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In a personal essay republished by The Good Men Project, Justin Matley describes living with fibromyalgia and opening up to his wife and children while reducing pregabalin. He says explaining how pain affects his daily life helped his family understand what they might see during the medication change; his account is personal, not clinical guidance.
The Good Men Project has published Justin Matley’s personal account of telling his wife and children more about his fibromyalgia as he reduces pregabalin, a medication he has taken for several years. Matley says describing his pain and fatigue helped his family understand changes they may see in his mood and behavior, bringing attention to the often difficult task of communicating chronic illness to loved ones.
Matley writes that his pain and related difficulties began during adolescence, though he says he did not recognize how abnormal his daily struggles were until he met a doctor with the experience and patience to investigate them. He was initially diagnosed with myofascial pain syndrome in his early 20s, then later with fibromyalgia. He describes the diagnosis as one reached after other explanations are considered, and emphasizes that symptoms and experiences differ from person to person.
In his account, symptoms include deep pain, heavy legs and chronic fatigue. He also describes difficulty getting out of bed, staying awake or sleeping, and sitting upright. Matley says he has been comparatively stable for seven or eight years while taking medication and engaging in regular cardiovascular activity, though his symptoms have not disappeared.
Matley says he is now weaning off pregabalin, also known by the brand name Lyrica. He reports that an earlier attempt to reduce it did not go well. This time, he says, he is using small doses of combined THC and CBD to ease the dose reductions and that he finds this helpful. Those statements describe his experience; the essay does not provide clinical evidence or advice for other patients. He says he decided to try reducing pregabalin after reading about a study linking the drug to dementia and considering his family history of dementia.
Why Sharing Symptoms Helps Families
Matley’s account centers on a practical challenge for people living with chronic pain: symptoms may not be visible, while fatigue, difficulty participating, or a need to lie down can be misread by others. He asks how someone can explain being exhausted without seeming lazy, or being in pain without having an obvious injury or a quick remedy.
His approach is to give family members a clearer description of what may happen during the day. He says his wife and children know he may become irritable, lie down without an apparent reason, or close his eyes while trying to manage his body’s response. He also says they understand that he may be less present at times and return later with an apology. The account suggests that such explanation can give loved ones context, without implying that communication removes the illness or its effects.
Matley also frames openness as part of parenting. He argues that children do not need parents to appear infallible and that seeing a parent struggle and recover can show them that it is acceptable to be burdened. That is his personal view, not a measured finding about how children respond, but it highlights the relationship stakes of an illness that can affect both the person experiencing pain and those supporting them.
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A Long Path to Diagnosis
Matley describes a long interval between the onset of symptoms and understanding them as a health problem. He says he had accepted daily difficulties as normal for years before a doctor’s assessment led him to recognize their impact. His earlier diagnosis was myofascial pain syndrome, which he describes as related to fibromyalgia; he says the pain later became more widespread.
The essay also draws a comparison with Matley’s lifelong stutter, which he says involves physical and mental effort that can disrupt fluent speech. He uses that experience to explain why pain is not simply a sensation that is easy to convey from the outside. His description is personal: the source does not offer a general medical account of fibromyalgia diagnosis or establish that all patients have the same symptoms.
Before the current dose reduction, Matley says he had also tried pregabalin reduction a couple of years earlier, partly to see how much the medication helped and whether he could take less. He reports that the attempt went poorly. In the current effort, he says he is also taking low-dose naltrexone, sertraline and a statin. The essay does not give doses or a detailed treatment timeline.
“How do we describe feeling tired without looking lazy?”
— Justin Matley, in his essay published by The Good Men Project
Limits of Matley’s Account
The essay is a personal account, not a report of a clinical study or a treatment recommendation. It does not identify the large-scale study Matley cites about pregabalin and dementia, give its findings, or establish whether the reported association shows that the medication causes dementia. Matley’s family history informs his personal decision, but the source provides no medical assessment of his individual risk.
It is also unclear from the essay when it was published, how quickly Matley is reducing his dose, and whether a prescribing clinician is supervising the process. He does not give the doses of pregabalin or THC and CBD, describe side effects, or report the eventual outcome of the current attempt. His statement that the combination is helping reflects his experience and cannot establish that it is safe or effective for others.
The Outcome of His Dose Reduction
Matley says he is continuing to reduce pregabalin and is explaining to his family how his symptoms may change during the process. The essay does not state when the reduction will end or whether he plans to publish a follow-up. For readers, the next confirmed development is therefore limited to Matley’s ongoing personal account; no new medical findings or treatment guidance are reported.
Anyone considering a medication change should seek advice from a qualified health professional rather than treating Matley’s experience as a plan to follow. The source does not offer instructions for reducing pregabalin or using cannabis products.
Key Questions
What is the news in this story?
The Good Men Project published Justin Matley’s essay about living with fibromyalgia and explaining his symptoms to his family while reducing pregabalin.
What symptoms does Matley describe?
He describes deep pain, heavy legs and chronic fatigue, along with difficulty getting out of bed, sleeping, staying awake and sitting upright. These are his reported experiences, not a list of symptoms every person with fibromyalgia will have.
Why is Matley reducing pregabalin?
Matley says he decided to try reducing it after reading about a study linking the medication to dementia and considering dementia in his family history. The essay does not identify the study or establish that pregabalin causes dementia.
Does the essay recommend using THC and CBD or reducing medication?
No. Matley says he is using small doses of combined THC and CBD during his own dose reductions and finds it helpful. That is a personal report, not evidence or medical advice for other people.
What does Matley say his family learned?
He says telling his wife and children what fibromyalgia can look like helps them understand why he may be irritable, lie down, or seem less present. He also argues that speaking honestly about struggle can show children that it is acceptable to need support.
Source: goodmenproject.com
