Can improving psychological factors help with chronic pain from fibromyalgia?
Millions of people have fibromyalgia, which lowers their quality of life and keeps them from doing many things. Researchers wanted to know if there are psychological issues that influence chronic pain from fibromyalgia, so they put it to the test. They gained some valuable information about what psychological factors impact the condition, which may motivate some people to make changes that relieve them.
Researchers share their findings in the June 2024 issue of the journal Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology (1). The study included 91 patients with fibromyalgia who completed an assessment evaluating pain, psychological characteristics, pain efficacy, and pain catastrophizing. The researchers used the information to assess and make predictions.
They conclude that psychological variables, such as self-efficacy and catastrophizing thinking, play a significant role in determining someone who has fibromyalgia’s daily functioning and physical and mental health status. They found that these psychological factors have a more significant influence than pain intensity. Being able to make people more aware of them and what they can do to make improvements may lead to some pain relief.
This is good news for those who suffer from chronic pain due to fibromyalgia. By working to change some of these psychological factors, they may also be able to reduce the amount of pain and improve their quality of life. Those working with people to create pain management plans may want to include information about changing the psychological factors that will help with their condition.
The two significant psychological factors that fibromyalgia patients can work on to help improve their outcome include self-efficacy and pain catastrophizing. To help improve self-efficacy, work on setting goals, staying positive, trying new things, getting support, and having patience. Positive self-talk is essential and should become a goal. To help improve pain catastrophizing, work on practicing mindfulness, exercising regularly, doing meditation or journaling, getting enough sleep, and visualizing goals.
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), fibromyalgia not only includes chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain but also fatigue and cognitive disturbances and is a pain regulation disorder (2). It is considered a neurosensory disorder, where the person is not able to process pain in the brain.
Those who have fibromyalgia often become hypersensitive to the perception of pain. The condition is more common in women than men, with a prevalence of over 6% of the adult population. Some people who have fibromyalgia, according to NIH, may experience mental fog, which includes memory problems that make it difficult to concentrate and cognitive issues.
Source:
Clinical and Experimental Rheumatology. Beyond pain: the influence of psychological factors on functional status in fibromyalgia. June 2024. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38966941/
National Institutes of Health. Fibromyalgia. June 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK540974/
