Lena Dunham opens up about suffering from chronic pain condition fibromyalgia

‘Your pain, whatever shape it takes, is yours and so it is real’

Lena Dunham has revealed that she suffers from fibromyalgia, a long-term condition that causes pain all over the body.

The Girls creator detailed what it’s like to suffer from the condition in an Instagram post, in which she explained that chronic pain can sometimes be associated with trauma.

She outlined how she experienced a bout of chronic pain after watching Dr Christine Blasey Ford speak in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee about the alleged sexual assault that she had experienced.

“On the day after Dr Ford’s testimony I awoke with a start at 3am. It felt like every cell in my neck was singing,” Dunham wrote.

“My ankles and wrists were weak and my fingers didn’t do their assigned job.

“Yesterday I felt like I was suspended in gel, and when I meditated a line of pain zipped from my neck to my foot.”

One in 25 people may be affected by fibromyalgia, as stated by Arthritis Research UK.

Symptoms for fibromyalgia can include feeling widespread pain throughout the body, or specifically in areas such as your back and neck, extreme sensitivity, stiffness and fatigue.

The NHS states that diagnosing the condition isn’t necessarily straightforward, and often involves ruling out other conditions first.

The causes for fibromyalgia are still not entirely clear, as Dunham highlighted in her Instagram post.

“This is fibromyalgia. It’s little understood and so even though I have a lot of knowledge and support it’s hard to shake the feeling I am crazy,” she wrote.

“But I’m not (at least not this way!) and you’re not. Your pain, whatever shape it takes, is yours and so it is real.

“I believe you when you say you hurt. I have learned time and time again how important it is to believe.”

Last year, a Netflix documentary was released called Gaga: Five Foot Two, which highlighted Lady Gaga’s own experiences with fibromyalgia.

That same month, Lady Gaga had to cancel a concert in Brazil due to being hospitalised for the severe chronic pain that she was experiencing.

“I was taken to the hospital. It’s not simply hip pain or wear and tear from tour, I’m in severe pain. I’m in good hands with the very best doctors," she tweeted at the time.

In February this year, Dunham revealed that she’d underwent a full hysterectomy in an attempt to stop the chronic pain caused by her endometriosis.