Yoga for Fibromyalgia

September 2, 2011

Yoga Yoga can gently stretch the tight muscles of fibromyalgia, helping the healing process (though you have to be careful not to overdo it, stretching-wise). A new study shows that it really works.

Researchers from the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland studied 53 women with fibromyalgia. Twenty-five of the women participated in a “Yoga of Awareness” program once a week (including gentle stretching, mindfulness meditation, breathing techniques, and applying yoga principles to optimal coping); 28 women didn’t. After three months, the women in the yoga program had less pain, less fatigue, and better moods. They also had more effective coping strategies, with less “catastrophizing, self-isolation, and disengagement.”

“The findings of this pilot study provide promising preliminary support for the beneficial effects of yoga in patients with FM,” said the lead author of the study, James W. Carson, PhD.

References:

“A pilot randomized controlled trial of the Yoga of Awareness program in the management of fibromyalgia.” Carson JW, Carson KM, Jones KD, Bennett RM, Wright CL, Mist SD. Pain. 2010 Nov;151(2):530-9. (Abstract at PubMed)

Dr. Teitelbaum, also known as “Dr. T,” is an integrative physician and one of the country’s foremost experts on fatigue, sleep and pain management. The treatment program he developed for combating Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) and Fibromyalgia and related conditions has helped hundreds of thousands of sufferers reclaim their health and vitality.

Dr. Teitelbaum is the Medical Director of the National Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers and author of the best-selling books, From Fatigued to Fantastic!, Beat Sugar Addiction Now! and Pain Free 1-2-3. He has also authored several landmark scientific studies. Dr. Teitelbaum has firsthand experience with CFS and Fibromyalgia — he battled the condition when he was in medical school and had to drop out for a year to recover. Since then, he has dedicated his career to developing effective strategies to treat these conditions and educating the millions of people who need help.

Visit his web site to learn more.