks, as I struggled to make it from the bed to a scalding hot shower. But ten years later, I have long since recovered, and live a very active and physical life with minimal interference from this neurological quirk. Researchers have recently discovered something that hints at what I felt intuitionally at that fibromyalgia support group meeting so many years ago. Dr. Jeffrey Mogil, of the University of McGill has concluded that mice have the ability to show empathy. In their study at the Pain G
