Fibromyalgia Recovery Begins When the Cell Danger Response Ends

Fibromyalgia is a full-body experience—aching muscles, deep fatigue, poor sleep, fuzzy thinking, chronic pain and a sense that your system is constantly overwhelmed. It's a condition that is invisible, misunderstood, and deeply frustrating.

But what if fibromyalgia isn’t a mystery illness or a diagnosis of exclusion? What if it’s the body’s way of saying “I’ve been stuck in survival mode too long”?

The latest science—including a powerful concept called the Cell Danger Response—points to a real biological shift that happens in chronic illness. And with that understanding comes one of the most promising therapies to help reverse it: Frequency Specific Microcurrent (FSM).

Fibromyalgia: More Than Just Pain

Conventional medicine often describes fibromyalgia as “centralized pain.” But what does that mean?

Pain in fibromyalgia doesn’t come from injury or damage alone. Instead, it stems from sensitization in the brain and spinal cord. The volume knob on the pain system gets turned up.

Even light pressure or gentle movements feel overwhelming. This is partly because of a breakdown in the brain’s built-in system for turning pain off—a network called descending inhibition

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Understanding Descending Inhibition: The Brain’s Brake Pedal

Pain signals normally travel from the body up to the brain. But your brain also has mechanisms to filter or mute those signals—like noise-cancelling headphones for the nervous system. This filtering system is known as descending inhibition, and it involves brain regions like the midbrain, thalamus, medulla, and spinal cord.

In fibromyalgia, research shows that this system is weakened:

• The brain fails to suppress incoming pain signals

• Even harmless sensations are interpreted as threatening

• Stress and trauma can further suppress this inhibitory control

FSM has a unique strength here: it can help restore descending inhibition by calming overactive regions, improving communication in pain-processing centers, and reducing systemic inflammation. It doesn’t just treat the symptom—it resets the volume control.

The Cell Danger Response: Why Your Cells Might Be “Stuck”

Dr. Robert Naviaux’s Cell Danger Response (CDR) theory explains how the body reacts to any threat—whether that’s physical injury, infection, emotional trauma, or toxin exposure.

When cells detect danger, they switch into a defensive state:

• Energy production is rerouted to survival

• Communication with other cells shuts down

• Inflammation is dialed up to clear out the threat

This is normal and helpful—temporarily. In fibromyalgia however, the problem arises when cells don’t switch back to healing mode. They stay stuck in defense, causing long-term pain, fatigue, and immune dysregulation. This “stuck” state can cause:

• Chronic inflammation

• Mitochondrial dysfunction (poor energy production)

• Overactivation of pain and stress pathways

FSM helps by coaxing the cells out of defense mode, improving oxygenation, restoring energy flow, and reconnecting damaged communication loops.

FIBROMYALGIA & CHRONIC PAIN

Natural Remedy for Fibromyalgia

FSM uses low-level microcurrents paired with specific therapeutic intentions. These are delivered using electrodes placed on the body and are completely painless—most people feel relaxed or even fall asleep.

Rather than forcing change, FSM works with the body’s own language to:

• Reduce inflammation in pain-processing tissues

• Soften and dissolve scar tissue and adhesions

• Reboot dysfunctional or “stuck” tissues like the spinal cord and limbic system

• Calm down nerve hypersensitivity

• Restore vitality and communication between tissues

• Support emotional release from trauma stored in the body

FSM helps to calm the Cell Danger Response, reestablishes the boundaries between safety and threat, enabling the body to calm the pain response and move into healing.

Case Study: Julie’s Journey Back to Herself

Julie, a 46-year-old creative professional, had lived with fibromyalgia for over eight years. It began after a serious car accident and years of high stress and sleep deprivation. Her daily reality included:

• Pain “everywhere,” especially in her neck, shoulders, and low back

• Severe fatigue and non-restorative sleep

• Brain fog that affected her work and confidence

• IBS-type digestive issues and chemical sensitivity

• A history of trauma and perfectionism

What Her FSM Sessions Looked Like:

Julie’s therapy focused on:

• Soothing inflammation in her spinal cord, nerves, and midbrain

• Releasing neck and shoulder tension, relaxing the muscles and calming the nerves

• Rebooting descending inhibition and calming pain perception centers

• Repairing old trauma—both physical and emotional

• Detoxifying cellular waste and calming immune overactivation

• Restoring vitality to depleted areas like the adrenal glands, muscles, and connective tissue

Over 12 sessions, spaced weekly and later fortnightly:

• Her sleep improved within 3 sessions

• Pain dropped by 60% by week 5, staying low longer and longer after each treatment

• She began practicing yoga again, and was able to return to work

• She described feeling like “someone had turned the lights back on”

Julie now receives maintenance FSM every 4–6 weeks and continues to improve.

The Latest Science on Fibromyalgia, CDR, and Descending Inhibition

• A 2023 meta-analysis published in Pain confirmed that people with fibromyalgia show marked reductions in descending pain inhibition, using cold pressor and conditioned pain modulation tests.

• Naviaux’s lab (2020–2023) has shown that patients with chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia-like syndromes have persistent shifts in metabolomics, supporting CDR Phase 1/2 arrest.

• Neuroimaging studies in 2022 confirmed hyperactivation of the thalamus and midbrain in fibromyalgia patients—and reduced GABA (a calming neurotransmitter).

• Research from 2021–2024 continues to highlight the role of glial cell activation and microglial inflammation in the spinal cord as central to fibromyalgia pathophysiology.

FSM addresses these dysfunctions non-invasively, by delivering signals that reduce glial overactivation, rebalance limbic and midbrain networks, and help cells return to metabolic safety.

Fibromyalgia Is Not a Life Sentence

For those who live with fibromyalgia, it can feel like the body has betrayed them. But science is finally catching up to what patients have known all along: this is real, and it can be treated at its roots.

FSM offers a path forward—gently and in partnership with the body.

You don’t have to keep managing symptoms and surviving. You can get your life back, when we work at regulating pain at the causative level.

Fibromyalgia Specialist - Free 15 Minute Consultation

If you or a family member is experiencing fibromyalgia, contact Monica to discuss how Frequency Specific Microcurrent (FSM) therapy could provide relief.

Based in Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast, Monica offers one of Australia’s most specialised Frequency Specific Microcurrent (FSM) clinics. While most practitioners use FSM alongside other therapies, Monica focuses solely on microcurrent treatment—this is her full-time clinical specialty. She works with seven FSM machines (compared to the typical 1–3), along with an Avazzia and Bicom Bioresonance where needed to optimise results.

Clients travel from Sydney, Melbourne, and across regional Australia to see Monica—one of the country’s most experienced and dedicated FSM practitioners. With deep clinical insight, cutting-edge technology, and an unwavering focus on individual care, Monica brings precision and heart to every treatment session.

Book in for a free 15-minute consultation by following the link below.

FREE 15 MINUTE CONSULTATION