Professor Mary Mc Dermott said, “if our results are confirmed in trial, these suggest that cocoa, a relatively inexpensive, safe and accessible product, could potentially produce significant improvements in calf muscle health, blood flow and walking performance for PAD patients. There is no single test to diagnose fibromyalgia and often physical examination, blood tests and imaging are normal.

Pain that is experienced by fibromyalgia sufferers is unlike common pain that is felt after a particular stimulus such as trauma. Other goals include the reduction of muscle spasms, increase energy levels, improve pain management and improve sleep patterns. There is good scientific evidence that fibromyalgia results from some form of dysfunction of the nervous system. If you are finding it difficult to manage your symptoms and are experiencing feelings of hopelessness, sadness, anger, anxiety or stress, you may wish to seek support such as counselling or psychotherapy.

People with fibromyalgia often awaken tired, even though they report sleeping for long periods of time. Occupational therapists support people by finding ways of adapting everyday tasks, to ensure they can live as independently as possible. Pain management won’t take away your pain, but it can help you manage it better and reduce its impact on your life.

We are funding work at the University of Liverpool investigating how the brain processes pain signals. They will show you the best exercises to strengthen your muscles, without hurting yourself or putting your body under too much strain. Comments from some NHS professionals hinted at associations between self-diagnosis and a propensity to ‘opt out’ of society and seek social benefits. International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made.Clair’s story shows you how she found a way back from pain to health, and to being able to live her life again.