The Disabled Diva’s Top 3 Favorite Alternative Fibromyalgia Treatments

I spent over a decade searching and struggling to find fibro pain relief. Then I found what are now my three favorite alternative fibromyalgia treatments. Finding the right combination is a difficult road, no matter how you choose to treat fibromyalgia.

Every BODY is different. Some bodies respond better to pharmaceutical medications than others. Others may find that all-natural or alternative treatments help better. And then, some do well by mixing and matching prescription care with alternative fibromyalgia treatments.

Disclaimer: This blog post contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission to fund my coffee-drinking habit if you use these links to make a purchase. You will not be charged extra, and you’ll keep me supplied with caffeine. It’s a win for everyone. I am not a medical professional, and nothing stated in this article should be mistaken for medical advice…

Our Favorite Alternative Fibromyalgia Treatments

Because everyone is different, along with my favorite alternative treatments, I am also sharing the top three faves of some fellow fibromyalgia bloggers!

The Disabled Diva’s Faves

Cannabis

I began this alternative fibromyalgia treatment in 2013. And I haven’t stopped! This incredible plant has helped me with so many of my fibromyalgia symptoms. Symptoms like:

• Inflammation
• Painsomnia
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Pain Relief

To get the most out of my marijuana budget, I dry vape my flower, save it, and then use it to make cannabutter for making my own edibles. Learn more about my process here.

PEMF Therapy

I use an at-home PEMF therapy device called Oska Pulse. It relieves inflammation and its associated pain. Combined with cannabis, this duo keeps my fibro pain much lower than it had ever been before. I began using it in the fall of 2016 and still use it. You can read more about my experience with PEMF therapy here. Learn more about the device and save $55 off the cost of one device when you visit Oska Wellness via this link. Full disclosure: I am an Oska Wellness affiliate. Meaning that I make a few pennies from sales made through my link. This is at no additional cost to you, just a discount to thank you!

Weighted Blanket

It has been a month since I first wrote about my weighted blanket experience, and all I can say is that everything I said still holds true and then some. While not necessarily a treatment, sleeping with a weighted blanket has improved quite a few of my fibro symptoms. The most significant difference is with my legs. They no longer kick or flinch all night long. Every morning I am greeted with relaxed legs versus the stressed ones before.

Related post: 40 Fibromyalgia Flare Fighting Products

Melissa VS Fibromyalgia

Melissa Reynolds from Melissa VS Fibromyalgia shares her top 3 here:

• 1. Yoga. So yoga can be used therapeutically – not in the way you might be imagining. I’m talking the four tools: Gentle stretching, restorative yoga (a type of passive stretching that is very relaxing), breathwork and meditation.All four, used well, help us to switch on the parasympathetic nervous system (the opposite of the stress response) and rest and relax.
• 2. Acupuncture done by a physiotherapist. By placing an acupuncture needle in my trigger points and letting them rest, I’ve felt more relief than through any other physical treatment.
• 3. Nutritional supplements – namely Recovery Factors and magnesium but I’ve tried many over the years.

Fibro Files

Lee Good from Fibro Files recommends the following three. Her first two are also on my top 10 list.

• 1. The nutritional supplement I get a great benefit from is magnesium. I have proved this to myself by using magnesium to stop leg cramps and muscle twitches all over the body. I then stopped taking the magnesium and all these annoying symptoms returned within one week. I started taking magnesium again and the jerks and cramping pains went away. I now take magnesium every day.
• 2. Hydrotherapy or walking and floating in water. This is something that gives my muscles both the relief and the workout they need. For both of these activities, your body is supported by the water so this takes some stress off the muscles. I alternate with about 5 minutes of walking and then floating. I enjoy doing this in warm water but many people recommend cold. I first started this as hydrotherapy exercises in a warm pool, with an instructor, but because of covid, the pools have been closed for two years so now I do this activity in a nearby river.
• 3. Myofascial massage is my favorite type of massage as it releases tension and pain. You really need to find a practitioner who knows what they are doing. Some people recommend rolfing or Bowen therapy for the same reasons of releasing the painful trigger points.

Route 5976 A Fibromyalgia Travel Blog

Shannon Murphy from Route 5976 shares her favorite alternative fibromyalgia treatments here:

1. Gentle yoga and stretching in the morning. Even on mornings when I’m sore I find if I do 5 minutes of stretching it can help.
2. Nature and getting out for walks as often as I can. Fresh air and focusing on my surroundings during my walk.
3. Regular physiotherapy. I usually go every 8 weeks and it really helps me.

