Jay, I can’t thank you enough for your detailed and highly informative reply!
Thanks, you're welcome! I'm actual a bit nervous I'm not writing nicely enough
, cos I'm totally knackered & flaring and brain is only managing ideas at the moment, not how to put them well... so good to know you're not taking it the wrong way!
Do you suggest seeing an orthopedist to pursue more physical therapy?
Hardly any of my orthopedists had any understanding of what'd be necessary, except one who was also osteopath.... Normal physical therapy and 70% of what was offered in my fibro/rheum clinic harmed the way it was being shown to me, rather than helped, but at least they offered a whole array specifically for fibromites, and it was astonishing and telling to me that I was the only one who had to opt out of "easy" things like Qi Gong. Instead I'd suggest to
a) try out all the kinds of self-applied physical therapy using youtube for exercises, stretches, acupressure, gentle yoga and massage devices, starting & increasing in baby steps. It's about listening to our bodies and creatively varying, combining, imagining what might help us best.
b) use a list of physical therapy types which should include various kinds of osteopathy, Jones technique, myofascial release, acupressure and look for therapists near me offering that, or use some kind of good local directory if you have that. Before making appointments, I'd first have a look at which type would seem to be best for me, then look for reviews, personal recommendations by patients, support groups or docs you know. If you need a prescription I'd then go to my PCP/GP saying exactly what I want. Many of the good types may not do insurance, but there may be workarounds for that, like asking a therapist what would need to go on the prescription. They often use several techniques and some of them may be more easy to get paid for than others.
I tried physical therapy in the winter without any improvement. At that time I didn’t know I had a tear in the rotator cuff.
A good physical therapist would probably have found that tear... I'd only do 2 or 3 sessions of a type if it isn't helping. It is good to give them a certain chance tho. Even if they don't know fibro, some have a knack of empathy and listening, but they may need a few sessions and our detailed feedback.
He also suggested acupuncture as a possible help.
I'd also call that physical therapy in the widest sense. It does have a certain amount of evidence to help with fibro, so I'd always suggest trying it.
Unusually, Western acupuncture considerably harmed me, Chinese acupuncture (despite thicker needles) is the only thing increasing my energy.... But it was a hard slog, cos it didn't seem to be sustainable (even after 15 sessions!), until I discovered by analyzing my diary/blog that I need to focus on improving my sleep more and never forgo my cold showers for it (and at the same time minimize some mid-term trigger events I hadn't been taking seriously). That's the only expert physical therapy I now do, for everything else I am self-sufficient. And actually even there I am doing the hardest bit of the work myself....
I think we'll have the most success if we learn to treat ourselves. But learning the tricks first, together with a few experts will be necessary. My main expert was an acupressurist & cryotherapist, but she used a great deal of methods and also things she'd though up herself. Had various conditions, incl. something like fibro herself. She'd actually bought her "cold barrel" for whole body cryotherapy cos it was helping her so much. (Ah yes, cryotherapy is another kind of physical therapy I forgot to mention...)