My mental health was low after diagnosis with brutal condition

Sharon Turnbull battles Fibromyalgia which is a chronic pain syndrome that left her feeling like she was getting constant “electric shocks”.

The 48-year-old, from Baillieston, felt like she had no support for the illness which left her mental health very low.

She turned her life around by launching a charity and is now celebrating opening a hub for More Than Fibro, in the hopes that others never feel as low as she did.

Sharon days after her diagnosis in 2007 (Image: Sourced)

Sharon Turnbull outside the hub (Image: Gordon Terris)

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Sharon told the Glasgow Times: “The pain can feel like electric shocks. Even someone brushing by me can cause a lot of pain.

“The lightest motion can make you feel like you have been hit by a bus, the condition makes you so sensitive.

“I tried to take my life twice, once in 2019 and again in 2020 because I was struggling with the condition so much.

“I thought if life won’t let me exit early then I have to stay and find a purpose, but I had no idea how big that would be.

“The charity has more than 12,000 members across social media since I launched it, there were so many people out there looking for the same support I was.”

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The hub hopes to raise awareness of the condition (Image: Gordon Terris)

Sharon rents shelves at the hub to people with the condition who have small businesses (Image: Gordon Terris)

Sharon is celebrating four years of More than Fibro and hopes it will continue to raise awareness about the condition and offer a community space to those struggling with it.

Sharon was first diagnosed with the condition in 2007 turning her world upside down as she adapted to it.

Now she has rebuilt her life and credits her now partner Chris Mortimer, 53, and son Thomas Turnbull, 23, with helping her on her journey.

Sharon working at the hub (Image: Gordon Terris)

Sharon said: “Fibromyalgia causes chronic pain all over the body, it can trigger muscle spasms, migraines, irritable bowel syndrome, depression, and anxiety.

“The best I can do is manage symptoms and try to avoid a flare up but they never go away completely.

“The support around me changed a lot when I opened up about how badly the condition was affecting me. I now have a partner who has been great, and my son is also understanding.

“There is not a lot of support out there for the condition, but the hub will hopefully be the help I wish I had at the start.

“We will work with directing those affected with peer to peer support, offer products made by people who have fibromyalgia, and raise awareness about the condition.”

If you are struggling and need someone to talk to, you are not alone.

Here are helpline numbers for anyone seeking help: Samaritans: Call 116 123.

Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM): Call 0800 58 58 58.

Childline: Call 0800 1111.

You can also text Shout to 85258 for 24-hour support in a crisis.

East Renfrewshire CMHT 01418007809 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm) Crisis team 01412327060