Fibromyalgia, a neurological disorder which affects almost four times as many women as men, has no known cause and no known cure. Little is known about it, and many people who might have had this disorder in the past were often diagnosed as hypochondriacs or misdiagnosed with musculoskeletal injuries. The treatments ranged from just sending the patient home to surgery to replace the joints nearest the pain-sensitive points. Now, it is diagnosed by rheumatologists and neurologists who work together to rule out any other health problems. Treatment includes visits to a chiropractor, who can help you in the following ways.
Spinal Adjustments Eliminate Pain Caused by Misalignment
Fibromyalgia is painful enough without pinched nerves, bulging herniated discs and a twisted spine. When you receive treatment from a chiropractor for these spinal issues, it removes a lot of the pain you feel, and then the fibromyalgia pain seems more tolerable. Also, because the fibro pain is a direct result of nerves misfiring, having your spine in alignment again can help bioelectrical messages to travel through the nerves and up the spine easier. There are no mixed signals which can hamper what you feel with your fibromyalgia.
Massage Therapy
Chiropractors perform a lot of massage therapy to get muscles to relax and respond better to spinal adjustments. Except where your body may feel especially tender, the therapy can and does feel really good. It also encourages the body's natural responses to touch, producing endorphins that mask/kill pain for a while. Whenever and wherever your body feels especially painful, your chiropractor can work around these areas, providing a nice massage to areas in less pain but still providing you with the health benefits of massage therapy.
Requesting Massage Therapy vs. a Massage Therapy Prescription
A chiropractor may include massage as part of your spinal treatments, or he or she may decide that you are in enough pain to see a massage therapist more often than your weekly, biweekly or monthly chiropractic sessions. In that case, you would be referred to a massage therapist, either in or out of the same office as your chiropractor. The sessions would be considered prescription treatment for both your spine and your fibromyalgia. If you do not currently have a prescription for massage as part of your treatment plan, first ask your chiropractor why, and then you can request that it become part of your complete treatment plan. For more information, talk to a place like Excellence In Health Chiropractic & Rehab Clinic.
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