What is Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia is a condition where mild to moderate pain, usually said to be all over the entire body, is felt for a minimum of three months. To be able to be diagnosed with this condition, you must have at least 11 out of 18 tender points that are common in people with fibromyalgia. A blood test and x-rays are also done to rule out types of arthritis, as this condition mimics the same type of symptoms, but the symptoms can vary greatly between people.
This condition affects women more than men and can occur at any age. It isn’t always clear as to why people have the condition. Sometimes it can be hereditary, or the person may have some form of immune abnormality, and other times it is triggered by trauma. Fibromyalgia is separated into 2 groups; post-traumatic (occurs after an accident) or primary fibromyalgia (there is no guarantee as to what caused it, like being hereditary).
For some people, this condition is constant, whereas others will have remission times where they have no symptoms at all, but may have a flare-up when extreme stress is experienced. There is no evidence as to why some go into remission, and others don’t, as there is no known cure for this condition. There are currently only ways to help manage the symptoms if you are experiencing them.

These symptoms range from person to person. Some can be fully functional during the entire day. Others will have symptoms that are so severe that they may find it too hard to be able to do anything due to pain and often experience extreme fatigue. As fibromyalgia symptoms don’t always subside during the night, which can keep some from being able to sleep during the night, potentially causing more pain and fatigue, due to the lack of sleep.

Treatments for Fibromyalgia

Some of the forms of treatment for fibromyalgia are, exercise routines, physical therapy, antidepressants to help with sleep, and management skills to help with reducing stress, pain, and postural imbalances. These skills do not only include things that you can do for yourself but also being able to identify different things that can help with daily living. These things can include meditation, nature walks, yoga, acupuncture, massage therapy, and many more.

Massage Therapy for Fibromyalgia

For massage therapy treatments, the first few sessions, if you have never had a massage before, is more geared towards a relaxation massage, and are shorter to help from tiring yourself out. This is to help with relaxing the nervous system, which can help with relieving stress, and decrease pain. After having a few sessions, pain tolerance will increase and you will not feel as fatigued after treatment. When this happens a more intense treatment approach can happen with your massage sessions, including helping with relieving trigger points and muscle tension. Even with deeper treatment, it is always to be within your comfort, so if you experience Post-Massage Soreness, it will not cause you to be bedridden from over treatment.