Fibromyalgia is a long-term condition that causes widespread pain. It can also involve increased sensitivity to pain, stiffness, disturbed sleep, fatigue, headaches, digestive symptoms and difficulty concentrating or remembering things, sometimes called fibro-fog.
Symptoms can change over time and may affect work, movement, relationships, mood and confidence in everyday activities. There is currently no cure, but suitable support can help make symptoms easier to live with.
Fibromyalgia is usually managed using a combination of approaches. NHS guidance includes suitable exercise, relaxation, talking therapies and medication among the available options.
During treatment, Jamie considers pain patterns, sensitivity, sleep, fatigue, stress, digestion, headaches, activity and the wider effect of symptoms. The assessment also considers diagnosis, medication, self-management and other care you are receiving.
Chinese medicine uses an individual diagnosis rather than treating everybody with fibromyalgia in the same way. Treatment is adapted according to the person's symptoms, health history, sensitivity and wider presentation.
Jamie combines more than 20 years of clinical experience with detailed pulse diagnosis. Treatment is adjusted carefully according to the individual's response and may sit alongside medical care, exercise, psychological support and other self-management approaches.
The first appointment provides time to discuss the pain and wider symptoms, including sleep, fatigue, concentration, digestion, stress and the impact on everyday life.
Jamie will ask about diagnosis, medication, activity, flare-ups and other treatment. The appointment includes an individual Chinese medicine assessment and, where appropriate, your first acupuncture treatment.
No fixed recovery schedule or outcome can be promised.
Fibromyalgia connects naturally with the Pain and Recovery Pathway. This provides a structured starting point for understanding the wider picture, beginning treatment and reviewing your response over time.
The British Acupuncture Council's 2023 fibromyalgia fact sheet reports moderate-quality evidence supporting acupuncture for reducing pain and improving wellbeing compared with sham procedures. It also explains that evidence has not established benefits for fatigue, sleep, physical function or stiffness, where fewer participants have been studied.
Current NICE chronic-primary-pain guidance recommends considering a single course of acupuncture or dry needling when specified delivery and cost conditions are met. Responses vary, and acupuncture should be considered as one part of wider care.
Further reading:
https://acupuncture.org.uk/fact-sheets/fibromyalgia-factsheet/
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/fibromyalgia/
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng193
See a GP if you think you may have fibromyalgia. Diagnosis is important because symptoms can resemble other conditions. Seek prompt medical advice for new, severe or rapidly changing symptoms, unexplained weight loss, significant weakness, fever or other concerning changes.
If fibromyalgia is affecting pain, sleep or everyday life, a first appointment gives us time to understand your individual presentation and discuss whether acupuncture may be a suitable part of wider care.