Wexford’s Fibro Warriors continue fight to raise awareness of invisible illness – ‘before this group I thought I was alone’
Local group fibro-warriors gathered outside the County Hall at Carricklawn on Sunday evening pictured with Cllr Leonard Kelly and local election candidate Michelle O'Neill to mark fibromyalgia awareness day, the council building was also lit up purple. Pic: Jim Campbell
Diagnosed with a condition which many still don’t fully understand, the members of Wexford Fibro Warriors (WFW) often suffer in silence with no-one to turn to when their health deteriorates. However, as they gathered outside the buildings of Wexford County Council, lit up purple to mark Fibromyalgia Awareness Day, the group were unified, secure in the knowledge that everyone in attendance was on their side.
Supported by Wexford councillor Leonard Kelly, this is the third year the WFW have gathered outside the council buildings as they seek to raise awareness and understanding of their invisible illness. Described as a “chronic disorder that causes pain and tenderness throughout the body, as well as fatigue and trouble sleeping” fibromyalgia impacts each individual differently.
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With no known cure, those diagnosed with the condition must learn to manage it, pacing themselves as they carry out daily tasks which, to most, would be done without a second’s thought.
Sharon Doyle is one of the members of WFW and says her fibromyalgia is linked to the chronic back pain she has suffered for more than 20 years. During one visit to her GP she was told that the pain she was experiencing, which had spread throughout her body and included burning sensations and pins and needles, was down to fibromyalgia.
“I didn’t even know what it was, but at that point I couldn't stand for long periods at a time, I ended up requiring a walking stick,” Sharon says. “Over the last 3-4 years it has become progressively worse, I’ve had to learn how to treat my body, knowing that if I do too much it’ll mean having to stay in bed for an entire day to recover.
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“Because it’s an invisible illness it makes it so much more difficult, if you were to look at me you wouldn’t think anything is wrong with me. Generally I’m not a depressive person, I’m quite happy go lucky, but depression is part of the illness, I’ve had times when I’ve felt incredibly low, when I didn’t want to get out of bed in the morning, and at the same time you’re pushing yourself to do things for your family, to be there for them. You end up being hard on yourself, and people think you’re just lazy.”
Joining the WFW and discovering she wasn’t the only one going through this, has helped Sharon immeasurably, helped ease some of the loneliness she has experienced as her condition has worsened.
“Before I joined this group I thought I was alone, thought I was the only one, but when you’re with people who know what you’re going through it removes a lot of the loneliness. I had followed the group on Facebook for a time before I finally met up with the members and it’s a huge support to me.”
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Thanking Cllr Kelly for his continued backing, Sharon said that simply having someone who believes in them and their experiences is of huge importance in the fight to raise awareness of fibromyalgia.
“Leonard has been brilliant, the most important thing is he believes us, believes it’s a real condition, which not everyone does; because depression is a part of it some people automatically put it down to that.”
