Can you take Mounjaro with fibromyalgia?

Jump to: What is fibromyalgia? | What is Mounjaro? | Why take Mounjaro if you have fibromyalgia? | Take home message

You can take Mounjaro (tirzepatide) if you have fibromyalgia and your BMI is over 27. Research suggests weight loss may help improve fibromyalgia symptoms, particularly for patients affected by both conditions.

Research shows that obesity affects up to 35.7% of people with fibromyalgia, with an additional 28% being overweight. This relationship appears to be bidirectional, where each condition can impact the other.

Obesity can worsen fibromyalgia symptoms through increased inflammation and mechanical stress on joints and muscles. Meanwhile, fibromyalgia symptoms often make weight management more challenging.

However, no studies have directly investigated how Mounjaro affects fibromyalgia symptoms. The potential benefits are based on our understanding of how weight loss might help improve pain and other symptoms.

Some research suggests that losing weight can reduce pain, improve sleep, and enhance the quality of life in people with fibromyalgia.

For people with fibromyalgia who take Mounjaro, it’s recommended that you:

• Work closely with your healthcare team
• Monitor your pain levels and symptoms
• Make gradual lifestyle changes
• Stay physically active where able
• Maintain good sleep hygiene

On Second Nature, our nutritionists and dietitians support our members in achieving lasting weight loss through developing healthy habits. This includes our members with fibromyalgia and other chronic health conditions.

What is fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia is a complex chronic condition characterised by widespread musculoskeletal pain, fatigue, sleep disturbances, and cognitive difficulties.

The condition affects both sides of the body and includes specific tender points sensitive to pressure.

Common symptoms include:

• Widespread body pain and tenderness
• Fatigue and sleep problems
• Memory issues or ‘brain fog’
• Mood changes and anxiety
• Morning stiffness
• Sensitivity to temperature, light, or sound

Research suggests that people living with both obesity and fibromyalgia often experience more severe symptoms and greater difficulties with daily activities.

The relationship between weight and fibromyalgia is complex. Weight gain can occur due to reduced physical activity, medication side effects, or changes in eating patterns related to pain and fatigue.

Fibromyalgia vs chronic fatigue

While fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) share some similarities, they are distinct conditions with different primary symptoms.

Fibromyalgia’s hallmark symptom is widespread musculoskeletal pain, particularly at specific tender points throughout the body. While fatigue is common, pain is the defining characteristic.

In contrast, CFS is primarily characterised by severe, persistent fatigue that doesn’t improve with rest. While CFS patients may experience pain, their primary symptom is debilitating fatigue.

Understanding these differences is crucial as it affects treatment approaches and management strategies for each condition.

What is Mounjaro?

Mounjaro is a dual-action weight-loss injection. It supports weight loss by mimicking two hormones, GLP-1 and GIP, that communicate with the brain’s appetite control centre, the hypothalamus, to lower hunger and food-seeking behaviour.

By lowering hunger and our desire to eat, Mounjaro helps us eat fewer calories to achieve a calorie deficit.

A calorie deficit occurs when we consume fewer calories than our body needs to fuel its essential functions, such as digestion, blood flow, and brain function.

By creating a calorie deficit, our bodies will ‘burn’ the excess fat stored for energy, and we’ll lose weight.

Mounjaro also slows down the rate at which we digest food so that our stomach and gut send signals to the brain to signal the feeling of fullness.

So, Mounjaro supports weight loss by making us feel less hungry through two mechanisms:

1. Communicating with the brain’s appetite control centre
2. Slowing the rate that food is digested

Randomised controlled trials have shown that Mounjaro leads to an average weight loss of around 26% after one year.

Why take Mounjaro if you have fibromyalgia?

Research suggests that obesity can worsen fibromyalgia symptoms through several mechanisms:

• Increased inflammation throughout the body
• Greater mechanical stress on joints and muscles
• Reduced physical function
• Disrupted sleep patterns
• Higher levels of pain sensitivity

Weight loss achieved with Mounjaro and healthy habits could potentially help by:

• Reducing inflammatory markers
• Decreasing physical strain on joints and muscles
• Improving mobility and function
• Supporting better sleep quality
• Making gentle exercise more manageable

Studies show that even modest weight loss can improve fibromyalgia symptoms. One study found that weight loss significantly improved pain, sleep, and mood.

Mounjaro’s ability to regulate appetite might be particularly beneficial for people with fibromyalgia who struggle with weight gain related to the condition’s impact on appetite and metabolism.

However, it’s crucial to approach weight loss gradually and work with your healthcare team to ensure any changes support rather than worsen your fibromyalgia symptoms.

Take home message

While no direct research exists on Mounjaro’s effects on fibromyalgia, the medication could help manage some aspects of the condition through the beneficial effects of weight loss.

Success depends on working closely with your healthcare team to monitor both your fibromyalgia symptoms and your response to the medication.

Remember that weight loss is just one aspect of managing fibromyalgia, and a comprehensive approach, including proper pain management, sleep hygiene, and gentle movement remains essential.

Second Nature’s medication programme

Second Nature currently provides Mounjaro as part of our Mounjaro weight-loss programme.

Why should you choose Second Nature over other medication providers if you’ve decided to try Mounjaro (assuming you’re eligible)?

For peace of mind.

Second Nature has worked with the NHS for over 6 years, providing weight-loss programmes across the UK.

While our Mounjaro weight-loss programme is private and not currently used by the NHS, we’ve built the programmes focusing on scientific evidence, patient safety, and data security.

We hope that our 6+ years of working with the NHS and building a track record of effective weight-loss results will give you peace of mind to give us a try.