Earlier this week I posted about the severity of my headaches and neck pain and I went Wednesday to have a wonderful massage. I only purchased a 30-minute session, but it was so wonderful. Unfortunately, the pain came back yesterday in my neck in full force, but the 24-hours of relief was marvelous.
I am going to continue with massage therapy every six weeks to see if my overall pain level decreases. I have had physical therapy in the past, but never had much with massage therapy with the exception of the massages at the chiropractors. I have never responded well to chiropractic treatments so even though the massages felt good, the misery I would experience from the repeated adjustments pretty much wiped out the good the massages did!
The massage therapist used a combination of techniques including hot rocks to help my pain. I asked her to please not do any deep tissue massaging because that is just killer for Fibromyalgia patients. I don’t relax well, so having a massage regularly is really going to benefit me in many ways.
It is believed that massage therapy is beneficial to Fibromyalgia and CFS patients because it enhances the production of certain pain blockers, including endorphins, serotonin, and norepinephrine. These hormones work to counteract pain signals conducted by the brain, and this would explain why massage offers such dramatic pain relief. According to the Fibromyalgia Symptoms website, massage therapy can have the following benefits:
- increased blood circulation to the muscles, allowing for faster muscle repair
- increased flexibility
- increased range of motion
- decreased stress and depression
- reduced pain
- reduced stiffness
- improved sleep patterns
In a 1996 study, Fibromyalgia sufferers reported a 38% decrease in pain symptoms after receiving just ten, 30 minute massage sessions. They also reported a significant decrease in their sleep difficulties: they began sleeping for longer periods at a time and were disturbed less by sleep disorders.
So I guess I’ll find out if this is true!
Hi Sandy. I absolutely love your article on massage therapy, thankyou! being a fibro sufferer, i know that massage works, and yes it is temporary. i went for my IV infusion (every 6 weeks) and the massage therapist came in to give complimentary massages (can you imagine!?!) and it reduced my pain level from 5 (pain scale 1-10) to a 3 ! it was extremely gentle as she could feel all my lumps and bumps and it lasted only 15 minutes or so. gentle and short duration i believe is key as i’ve had previous long massages that did nothing but agrivate and incapacitate me for 2 days following.
Thank you again for all your helpful and supportive information. I am not alone. God Bless.
Janet
Hi Janet! You are very welcome and I appreciate you being here! What type of IV infusion do you get?
Hi Sandy, thank you for your very easy to navigate through website!! i receive Remicade through IV every 6 weeks for psoriatic arthritis. Infusion takes 3 hours but the entire day is set aside for travel time, (1 1/2 hrs) pre-infusion, 1hr. then the actual infusion, and finally the exhausting ride home with my beloved husband. The infusion center and staff are wonderful which makes being immobile for the entire day more tolerable.(fibro and arthritis really go up on pain scale) Both hips were totally replaced at the same time3 years ago, the arthritis was so quick and destructive.
Thanks for asking about the infusions. Sorry if I get so “wordy” in my replies.
Have a question; is it possible to talk with others? how?
Again thanks for your care and concern.
Janet
I have a forum where we have some nice people discussing chronic illness – it is at https://fightingfatigue.org/forum.
Sandy, always happy to read when someone gets relief from fibro pain. I’ve had it (and at various times, it’s had me) for nearly 20 years. I’ve been receiving massage therapy for over six years now as regular treatment. I also use chiropractic treatment. I’ve only once sought traditional medical treatment for pain, usually waiting it out or going for acupuncture, massage or dietary change instead. Of course, it’s always important to learn to pace ourselves. There are so many surprises with fibro.
However, I wanted to comment on the value I’ve found in some deep tissue massage. For the first months I did find that I went into a fibro-slide for a couple of days after a deep treatment. But with the patience and skill of my massage therapist to reassure me, I allowed those slides and soon recognized that I felt better for longer periods of time after a course of such treatment. In part, we detox after deep treatment and it’s uncomfortable. I’ve learned to relax even when pain is the strongest and to clearly identify where I’m hurting. So, instead of saying “my leg hurts”, I can now follow the path of the pain fairly precisely along a muscle path or to a joint.
One of the most frustrating features of fibro is that not everything works for everyone. So, I’ve also learned to qualify what I offer by saying that deep tissue massage works well for some fibromyalgia patients and not for others. It’s very individual. And we’re winning when we can listen to our own bodies and claim what works for us.
I now walk 2-4 miles a day, manage all of my household chores, shopping and cooking for the family. These are things I could not do five years ago. I sleep through the night, most nights. It took all the courage I had to complete the treatments sometimes, but it’s been worth it for me.
Thank you for offering this space for comments.
I have several fibromyalgia patients who say that massage is one of the few things that helps reduce their symptoms. Massage, especially lymphatic drainage, is helpful in moving out stagnant lymph and bringing in more oxygenated blood to muscles and joints.
A mechanical massage called Endermotherapy, which is done with the same machine that does Endermologie cellulite treatment, is also effective for FM. This machine uses vacuum suction and rollers that massage the skin, increasing venous, arterial, and lymph flow by up to 300%, which can last 6 hours after the treatment.
Here’s my website that shows Endermotherapy treatment:
Endermotherapy
Hope this helps everyone,
Dan Perez, DC
San Francisco Chiropractor
If you talk to some massage therapists they will tell you that muscle spasm is the key to the problem and that misalignment are compensatory to the spasm. Thus… by that argument you don’t need a Chiropractor. If you talk to many Chiropractors they will say that the spasm is compensatory to the misalignment so you don’t need the massage just the adjustments. In my practice I believe you need both as if you only address the problems from one side, you leave half the template intact that causes the complex nature of the condition we are treating. Try attacking the problem from both sides and you will have longer lasting results.
Dr. Edward Camp, DC, San Francisco Chiropractor