Electra Health

Fibromyalgia Treatment – Downtown Vancouver

Fibromyalgia – Learn an easy way to break the chronic pain cycle!

When fibromyalgia pain becomes chronic, it can be very challenging to treat. Why? Because over the long-term, the body begins to undergo physiological changes, most notably in the nervous system. When pain persists, your system remains in “alarm mode” – the nerves that transmit pain signals become overly excitable and reactive, and signals are transmitted with increased frequency, intensity and duration. This process is called “Nervous System Sensitization”. Even the brain adapts by re-organizing itself to become more responsive to pain signals. The result is a lowered pain tolerance, which continues long after the injured tissues are healed.

Under normal circumstances, our bodies have an amazing ability to heal. They know exactly what to do without us even thinking about it! Normally, we heal from injuries within weeks or sometimes months. So when your body isn’t healing, it is giving you a clear message that something is blocking the process.

If you have chronic pain, you know that it’s often accompanied by negative thoughts that provoke feelings such as fear, anger, frustration, helplessness and despair. Just like pain, negative thoughts and emotions also keep the body in “alarm mode”. In this state, your body is so consumed with managing your stress levels that healing (along with other functions like immunity and digestion) remains low on the priority list.

Often, people with fibromyalgia feel stuck in a vicious cycle:

Increased Pain –>  Negative Thoughts –>  Negative Emotions –>  Increased Pain (and so on)

But there is GOOD NEWS!

You can break this cycle! Although you may not be able to directly control your pain levels, you can begin to break the pattern at the level where YOU DO have control… your thoughts! When you introduce positive thoughts, you then have positive emotions, and this way you can get the cycle moving in a positive direction:

Positive Thoughts –> Positive emotions –> Decreased pain –> Positive thoughts (and so on)

Just as your system adapts to the negative stimuli, you can make the mind-body connection work in your favour by feeding your nervous system with stimuli that evokes positive thoughts and feelings. This changes your physiology to create an inner environment that supports healing.

So if we know that thoughts can change physiology, and that we can control our thoughts, why wouldn’t we choose thoughts that make us feel good?

Stimuli that can evoke positive thoughts include, but are not limited to: gentle strolls by the water, a relaxing bubble bath, socializing with friends and family, having a relaxing cup of tea, gentle exercise, meditation, laughing and smiling, using positive affirmations, expressing gratitude for all the things that make you happy, spending time amongst nature, doing something nice for someone else, singing or dancing to music you love, taking some slow deep breaths, treating yourself with kindness, and getting a massage or bio-energy treatment.

So if you have chronic fibromyalgia pain, my advice to you is this:
Do things that make you happy everyday, starting today.
Is that not the easiest homework a physiotherapist has ever given you?

Written by:
Joanna Ball Hermano, Physiotherapist and Bio-Energy Practitioner.
Using a combination of western and eastern techniques, Joanna provides a holistic and compassionate approach to treating painful conditions.


Fibromyalgia Treatment – Vancouver Physiotherapy Clinic

Electra Health – 970 Burrard Street, Vancouver BC
Open 7 days a week from 8 am to 8 pm
604-685-4325 (HEAL)


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