Health & Illness

How Can I Help My Family Understand My Illness?

Published: November 06, 2018

Dear TeenHealthFX,

I have undiagnosed fibromyalgia, among other things. To me (who is living through the condition first-hand) itâs obvious that I should see a doctor about my symptoms. However, my guardian claims that Iâm a hypochondriac and that Iâm overreacting to things (gee, itâs almost as if fibro is literally a condition where your brain is incredibly sensitive to pain!). How can I help them to understand what Iâm dealing with? Orange Flag

Signed: How Can I Help My Family Understand My Illness?

Dear How Can I Help My Family Understand My Illness?,

For our readers who may be unaware, fibromyalgia:

Is a chronic condition that causes pain in a person's muscles, joints, and other soft tissues.
Causes widespread pain— meaning the person feels pain all over his or her body.
Symptoms include: headaches, tenders spots and issues sleeping.

There is no cure for fibromyalgia, however TeenHealthFX suggests meeting with your adolescent medicine specialist so he/she can conduct a proper diagnosis and help treat any current pain. Your doctor can speak to your parents about your condition, as well as provide communication and coping skills for your family.

If you don't have a doctor and live in northern New Jersey, you can call the Adolescent/Young Adult Center for Health at 973-971-5199 for an appointment with an adolescent medicine specialist or contact your local teen health center or Planned Parenthood. You can also contact your insurance company for a list of in-network providers.

TeenHealthFX recommends the following resources for additional information:

Signed: TeenHealthFX

Ratings

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Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death in the US among people aged 15-24 ²

51% of youth (6-17) get treatment each year for a mental health condition ³

15.6 teenage girls for every 1,000 will give birth to a baby before they are 20 years old. ⁴

Only 6% of high school students get tested for STDs ⁵

1/3 of high school students who were currently sexually active used effective hormonal birth control the last time they had sex with an opposite-sex partner ⁶

Nearly 30% of female students currently drank alcohol and nearly 20% currently used marijuana.⁷

2.14 million middle and high school students currently vape ⁸

Over 80% of women and men both report having experienced their first rape under the age of 25. ⁹

Almost 40% of high school students have reported using marijuana at least once. ¹⁰

83.88% of 12- to 17-year-olds have reported using marijuana within the last month. ¹¹

One in four women first experienced intimate partner violence before the age of 18. ¹²

5.9 million teens have reported to drink at least once in the past month. ¹³

In 2022, there were 1,573 motor-vehicle deaths from underage drinks ¹⁴

About 1 in 10 children live in a home with a parent who has a drinking problem ¹⁵

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The risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16- to 19-year-olds than any other age group. ¹⁷

49% of the youth report having less than 3 friends in 2022 ¹⁸

^{2.7 million youth report experiencing severe major depression}¹⁹

Over 3.3 million teens will be graduating from high school in the year 2023-2024 ²⁰

The average social media screen time for teens is 7 hours and 22 minutes per day ²¹