Fibromyalgia

Most people experience pain on a daily basis. We may have the occasional ache from overdoing it at the gym or a twinge from bumping our shins on the bed, but most of the time we can ignore it, take an anti-inflammatory, and go about our day. But when pain is widespread throughout your body and is accompanied by fatigue, changes in mood, and sleep patterns, you may be dealing with a more serious physiological condition. Sound familiar? Call us to find out more about your symptoms and get a jump start on recovery.

What is Fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia is a term used to describe a group of symptoms. Typically, the symptoms include debilitating fatigue, tender areas of the body, changes in mood or muscle pain can be diagnosed with this condition. While it is unclear what causes fibromyalgia, some believe the pain is due to an overactive sympathetic nervous system, the part of the body that activates the fight or flight response. Many people first experience symptoms after a physically or emotionally traumatic event. Others begin having pain after bouts of chronic stress or depression, while some have symptoms that build over time.

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Fibromyalgia tends to affect women more than men and if you have a family member with the condition, you are more likely to experience it as well.

How is Fibromyalgia treated?

Since it is not a disease but a cluster of symptoms, there is no known cure for fibromyalgia. Instead, medical practitioners focus on treating the symptoms with medication. Often, if the sympathetic nervous system can be regulated with medication, the pain subsides. Doctors typically prescribe a combination of pain medications, antidepressants or anti-seizure medications to achieve this type of regulation and relieve symptoms. However, none of the typical treatments address the loss of function widespread pain often brings.

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The Physical Therapy Solution

Even though fibromyalgia cannot be cured, one of the most effective ways of managing your symptoms can be through physical therapy. Studies have shown that cardiovascular exercise together with postural strengthening activities not only relieve widespread pain, but also increase energy levels, improve sleep and elevate mood. Through the course of treatment, it is possible to balance the body’s ability to regulate nerve impulses, in turn alleviating your symptoms. Typically, physical therapy services will include four interrelated parts.

Cardiovascular Exercise

One of the best ways to alleviate widespread pain is through low-impact movement. This may include walking on a treadmill, water aerobics, or other exercises aimed at improving blood flow, reducing stress and increasing cardiovascular fitness. Your physical therapist will prescribe an exercise program designed for your abilities.

Muscle Strengthening & Range of Motion

When you are in pain, your natural tendency is to guard the area, or limit its movement out of fear of causing pain. This limited range of motion can weaken important muscle structures that further limit your ability to move and increase your pain levels. This vicious cycle can only be broken by working to strengthen weakened muscles and return range of motion to the area you have been guarding. But, how do you do that when you are in pain?

Pain Relieving Modalities

Our physical therapists have a host of tools in their belt aimed at relieving pain without medication. These may include the use of ice, heat, trigger point therapy, stretching, massage, electrical stimulation, or other therapeutic tools that can help limit your pain and retrain your body. Together with targeted exercise and a cardiovascular training program, it is possible to retrain your body to send and receive accurate signals without triggering widespread pain.

Regardless of where you are on your journey, it is possible to have relief from your worst symptoms through our thorough treatment at MVPT Physical Therapy. Contact us today! 

Frequently Asked Questions About Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia changes how the nervous system processes pain and other sensory information. The brain and spinal cord can become more sensitive to signals from the body, so sensations that would normally cause little discomfort may feel more intense. Clinicians sometimes refer to this as altered pain processing or central sensitization.

This helps explain why fibromyalgia can cause widespread symptoms without a single injured muscle or joint responsible for all of the pain. Fatigue, sleep problems, and difficulty concentrating are also common. Understanding how chronic pain works can help you make activity decisions based on what your body can safely do rather than assuming every increase in symptoms represents new damage.

Yes. Physical therapy cannot eliminate fibromyalgia, but it can help you improve physical capacity and manage how symptoms affect your daily life. Treatment often focuses on gradually building strength and endurance so your body can tolerate more activity without repeatedly triggering large increases in symptoms.

Your starting point matters. A program that is appropriate for someone who already exercises regularly may be too demanding for someone whose symptoms currently limit basic daily activities. At MVPT, your physical therapist will build a custom-tailored care plan and build activity around your current abilities and personal goals, then progress it as your tolerance improves.

A flare does not always mean you need to stop moving completely. You may need to temporarily adjust the intensity or duration of activity depending on your symptoms, but prolonged inactivity can reduce physical capacity and make returning to normal activity harder.

Your MVPT Physical Therapy physical therapist can teach pacing strategies that help you modify exercise without abandoning it. For example, you might shorten a walk or reduce resistance rather than stopping your program entirely. This flexible approach to chronic pain management can help you remain consistent while responding appropriately to changes in symptoms.

Fatigue is a common feature of fibromyalgia and is not always proportional to the amount of physical activity you perform. Sleep disturbance, altered nervous system processing, pain, and reduced physical conditioning can all contribute.

A gradual exercise program can help improve endurance, but increasing activity too quickly may make fatigue harder to manage. Your physical therapy partner at MVPT Physical Therapy can help you establish a sustainable baseline and build from there. Progress may initially involve completing everyday tasks more consistently before moving toward longer periods of exercise or more demanding recreational activities.

The best exercise is one that is appropriate for your current abilities and that you can perform consistently. Research supports aerobic exercise and progressive strengthening for fibromyalgia. Walking, cycling, aquatic exercise, and resistance training are all possible options.

You do not need to choose the most intense form of exercise to benefit. Starting at a manageable level allows your body to adapt gradually. Your expert MVPT Physical Therapy physical therapist can adjust frequency, duration, and intensity based on how you respond and help you work toward activities that support your individual health and movement goals.

Many people with fibromyalgia can gradually improve their activity tolerance. Progress may look different for each person. You may want to walk farther, exercise regularly, keep up with your family, work with less fatigue, or return to a favorite recreational activity.

Physical therapy helps break larger goals into manageable steps. As strength and endurance improve, your program can become progressively more challenging. The goal is not to ignore symptoms or push through every flare. The goal is to build a sustainable level of activity that helps you participate more fully in the parts of life that matter to you.

Regardless of where you are on your journey, it is possible to have relief from your worst symptoms through our thorough treatment at MVPT Physical Therapy. Contact us today!