Tuesday, January 16, 2007 10:26 PM CST
Local woman wants to start support group for people who have chronic pain
By DAWN SCHABBING, Features Writer
dschabbing@jg-tc.com
On a recent cold, rainy day Rhonda Pedigo said she was miserable.
But, it was more than just another gloomy day.
The dampness and low temperatures caused her pain, mostly in her upper and lower back.
“When you have the flu and feel all achy and tired and blah. That’s what having fibromyalgia feels like all the time,” she said.
Mrs. Pedigo, 36, of Mattoon, said her painful condition became most noticeable in 2001, after she had fallen on ice and fractured her tailbone.
“Soon after that, my pain was incredible. I was told the pain would ease off, but I guess with (suspected) fibromyalgia, it doesn’t get better,” she said.
Diagnosing fibromyalgia is difficult because there isn’t a diagnostic test for it and symptoms overlap, making it more challenging to pinpoint.
Often times, patients such as Mrs. Pedigo have already undergone other exams and tests with normal results, without being able determine the ailment.
Fibromyalgia is a syndrome, a collection of symptoms that occur together but are not related to a specific cause. It lasts a long time, however it isn’t fatal.
Symptoms include widespread muscle pain, fatigue and multiple tender points, according to a brochure titled “Questions & Answers about Fibromyalgia,” published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
“I was the kind of mother and wife I wanted to be until the chronic pain took over my life,” Mrs. Pedigo said.
A guideline established by the American College of Rheumatology shows that fibromyalgia produces widespread pain in 18 locations on the body that are abnormally tender under mild, firm pressure.
While diagnosing is often difficult, a patient is considered a candidate for fibromyalgia if she shows pain in 11 sites. The areas include neck, upper and lower back, elbows, knees and hips.
Pedigo and her husband, Lee Pedigo, have four children and a new grandson. Mrs. Pedigo does some part-time babysitting at home, but otherwise isn’t able to work.
“There are a lot of people divorcing because spouses aren’t coping well with this,” Pedigo said.
“It is very agitating, seeing her go through this pain. Sometimes I have to help her out of a chair, and in and out of the shower -- it is very trying.”
Pedigo said he also doesn’t hold down a full-time job, so he can be readily available to help his wife on days when the pain is too severe to function alone.
“Even with my babysitting, Lee has to help me a lot,” Mrs. Pedigo said. “I can’t pick up babies and the bigger kids.”
At the most, she said, she can hold 10 to 15 pounds. Standing, sitting or walking for more than 15 minutes is painful and difficult, she said.
The Pedigos believe that fibromyalgia is misunderstood by some medical professionals and others. Because of this, she said that people with this disorder aren’t getting the treatment and information they need.
She has spent a fair amount of time researching the syndrome.
“I want to start a support group to help others who are chronic pain sufferers,” Mrs. Pedigo said. “I want to provide information for others, so together we can help each other.”
She hopes to offer guest speakers, literature and support for other chronic pain sufferers.
Anyone interested in joining a group or assisting with it, should call Mrs. Pedigo, 317-9506.
Mrs. Pedigo said the support group idea came about after she had read an article where a man had committed suicide, and at the coroner’s inquest it was reported that (the suicide victim) was a chronic pain sufferer.
“I can’t let anyone else do that. I don’t want people to make wrong choices and end their lives,” she said.
Mrs. Pedigo reported that any added stress in her life causes her symptoms to flare up.
For example, she dropped out of Lake Land College when the stresses of school became too much to bear. She wants to return to college some day.
Physicians she has seen have suggested her condition might be fibromyalgia. She has visited internal medicine specialists (adult medicine) and rheumatologists (joints and soft tissue), as well as emergency room doctors.
Mrs. Pedigo said she’s had multiple trips monthly to the emergency room for pain relief.
She’s been labeled as having “drug-seeking behavior” by some emergency room doctors, she said.
“Without the medications, I am in pain constantly,” she said.
She currently is taking eight different prescriptions for a variety of reasons, including muscle relaxants, pain, anxiety and anti-depressants, plus medicine for high cholesterol, asthma and emphysema.
She said the disorder has completely disrupted her life to the point that normal household chores are difficult.
Mrs. Pedigo has been denied Social Security benefits for her condition, and said meeting financial demands is a struggle.
She now receives treatment at the Pain Management Center of Marion.
The center offers options such as injection therapy, spinal endoscopy, prescriptions of alternate medications and disc decompression.
“My kids were suffering. I couldn’t be the mom I wanted to be,” she said. “Everyone deserves to live pain-free.”
Contact Dawn Schabbing at dschabbing@jg-tc.com or 238-6864.
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 Kevin Kilhoffer (JG/T-C)
Rhonda Pedigo of Mattoon holds her new grandson, Malaki, 2 weeks old, as the baby’s mother, Heather Pedigo, looks on. Rhonda is a chronic pain sufferer and said she wants to start a local support group for others suffering from syndromes such as fibromyalgia, which produces widespread pain for months at a time.
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