A common theme in many of the educational programs I’ve attended for fibromyalgia is “going to the breath” for pain relief — the premise being that deep breathing reduces muscle tension, which in turn reduces pain. Desperate for any alternative to the pain medications that I could not tolerate, I followed any and every suggestion I received. And so, I “went to the breath” in times of pain.   I tried every breathing variation that I’d been taught in pain management, yoga, and stress management classes. Most instructions focused on the breath alone — following its pathway in through ..read more

Daughters of women with fibromyalgia are more likely to experience symptoms such as pain, depression, and negative thoughts about pain than are the daughters of healthy women, a Brazilian study suggests. Future studies are needed to evaluate possible genetic factors in these women, according to the investigators. Additionally, researchers should compare daughters with mothers, and analyze the time to disease occurrence and possible treatments to avoid the development of fibromyalgia. The study, “Pain catastrophizing in daughters of women with fibromyalgia: a case-control study,” was publishe ..read more

I’m looking forward to the not-so-distant future when I will have had both of the COVID-19 vaccination shots and will feel free to venture out into the world again. Yes, I’ll still wear a mask or two, keep at least 6 feet away from other people, and continue to wash my hands as frequently as possible. But I won’t feel obligated to stay at home or be fearful of having the plumber in my kitchen. I’m anticipating that others will be as grateful as I am to be out and about. As a result, I’ll find a friendlier, more welcoming world than the one I left behind last March. And I anticipate meeting n ..read more

One month’s treatment with allopurinol, a medicine used for gout and high levels of uric acid, significantly lessened pain in women with fibromyalgia who failed to respond to conventional therapies, a pilot study shows. The study, “Effects of allopurinol on pain and anxiety in fibromyalgia patients: a pilot study,” was published in the Brazilian Journal of Anesthesiology. The therapeutic regimen for fibromyalgia is complex, involving multiple therapies that act on different biological pathways. However, not all patients respond to these conventional treatments. Purines are small molecules wi ..read more

Women with fibromyalgia have a shorter attention span and process information at a slower pace than do women with rheumatoid arthritis or those in good health, a study reports. According to its investigators, these deficits may be a direct result of the increased sensitivity of neural circuits responsible for pain processing, which are believed to be involved in fibromyalgia’s onset. The study, “Attentional function in fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis,” was published in the journal PLOS One. Fibromyalgia is a complex disorder characterized by widespread muscle pain, fatigue, sleep ..read more

I had almost forgotten what depression felt like. I’m not talking about the run-of-the-mill lonely or sad feelings that are so common among those with chronic pain conditions like fibromyalgia. I’m talking about the “hit by a brick,” “totally unable to function” kind of depression — the kind that makes it nearly impossible to drag yourself out of bed in the morning. We may think, “Why bother?” I credit my recent positive mood to my daily habit of walking our dog between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. — the only time of day when I have enough energy. I’m assuming the combination of exercise and exposure ..read more

Problems with memory and verbal skills in fibromyalgia patients are associated with lower daytime levels of salivary cortisol, a hormone involved in stress response, a study suggests. Its researchers recommend further work into stress management as a way of addressing these cognitive difficulties. The study “Salivary cortisol is associated with cognitive changes in patients with fibromyalgia” was published in the journal Scientific Reports. Fibromyalgia is characterized by widespread muscle pain along with fatigue, cognitive and sleep disturbances, and depression. Patients have rep ..read more

Whole-body cryotherapy (WBC) significantly reduced pain and disease activity in people with fibromyalgia; and that result likely was due to alterations to levels of immune signaling proteins called cytokines, a study has found. However, the benefits disappeared three months after the last WBC session. While more research is required to validate the clinical significance of the treatment, the results suggest that WBC is a clinically valid and fast-acting treatment for people with fibromyalgia, investigators said. The trial, “Serial whole-body cryotherapy in fibromyalgia is effective and alter ..read more

Dysmenorrhea, or painful menstrual periods, may be a risk factor for women in the development of fibromyalgia, a large study in Taiwan suggests. Future studies are needed to identify in more detail the causes and prevention strategies of dysmenorrhea as it relates to fibromyalgia, according to the researchers. But personalized medicine for the treatment of painful periods may be important in reducing the risk of fibromyalgia among women, they said. The study, “Hormonal Contraceptive Treatment May Reduce the Risk of Fibromyalgia in Women with Dysmenorrhea: A Cohort Study,” was published in th ..read more

Among people with fibromyalgia, women may be prone to having more tender points on their bodies than men, a study exploring sex differences suggests. In contrast, no other significant sex differences were found in terms of fibromyalgia symptom severity. The study, “Sex-Related Differences in Symptoms and Psychosocial Outcomes in Patients With Fibromyalgia: A Prospective Questionnaire Study,” was conducted by a team from the Mayo Clinic. It was published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings: Innovations, Quality & Outcomes. Fibromyalgia is more common in women than in men; more than fou ..read more