As anyone with fibromyalgia knows, there are times when symptoms are more acute and intense than normal. These times are commonly known as fibromyalgia flares (or flare-ups).
Fibromyalgia flares can last can last anywhere from one day to several weeks at a time and often have a trigger associated with them. Understanding the common triggers of fibromyalgia flares can help sufferers develop a strategy to lessen the number of occurrences in the future.
#1 – Weather Changes
Many fibromyalgia sufferers have told us that their flares are triggered by changes in the weather.
Weather factors that tend to make fibromyalgia symptoms worse include: (1) shifts from warm to cold weather, (2) rapid drops in barometric pressure (often as a result of precipitation or wind), and (3) low absolute humidity.
#2 – Stress
Stress weakens the body of anyone who experiences it. For those suffering from fibromyalgia, stress can make a bad situation even worse.
Reducing stress from one’s life is not an easy task but doing so is likely to result in fewer flare-ups over time. Making lifestyle changes such as taking time to relax, starting yoga classes and making your health a priority are among the suggestions that we often hear.
#3 – Over-Exertion
On bad days, it can be hard to just get out of bed. On good days, fibromyalgia sufferers often push themselves to catch up on tasks and responsibilities that they have been unable to tackle.
But this can result in physical over-exertion that will trigger a fibromyalgia flare. For this reason, we recommend pacing of physical activities even on good days.
#4 – Lack of Adequate Sleep
Sleeping problems are very common among those with fibromyalgia. Many report waking up every day feeling exhausted as if they hadn’t slept at all.
Lack of sleep or changes to normal sleep patterns can definitely trigger a flare. Finding ways to ensure that you get truly restful and restorative sleep can be an important step to reducing the number of flares over time.
#5 – Changes in Medications
Fibromyalgia sufferers often change medications over time in their quest to find relief from their fibromyalgia symptoms. Changes caused by new medications can sometimes trigger a flare.
Ideally, you have a supportive doctor who can recommend alternative medications when necessary and also mitigate any unfavorable effects of making changes to your treatment protocol. If you don’t, it might be time to find a new doctor.
Fibromyalgia is a severe pain illness that varies in intensity for every person. It has been referred to as a “pain amplification syndrome,” meaning that people who live with the condition feel pain differently than those without it.
Fibromyalgia often displays the following symptoms:
- Fatigue that prevents daily activities
- Extensive muscular pain
- Sleep disturbances
- Cognitive issues, also referred to as “fibro fog,” that involve memory difficulties and problems concentrating
- Gastrointestinal problems such as IBS
The nature of fibromyalgia pain can change over time. Headaches can transform into a back or neck pain after months or years.
Explaining One by One the Fibromyalgia Triggers
Those living with fibromyalgia may experience regular symptoms every day and episodes of worsened or more frequent symptoms. Some triggers of flare-ups are inevitable such as the weather changes. But everyone has the power to control many common triggers to some extent with lifestyle adjustments. Identifying problem areas and making the necessary changes aren’t easy, but sometimes it only takes simple changes to begin making a significant difference in how you feel daily.
Not enough sleep
Fibromyalgia sufferers often have trouble getting a restful night of sleep. To improve the quality and quantity of sleep you have, start healthier habits around sleep. Maintain a regular sleep schedule. Go to bed and wake up around the same time each day, even on weekends. Keeping your bedroom cold and dark will also help.
Improper diet
Getting proper nutrition is crucial in all chronic health conditions to enable your body to heal. Eating healthy foods and upholding adequate nutrition can help boost your energy levels and avoid more health issues.
Hormone imbalance
There is a reason why women are seven times more at risk for fibromyalgia than men. The fluctuating hormone levels that naturally occur in women contribute to fibromyalgia flare-ups.
Schedule changes
Staying up later than usual or schedule adjustments that come along with traveling can lead to increased fibromyalgia symptoms.
Weather changes
Intense hot or cold temperatures, humidity, or even drastic changes in atmospheric pressure can negatively impact those with fibromyalgia.
Stress
May it be physical or psychological, an upsurge in stress levels can result in a flare-up of fibromyalgia symptoms. It is not viable to avoid all stress, but try to create the best possible environment and learn effective stress-relieving methods. Some activities are great outlets to relieve your stress and create a positive environment like meditation, journaling, or blogging.
Changes in medications
Most widely-used medications for fibromyalgia symptoms have accompanying side-effects that can worsen a flare-up. For example, medication for depression might cause additional fatigue.
Overdoing exercise
Only gentle, daily exercises are recommended for fibromyalgia sufferers. Strenuous activities or over-exercising can make the pain worse. During flare-ups, sticking to mild stretching or short walks can give great benefits.
Illnesses
Viral infections like the flu or a cold, or other infections such as Lyme disease, can result in fibromyalgia flare-ups. Some fibromyalgia sufferers also reported other health conditions like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus intensifying their symptoms.
Injury
Most cases of fibromyalgia either first develop or are worsened by some kinds of physical trauma or injury. One thing common among a lot of fibromyalgia sufferers is a head or neck injury, including whiplash, that paved the way for the onset of their symptoms.
Fibromyalgia Relief Possible Through Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care
The current relief options for fibromyalgia and many other related health conditions mostly focus on the reduction of individual symptoms (like pain or fatigue) rather than dealing with the underlying cause. Medications are often used to relieve individual symptoms, but those medications do not get to the root of the problem. In fact, medications often come with unwanted side effects.
One of the lesser known areas when it comes to addressing the underlying cause of fibromyalgia is the role of the central nervous system. We have mentioned that people living with fibromyalgia process pain differently than ordinary healthy people. Upper cervical chiropractors address the malfunction in pain signaling by finding where these signals might be compromised. This frequently occurs at the upper part of the neck where the brainstem is, which acts as a passageway for signals traveling to and from the body and brain.
When the atlas or axis vertebra that sit close to the brainstem misaligns, it can result in irritation and pressure that hinders the body’s ability to send and receive pain processing signals properly.
At Source Chiropractic and Wellness, we examine the upper cervical spine and make sure the atlas vertebra is aligned. We aim to restore the regular communication between the brain and body by returning the correct alignment of the upper cervical vertebrae. To provide fibromyalgia pain relief, we utilize specific diagnostic imaging and other measurements to figure out, down to fractions of a degree, the nature of every patient’s misalignment.
The adjustments that we provide are designed to be extremely accurate. Through our personalized adjustments, many fibromyalgia patients can take advantage of natural, lasting fibromyalgia pain relief.
Fibromyalgia USA Community
References:
http://blog.arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/symptoms-fibromyalgia-triggers-treatment/
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/315646.php