Bohemian Solitude

Natasha Howland from Bohemian Solitude has these to share:

1. Magnesium Forte it may not seem to make much difference when I am taking it regularly however I certainly do notice the difference when I stop taking it (mostly due to not being able to afford it).
2. Mindfulness & Stretching is a strong way of thought process to ease some of the pains brought on from Fibro; a way of retraining the brain if you will and at the same time utilising gentle stretching on overused muscles.
3. Grounding – getting out in nature and feeling the grass through my toes, allowing my body to relax.

Pain FULLY Living: Living FULLY Despite Pain

Katie Clark from Pain FULLY Living shares her top three alternative fibromyalgia treatments:

1. I take Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) twice a day. LDN is an off-label prescribed medication that has given my life back to me. I have clarity of thinking, energy, and lower pain levels. It is not an anti-depressant or an opioid. There are several quality small research studies from Standford University, U of M, and others that have shown LDN helps people with chronic pain; it does so without being addictive or with adverse side effects. To learn about my journey, see my blog post I Did It My Way! One Year of Low Does Naltrexone for Fibromyalgia.
2. The main focus of my wellness journey has been to rewire my over-amped-up nervous system. As I learned more about how Fibromyalgia works, I realized that I had been living in fight/flight/freeze for all 54-years of my life due to a very turbulent childhood with a single-parent mom who had undiagnosed mental illnesses. A couple of years ago, I took a free online Mindfully-based Stress Release (MBSR) course. It focused on meditation. I never thought I could slow my brain down enough to meditate, but I learned that I didn’t need to. I can’t express how much meditation has helped me. When I get brain fog or exhausted, I lay down to do a twenty-minute guided meditation body scan, and usually, I get up clear-minded and re-energized. To read more about my experience, see my post: Mind Over Matter: 21 Days of Meditation
3. Since last spring, after watching the documentary THIS MIGHT HURT by Kent Bassett and Marion Cunningham, I have worked with Dr. Howard Schubiner (featured in the film) on Mind-Body Syndrome Treatments. I can attest that 6 months into this, I am having much fewer symptoms with Interstitial Cystitis (even turning off my Interstim Implant). I was able, this September, to do something I never thought I’d do again-backpack. I went with 3 other women for a 5-day backpack on the Pictured Rocks Trail. Since then, I have continued to push the envelope. I keep noticing improvements. Yesterday, I RAN at the rest stop we were at in Florida after a 10-hour drive in the car. My legs could do it without feeling like the Tinman without being oiled! To read more about my experience with MBS Treatment, read Unlearning My Pain: Mind-Body Syndrome.

My Several Worlds

Carrie Kellenberger from My Several Worlds shares her favorite alternative fibromyalgia treatment here:

Jin Shin Jyutsu is a style of acupressure that involves the application of the hands for balancing energy in the body. I have been seeking alternative therapies for pain relief from Ankylosing Spondylitis, Fibromyalgia, and ME/CFS since 2009. I had great success with Reiki a few years ago until my Reiki specialist moved away. I’ve also tried several treatments that did not agree with me, including Traditional Chinese Medicine, cupping, scraping, bloodletting, and acupuncture. Imagine my surprise to find another gentle healing technique that seems to help. Jin Shin Jyutsu worked well for me, and I’d like to explain more about how this style of Japanese acupressure helps to heal the body and mind. Read about my experience with Jinshin Jyustu here:

Back Pain Blog UK

Bar McLullich of Back Pain Blog UK has the following to share for fibromyalgia pain relief:

1. When cooking, use foods with multiple uses by making a stew that can last two meals, like a roast chicken, followed by a chicken salad or a chicken curry, then you only need to stand working in the kitchen for one morning.
2. Before going away sleep and rest enough, ready for the travel which can drain you if it’s a long haul.
3. Rest is a key factor in successfully managing and living with fibromyalgia, so get as much as you can when you can.

Brainless Blogger

Nikki Albert from Brainless Blogger recommends the following:

Mild/moderate exercise is one of my fibromyalgia recommendations. Mostly because the lack of exercise leads to muscle de-conditioning and more pain. Something I experienced when my vertigo was unmanaged and I couldn’t function. Also, the lack of movement increased pain. But then muscle weakness also increased pain. Prior to that, mild/moderate exercise always helped me with fatigue/fibro fog and mood management. Now I find it basic maintenance for keeping my muscles active. Read more here!

Which of these fibro blogger favorites have you tried?
What are some of your favorite alternative fibromyalgia treatments not mentioned above?

Subscribe to The Disabled Diva

Join My Facebook Group