ESA and Fibromyalgia

Put 10 doctors in a room and ask them the cause of fibromyalgia and you’ll get 10 different answers including “it doesn’t exist, it’s all in the mind” and “it’s hysterical in origin”.  Also, fibromyalgia can be hard to pin down and varies enormously, not only from person to person but also within one person.  Some sufferers will only be affected by a few trigger points, others with more.  There are 18 trigger points and to get a medical diagnosis you need 11.  People will often say they have fibromyalgia with less than 11.  This is one of the reasons for the scepticism surrounding the condition.

We have seen a growing number of DLA fibromyalgia claimants/appellants over the years, usually with associated depression.  Fatigue, brain fogging, anxiety are also common symptoms.  Some sufferers can be quite robust and stoical.  Others fragile and easily upset.  It’s a difficult area and can be hard to pin down for DLA due to its variability.  If patients do very little and take lots of rest some can manage by themselves most of the time.  However, exertion of some degree can have payback for some, causing pain and extreme fatigue for days following.  DLA success rates are, therefore, varied.  We have had successes, partial successes and complete failures.  Each case will turn on its own facts and medical evidence is crucial.

Just to add.  We don’t get as many for ESA as for DLA but same comments apply.

I have long believed that the cluster of disorders variously known as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, myalgic encephalitis and post-viral syndrome (and perhaps also irritable bowel syndrome) are (a) linked in some way but (b) not necessarily each a specific disease entity. This is why there are so many different manifestations. It’s not helped by the fact that theya re still very much diagnoses by elimination and that causation remains a mystery.

Mind you, as the daughter of a woman with bipolar affective disorder, I will hit anyone who thinks that to say an illness is psychiatric belittles it and means it’s “all in the mind”, ie imaginary. After my father’s death my mother was in hospital for 16 weeks. That’s a long time compared with anybody who has *only* got a physical illness. You don’t keep people in hospital for hypochondria.

The link from this post to the ‘Fibromyalgia - Guidelines for the Disability Analyst’ may be of interest (document also attached in case you can’t fix the broken html).

You may wish to read CE/1992/2010 (AF v SSWP [2011] UKUT 61 (AAC)) which considers the necessity of taking into account the claimant’s ability to repeatedly carry out an activity.  The claimant in that case also sufferred from fibromyalgia.  The decision is available at http://www.osscsc.gov.uk/Aspx/view.aspx?id=3194  .

Thanks everyone for your help.