Lifestyle Redesign® Intervention for Psychological Well-Being and Function in People With Fibromyalgia: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Abstract

Fibromyalgia is a complex chronic pain condition for which effective nonpharmacological treatment interventions are lacking. To explore the effects of an occupational therapy intervention for fibromyalgia on client-reported outcomes of pain interference, self-efficacy, mood, and function. Retrospective cohort study using a chart review method. Outpatient clinic. Twenty-one adults with fibromyalgia (M age = 54 yr). A 10-wk occupational therapy group intervention using a Lifestyle Redesign® (LRD) approach. The Brief Pain Inventory, Pain Self-Efficacy Scale, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ) or the Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire were administered at the first and last sessions of the program. Between 2015 and 2018, 37 clients entered the program, and 21 completed it. Changes in group averages exceeded the minimal clinically important difference for the BDI and the FIQ. Eighty-one percent of clients who completed the program had a clinically significant improvement on one or more of the outcome measures. The findings demonstrate the potential benefit of occupational therapy as a complementary approach to pharmacological treatment for people with fibromyalgia. Preliminary evidence suggests that a 10-wk occupational therapy group intervention using an LRD approach may reduce symptoms of depression and decrease the impact on daily function for people with fibromyalgia. What This Article Adds: Occupational therapy should be considered as a nonpharmacological intervention for adults with fibromyalgia to improve psychological well-being and function.