Well here's a revelation for me!!!  And it has changed my life so far...
I got sick with a virus of some sort, it flattened me... slept for 2 days straight and was having what I thought was a fibro 'flare'... so I finally switched gears after years of saying I was going to another Doctor!  I finally did.  At the end of the second day I could barely move but made my way to my new Doctor. 

He asked a lot of questions, which was good... I told him I had previously been diagnosed with Fibro and have had back injuries.  He carried on poking and prodding where the most pain was - in my lumbar area as usual... hips, low back, groin... just super painful... and after a thorough chat he said he believed I had 'polymyalgia rheumatica' which is like arthritis but of the muscles and tendons...
https://www.arthritis.org.nz/information/forms-of-arthritis/polymyalgia-rheumatica/

Of course at first I was skeptical because I've been through the wringer with doctors as we know.  However, he told me how we were going to deal with it... and if this works then we will know for sure of the diagnoses.  He prescribed Prednisone and said we will know within 24-48 hours, because if the Prednisone works then we know our culprit.

So we slammed it with Prednisone, and YES within 48 hours I felt like a new woman!!  Seriously this has blown my mind.  Maybe I did have Fibro, or maybe I was misdiagnosed, and every time I went back to the Dr with pain, any Dr I went to saw my diagnoses and NEVER thought to look further... even if it was possible that they got it wrong.  EVEN though the pain I described wasn't symptomatic of Fibro... more like polymyalgia.  For once a Doctor listened to me... heard where my pain was and the symptoms that went along with it and is helping me deal with it.  He said even if I get this wrong we will get to the end of it... but now that we know the steroid is working... we know that he got it right... so now I keep a journal so that we can see how much I need to take and keep lowering it until my pain stays at bay.  It can go into remission and at some point I can come off and hopefully lead a normal life. 

This is a post to encourage anyone who doubts their diagnoses and wants to take a chance and possibly look into what else your symptoms might actually represent.  I'm not one to usually sit back and accept, particularly if I feel like I am being put in a box.  I bet many of us have had someone say you have Fibro, that's it, that's your life, move on and just deal with it.  I've heard many who have ended up finding out they have Lyme disease, MS, and other muscular disorders/diseases, so if it doesn't sit well with you, keep trying and find a Dr who really listens to you. 

Polymyalgia Rheumatica is an autoimmune disease, it can also be triggered.  It can also be had in conjunction with Fibro.  So I guess in a way I could have both... but I feel like if I did I wouldn't be sitting at a 7-8/10 in pain... whilst I am still only in my first week of treatment... I have never been closer to 10 in many many years!  So I am excited.  I'll always remember that this too is a chronic illness, it won't go away and could be triggered again, but I feel at least if I know that I can slam it with Prednisone and get better quicker... and go into remission... life will be simpler. 

I am now on a mission to do all the things I want to do and know that I will not suffer severely the next day with such pain and barely be able to move for days afterwards. 

Make sure you question everything... make sure if you are put in a box you don't stay there, if you believe or even have a niggling something isn't right... ask questions, find answers.  Then ask some more.  I know this will still be a long journey, and I know that chronic pain no matter what kind is not pleasant and needs attention.  Take care of yourselves out there!  Be kind to yourselves.