Can you use CBD oil for fibromyalgia (FM)? The short answer is—yes. Research is ongoing, but across the globe, many are already using this oil as a complementary medicine or even a full remedy to manage the disorder.
Why is CBD oil for FM so popular, though? And is it science-based?
Anecdotal Evidence
Well, the proof is, first of all, in the pudding, so to speak. Search online and you will find thousands of posts from people who made the choice to switch to CBD oil for the management of fibromyalgia symptoms. Not only do they find that CBD oil reduces or even eliminates the chronic pain associated with the disease, but it has little to no adverse side effects. [1]
Even celebrities like Morgan Freeman are open and vocal about their support for the legislation and use of cannabis and CBD for fibromyalgia. In 2015, speaking freely to a reporter, he relates how he developed the disorder after a very serious car accident.
“I have fibromyalgia pain in this arm, and the only thing that offers any relief is marijuana. They’re talking about kids who have grand mal seizures, and they’ve discovered that marijuana eases that down to where these children can have a life. That right there, to me, says, ‘Legalize it across the board!’” [2]
RELATED: Here’s Why Morgan Freeman Uses CBD and You Should Too
We even have a close associate here at SOL*CBD who has a wonderful story to share, but more about that later.
Let's first take a closer look at the disorder as well as supportive research indicating CBD for fibromyalgia.
Symptoms of Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is defined as a chronic pain syndrome. Its symptoms include:
- chronic, generalized pain in the muscles and bones (main symptom and complaint);
- fatigue;
- stiffness;
- headaches;
- irritable bowel syndrome;
- bladder problems;
- restless leg syndrome; and
- sleep and mood disorders.
Fibromyalgia is a particularly difficult, debilitating condition to live with. Many report that it affects their daily lives significantly, and it doesn't help that the mechanisms behind the disorder are not well understood.
Unfortunately, this means that most people get prescribed multiple pharmaceutical medicines to manage the symptoms, which gives rise to many other problems related to drug side effects. Dire health issues can develop as a result of chronic use, which is the sad conundrum of all synthetic medicine.
Science is very smart, but perhaps not as smart as nature...?
Synthetic Pharmaceuticals vs. Natural Cannabis
It’s not only patients but also scientists and researchers who are increasingly looking into alternative, more natural remedies to treat multiple disorders and diseases. When reading up on CBD, fibromyalgia is on the list of medical conditions for which this venerable compound works very well.
While CBD and other cannabis compounds are not yet FDA-approved for the treatment of chronic pain, compelling research is indicating that the blog-posters have good reason to rave about its efficacy.
Cannabis Compounds, Including CBD for Fibromyalgia
Many more well-designed, clinically sound studies and research are needed before cannabis and its compounds will receive official recognition as a viable treatment for fibromyalgia, but there are already a number of human studies available. The evidence is compelling.
A small 2018 study tested the effect of medical marijuana on fibromyalgia patients. It was conducted at the Laniado Hospital and Nazareth Hospital, Israel, and the researchers found that medical cannabis treatment had a "significant favorable effect on patients, with few adverse effects."
RELATED: 9 Most Effective Oils for Natural Fibromyalgia Treatment
The mean dosage taken by patients was approximately 8.3g medicinal cannabis per month. Soon after starting the treatment, every patient reported a significant improvement of their pain, and half of the patients opted to throw their other medications in the bin. Only eight patients reported "very mild side effects." [3]
Another older study with a slightly bigger cohort looked at the benefits reported by fibromyalgia patients who were also cannabis consumers. It also looked at patients' quality of life, drawing comparisons between FM patients who used cannabis and those who did not.
Conducted in Spain, this study showed that after only two hours, patients reported a statistically significant:
- reduction in pain and stiffness,
- enhancement of relaxation,
- and an increased sense of well-being.
Using impact questionnaires and surveys, the researchers also reported significantly better mental health outcomes in patients who took cannabis versus those who didn't. [4]
Cannabis has been used to alleviate neuropathic pain for thousands of years, and modern human-based science is increasingly demonstrating the scientific underpinnings for this. Yet as one review states:
"Adequately sized and designed, double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trials are needed to evaluate the potential applications of cannabis-based medications as novel and effective therapeutic drugs for controlling different types of pain." [5]
RELATED: CBD Dosage for Pain: How to Find Your Sweet Spot
A Personal Story of Success with CBD for fibromyalgia
Here at SOL*CBD, we have a close associate who has a success story to share. She has struggled with fibromyalgia and the related pain for years, battling symptoms such as increasingly severe leg pain and general overall body aches. Not much relieved her pain other than knocking herself out at bedtime with a sleep aid. After a while, she felt that she didn’t want to (and shouldn’t) live in a drugged stupor, so during the day, she would not take any medicine and would simply endure the pain.
One day she read about hemp CBD oil for fibromyalgia in a Facebook group and decided to try it. When she first received the CBD oil, she used it sublingually (about six drops of the tincture under her tongue) every 6–8 hours.
Our close friend was surprised by what happened over the next 24 hours.
After only her third dose of CBD oil, she reported that her pain in her lower extremities was greatly reduced. She continued using the drops over the next week until her sample bottle was empty. Talking to us, she revealed that this little bottle relieved most of her pain, and her fibro friends who used the same product reported similar results.
However, quality hemp CBD oil for fibromyalgia is not cheap, so she decided to order via another online retailer (note: neither her first or second order was SOL*CBD). The second bottle was an impressively bigger bottle for about the same price as the first one from another online shop. Like we sometimes do, she was thinking she was being a smart shopper.
That was a big mistake.
The new product required her to take much, much more CBD oil, and even then, she did not feel the same effect. It didn’t relieve her pain. She had no way of knowing, of course, but she told us she doubted there was very much CBD in that particular product. Disappointed by this experiment, she ended up tossing the bottle in the garbage.
After returning to high-quality CBD oil, though, she sees the most relief when she sticks with it every day. Spot treatments are only mildly effective, while daily use seems to offer much more profound, long-term relief.
RELATED: The Side Effects of CBD Explained
Her story demonstrates not only the efficacy of CBD for fibromyalgia but also the importance of using quality products. Unfortunately, it seldom pays to go cheap. Please note that it is inadvisable to use any natural remedy for serious illness without the knowledge of your physician.
------------
Sources:
- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321501.php
- https://www.thedailybeast.com/morgan-freeman-shoots-straight-on-legalizing-marijuana-and-his-escape-from-new-
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29461346
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3080871/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2430692/
