Living with Fibromyalgia

Dr Bronwyn Lennox Thompson, senior lecturer on pain and pain management, and person with Fibromyalgia, talks about living with Fibromyalgia.
Presentation for MECFS Canterbury, 8th March 2023
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This session explores:
✦ What is Fibromyalgia
✦ Treatments
✦ Dr Thompsons own approach
✦ Q&A

NOTE: For people with Fibromyalgia who also have ME/CFS, we advise care when undertaking exercise or movement. Establish your energy and functionality limits to avoid triggering post-exertional malaise (PEM). (Post exertional malaise is a worsening of symptoms, that occurs when we have exceeded our energy envelope, and can result in a short- or long-term reduction in functionality.)
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ABOUT DR BRONWYN THOMPSON:
Dr Bronwyn Lennox Thompson is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at University of Otago, Christchurch Campus. She lives with fibromyalgia and has worked in the field of pain management for most of her clinical career.

Her roles have included occupational therapy and pain psychology, and has a particular focus on coping and resilience.

Bronwyn has recently been involved long covid management and has established some of the guidance for occupational therapy.
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
✦ Timestamped slide list further below
✦ Information about Fibromyalgia on Health Navigator
https://www.healthnavigator.org.nz/he...
✦ Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQR)
https://batemanhornecenter.org/wp-con...
✦ Effect of pharmacotherapy on Fibromyalgia: an Overview of systematic reviews. Costa AT et al, 2022.
https://www.researchgate.net/publicat...
✦ Review of nutritional approaches to fibromyalgia, Kadayifci F Z, et al, 2022
https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuac036
✦ Effects of Antioxidants on Pain Perception in Patients with Fibromyalgia – A Systematic Review, Fernandez-Araque A, et al, 2022
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/11/9/2462
✦ Refer to Professor Julia Rucklidge’s work on quality brands at University of Canterbury
https://thebetterbrainbook.com/
✦ Efficacy of nonpharmacological interventions for individual features of fibromyalgia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Kundakci, B, et al, 2022.
https://journals.lww.com/pain/Abstrac... Abstract only available to public.
✦ Effect of different types of exercise in adult subjects with fibromyalgia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s4159...

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CONTENT /SLIDE LIST:
00:00 Intro
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** ABOUT FIBROMYALGIA **
03:34 Fibromyalgia: it’s personal
05:10 It’s not new...
08:29 What is it?
09:30 Disordered sensory processing!
10:17 What does it mean?
12:13 Stimulus Intensity
17:03 How is it diagnosed?
20:36 Who gets fibromyalgia?
21:25 Technical talk
23:48 Q. Can it come from being over fatigued?
27:00 … in other words
“People with FM and other sensory processing disorders have amplified responses to normal stimuli, and it might be due to genetic adaptations that were useful during evolution to promote inflammation.” “We are more likely to notice the threats to our tissues than other people.”
27:59 What sets it off? Factors known to be associated with FM
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** TREATMENTS **
32:38 Treatments
35:35 Treatments available in NZ
38:39 Nutritional Supplements
40:23 Q. Thoughts on LDN - Low Dose Naltrexone?
42:50 The mainstay approaches – Nonpharmacological
48:55 Effects of Exercise
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** Dr Bronwyn Lennox Thompson’s PERSONAL APPROACH **
49:12 What do I do?
49:16 Exercise / Movement – walking, household activities
50:53 Cognitive behavioural approach – setting boundaries, prioritise important activities
54:40 What’s helped me?
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** QUESTIONS **
58:20 Questions
58:45 Is there a guideline that demonstrates the sleep stages in fibro people vs no fibro people?
1:00:06 Does Vitamin B12 help? Rhodiola?
1:01:16 Tingling pins and needles
1:02:40 Do you know how to differentiate between fibromyalgia, other pain conditions, and ME/CFS?
1:06:44 Central sensitisation
1:12:00 Use FIQ-R, not FIQ
1:12:25 Inflammation is not such a bad thing
1:15:25 Thank you – Advocating for ourselves