A comprehensive guide on chronic pain, its causes, symptoms, and effective management strategies to improve your quality of life.
Why do I continue to believe in the benefits of exercise for those living with fibromyalgia and related conditions? Because of the increase of healthy neurochemicals and blood flow, the resulting increased self-confidence, and reduction in pain levels. We know through experience and through various studies that exercise is not only an essential remedy but also much different than many activities of daily living that can be difficult or even detrimental to the fibro body.…
Did you know that fibromyalgia chronic fatigue syndrome requires an additional and separate protocol for exercise? If you have both fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome, then you may need to learn how to balance exercise and rest in a more specific way in order to avoid exacerbating pain levels, fatigue and increase of all symptoms. The important point here is to create balance. People with Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (Myalgic Enchephalomyelitis) can have a…
Joint health concerns are not uncommon for those with fibromyalgia and many have joint involvement of some kind. More people with fibro are exhibiting joint or bone density issues and a tendency towards any of the various forms of arthritis. Effectively treating joint issues requires addressing all areas, including diet, movement, lifestyle, and better sleep strategies. Joint involvement or joint disease can vary in degree depending on history, ongoing deficiency and active TRP’s (trigger points)…
Why is maintaining strength within our fibromyalgia exercise routine so important when living with fibro and its related conditions? When muscle is lost, many areas of the body can be affected, including balance, posture and agility. This can lead to de-conditioning, falls and injury. We cannot afford that. Strength and agility are even more essential as we grow older.By starting slow, and being consistent, we are giving our bodies the extra insurance needed to avoid injury.…
We know that safe and effective fibromyalgia exercise is an essential component when designing a wellness plan for fibromyalgia and its related conditions. There are general recommendations and guidelines set forth by one of my certifying bodies, ACE (American Council on Exercise) These are detailed in the Fitness Planner article here on the site, but with fibromyalgia and its primary co-conditions, I have to get a little more specific. What about some of the more specific…
I have found that the best fibromyalgia stretching exercises are more like range of motion exercises with LIGHT stretching included. This is because the fibro body is more sensitive to ‘conventional’ stretching. When people with fibro or osteo issues stretch too far, especially without proper conditioning, this can lead to Post Exercise Malaise, or worse, injury. See, this is because the fibro body has a tendency to store pain and past traumas inside the muscles, tendons, joints, etc. Yoga or other types…
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome symptoms are common among fibromyalgia patients. This is because chronic fatigue syndrome or immune deficiency (CFS/ME/SEID or CFIDS) is often an accompanying condition to fibromyalgia. Millions of fibro people today are living with chronic fatigue immune deficiency symptoms and yet many still have not been properly diagnosed as having both fibromyalgia and CFS/ME. Part of this stems from the fact that it’s not picked up in conventional testing. Also, the CFS symptoms mimic fibromyalgia in…
One of the highest priorities we address here in the website is chronic pain management. We have many articles devoted to specific areas of pain and symptoms within fibromyalgia and co-conditions. And, even though fibromyalgia is unique in how it affects multiple systems in the body, we are not alone when it comes to “managing” pain; over 100-million adults in the United States suffer with chronic pain. Additionally, 80% say they are affected by depression…
If you have been living with fibromyalgia, you likely experience chronic muscle pain on a regular basis.Although this is just one of many symptoms within fibromyalgia, it can be relentless. This pain can occur due to layers of trigger points within muscle and connective tissue and around the tender “areas” of the fibro body. Chronic muscle pain in fibromyalgia is pretty much “equal opportunity” meaning that it can affect every part of the body, from…
Hyperalgesia is an increased fibromyalgia (FMS) pain response and chronic tiredness (ME / CFS) response. It is so important in fibromyalgia that it defines the condition essentially. Just make your body feel more painful than it should when you have hyperalgesia. This is often called “volume rotation” of pain. It’s a real, physiological phenomenon and not because of hypochondria, for example. It is not the result of a person “doing a lot of things out…