Causes and Treatments

• Doctors in traditional medical centers have not yet pinpointed what causes fibromyalgia but are working on theories about lowered pain thresholds. Traditional treatments for fibromyalgia include pain medication, anti-depressants and physical therapy. Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) approaches fibromyalgia by looking for and treating imbalances in your body's overall system. "According to Western theories of acupuncture," the Mayo Clinic explains, "the needles cause changes in blood flow and levels of neurotransmitters in the brain and spinal cord."
  
  

Acupuncture Perspective on Traditional Treatments

• People with chronic pain often crave deep tissue work, so many seek out massage at first. But, according to Shprintz, heavy massage often aggravates fibromyalgia, leaving patients feeling worse for days after their session. Because acupuncturists use needles, they can stimulate precisely the right points along the body without adding weight or pressure, so the patients don't experience the same painful after-effects as they do with deep tissue massage. The way acupuncturists see it, traditional drug treatments for fibromyalgia also sometimes exacerbate the problem. Doctors give patients anti-inflammatory drugs that work at the neurological level, Shprintz explains, which suppresses the metabolism and makes the body even more sluggish.
  
  

Acupuncture Approach

• Addressing fibromyalgia can be difficult since the pain is migratory and involves muscle fatigue. This condition is stubborn. Acupuncturists address not only the pain associated with fibromyalgia, but also what they see as the underlying metabolic problem. TCM deals with patterns--collections of signs and symptoms that, in the case of fibromyalgia, often lead acupuncturists to a diagnosis involving a weak spleen and what's called "dampness." Shprintz explains that dampness affects the body's ability to metabolize and can lead to increased phlegm. In the case of TCM, phlegm can mean mucus but also includes body fluids that stagnate and create a heavy feeling in the body.
  
  

Unexpected Benefits

• Shprintz says that this way of approaching an internal disorder--looking for underlying patterns--can be incredibly accurate. Often, his patients are surprised that he also pinpoints other problems they're experiencing but that they haven't associated with their fibromyalgia. They're seeking help to manage their pain but often find that the acupuncture approach makes unexpected connections, such as improvements for Irritable Bowel Syndrome, sleep apnea and sinus problems.
  
  

Effectiveness

• Shprintz is careful to note that fibromyalgia is not something that everyone "gets over" entirely, whether using the Western or alternative approaches. Acupuncture offers a way to deal with the underlying pattern, though, resulting in higher energy levels and decreased pain and sluggishness. Acupuncture.com also recommends that patients eat lightly for dinner, take a hot bath before bedtime and avoid certain foods such as tomatoes and potatoes.