Fibromyalgia Update

Following on from two recent studies dealing with how best to help a patient with FM, it has been suggested that along with behaviour therapies a gentle form of exercise is also recommended. This could be tailored to suit the individual. All the studies so far show positive results for FM patients.

The key points raised were.

 With the help of behaviour therapy patients can get help with their fear of pain and help set realistic goals to increase their level of daily activity. Gentle exercise done frequently helped in the management of stress and anxiety levels

 With patients that tended to overdo it, an exercise plan was set out to work at a much more reasonable level .Thus not falling into the pitfalls of doing too much and then not being able to do much at all. Working on a program that focused on frequently doing some form of exercise, but choosing from a low impact range of activities was more beneficial.

 Not only were the patients better able to cope, but it was reported that they shown signs of improvement in areas of depression and anxiety up to 6 months after the trials were completed.

 Tai chi was used with a group of patients as the form of exercise and the results proved that they had experienced a decrease in pain and an increase in the ability to do daily tasks without pain and with less fatigue.

Water walking is an excellent choice of exercise also. Low impact and helps to strengthen the core muscles.Unlike walking on an even soft surface like grass, walking in water allows the joints in the lower half of your body to be used, but not stressed. Allowing you to use the whole body in its correct form and posture allows the body to regain some of its tone and flexibility

Management was the aim behind all of these studies.