Fibromyalgia causes widespread musculoskeletal pain along with fatigue, sleep disruption, and tender points across the body. It is understood as a disorder of how pain is processed rather than damage to the tissue itself, which is why standard imaging comes back clean and why so many people spend years being told nothing is wrong.
What It Actually Involves
- Widespread pain lasting months, on both sides of the body
- Tender points that hurt under pressure that should not hurt
- Fatigue that sleep does not resolve
- Stiffness, typically worst in the morning
- Difficulty concentrating, often called fibro fog
- Heightened sensitivity to touch, temperature, noise, or light
Being Told Nothing Is Wrong
Because blood work and imaging usually come back normal, a lot of people arrive here having been quietly dismissed more than once. The pain is real. The mechanism is in how the nervous system is processing signals, not in a structure that shows up on a scan — and that distinction is a medical fact, not a polite way of saying it is in your head.
Where Chiropractic Fits — and Where It Does Not
Chiropractic care does not cure fibromyalgia and nobody honest will tell you otherwise. What it can do is address the mechanical problems layered on top of it. Restricted joints, poor posture, and neck and back dysfunction all add nociceptive input to a nervous system that is already over-responding. Reducing that input can reduce the overall load.
Many people with fibromyalgia also have treatable mechanical problems that got absorbed into the diagnosis and never examined separately. Sorting out which of your symptoms are mechanical is worth doing on its own.
How Dr. Hansen Approaches It
Gently, and at your pace. Care uses low-force techniques — including instrument adjusting and upper cervical specific technique — because a nervous system in this state does not respond well to force. Dr. Hansen will work within your tolerance and adjust the plan based on how you actually respond, not a protocol.
This works alongside whatever care you have from your physician. It is not a replacement for it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can chiropractic cure fibromyalgia?
No, and be careful of anyone who says it can. Care aims to reduce the mechanical pain layered on top of the condition, which for many people meaningfully reduces the overall burden.
Will adjustments be too painful for me?
Dr. Hansen uses low-force techniques and works within your tolerance. Tell him what your pain is like on the day — the approach adapts to you rather than the other way round.
Should I stop seeing my regular doctor?
No. This is complementary care and works alongside your physician, not instead of them. Never change prescribed medication without talking to whoever prescribed it.
How will I know if it's helping?
You should notice change in the mechanical symptoms — range of motion, specific areas of stiffness, headaches. Dr. Hansen will be straight with you if he does not think care is moving the needle.
Last reviewed 2026-09-10 by Hansen Chiropractic. This page is general information, not medical advice. Individual results vary.
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