Fighting Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia is an autoimmune disease that affects 5 million adults in the United States. There is no specific test that can actually confirm or diagnose fibromyalgia. As a result, it is extremely important to obtain an accurate diagnosis. A physician or healthcare provider will conduct several tests to rule out other conditions with similar symptoms.

Whether you experience pain as a result of fibromyalgia or any other condition, your physical therapist can teach you to interpret the severity of pain signals and possibly reduce pain with structured exercise.

You can expect the physical therapist to:

• Evaluate current functional limitations and establish personalized goals
• Evaluate the ‘body mass index’ of the client and determine if weight loss can help reduce symptoms
• Design a comprehensive lifestyle improvement program consisting of exercise and manual therapy techniques to help relieve pain and restore function.

As experts in restoring strength and improving mobility, therapists can develop a very specific and individualized plan of care based on the problems that clients are experiencing. This is true not only in the case of individuals afflicted with fibromyalgia, but those with any injury, pain, or lack of mobility and function for any reason.