"Anxiety from insomnia triggers our fight or flight reaction and that's not conducive to falling asleep." - Dr. Leon Lack

There's a particular kind of exhaustion that comes with fibromyalgia, the kind where your body feels completely drained, but your brain just won't turn off. You lie there, waiting for sleep to come, watching the clock, knowing how much you need rest and feeling your body become more tense the longer it doesn't happen. Over time, bedtime itself can start to feel stressful, like something you're doing wrong instead of something your body naturally does.

What makes this even more frustrating is that the harder you try to sleep, the more awake you can feel. Worrying about sleep, thinking about tomorrow, and calculating how many hours you have left can quietly activate your stress response. Once that cycle starts, it tends to repeat night after night. Understanding why this happens can be incredibly validating and helps explain why sleep struggles aren't a failure on your part, but a pattern your body has learned and can also unlearn.

Today, Tami is joined by Dr. Leon Lack to take a deep dive into insomnia and what you can do to start retraining your sleep. Dr. Lack is a sleep researcher and professor emeritus at Flinders University in Australia, who has spent decades studying insomnia and circadian rhythms, and his research has helped shape many of the behavioural treatments used for insomnia today.

In this conversation, Tami and Dr. Lack discuss what insomnia actually is, why common sleep hygiene advice often misses the mark, how insomnia becomes a vicious cycle, the different types of insomnia, the need to distinguish between fatigue, sleepiness, and tiredness, why conditioned arousal sits at the center of most insomnia cases, pros and cons of sleep medications, the difference between acute and chronic insomnia, how circadian rhythm disruptions contribute to insomnia, CBT-I and why behavioral strategies are often the starting point, sleep efficiency training and how it helps consolidate sleep, using melatonin and morning light to support circadian rhythm and sleep timing, options for accessing support, and more.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a complimentary consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

"It kind of felt like it was just her and I against the world." - Ann Garner

When a child develops fibromyalgia or another chronic pain condition, it can feel incredibly isolating for the whole family. Parents are trying to understand the condition themselves while also advocating for their child with doctors, teachers, and even extended family members who may not fully believe what's happening. As a parent without a community, it feels like you're navigating everything on your own.

For kids living with fibromyalgia, that isolation can be even harder. Their pain is invisible, and they're quietly managing limitations their peers can't see. Finding others who really understand that experience can be life-changing. Connecting with people who are on a similar journey often brings community, validation, and hope for the future.

In this episode, Tami is joined by Ann Garner, a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach® and mom raising a teenager with fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, to talk about her family's experience attending family camp held by the Pediatric Pain Warriors program from the US Pain Foundation. Tami and Ann talk about her daughter Lily's early symptoms and the long road to receiving a fibromyalgia diagnosis, Ann's experience as a mother with fibromyalgia watching her daughter develop similar symptoms, the importance of learning to advocate for your child, how Ann discovered the Pediatric Pain Warriors program, what it was like to attend their first camp, how adaptive activities, sports, and support groups create an inclusive environment where kids with chronic pain can feel capable and supported, the strong support network that formed with other families at the camp, navigating the challenge of learning to be authentic about pain, how the camp experience changed Ann's perspective as both a coach and a parent, why community and shared experience matter so much for families navigating chronic illness, and more.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a complimentary consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

"We don't go from severely symptomatic to fibro-free overnight, right? Improvement with fibromyalgia can be subtle, and it does take time." - Tami Stackelhouse

Going through life with fibromyalgia, many of us quietly hope that one day we'll wake up without pain, fatigue, or brain fog. Unfortunately, in reality, improvement is small and can be hard to see while it's happening. Sometimes you might feel better for a week or two and then you have a flare and you feel like you're back at square one. It can feel like nothing is changing, even if things actually are.

Improvement with fibromyalgia often shows up in quiet ways. Flares might not hit as hard as they used to. Recovery may happen a little faster. You might start noticing patterns that help you support your body before symptoms spiral. These shifts can be subtle, making them easy to overlook, especially when memory, brain fog, and emotional bias color our perception of our bad days. Learning how to track your symptoms in a simple, sustainable way can help you see those patterns more clearly and recognize progress that might otherwise go unnoticed.

In this solo episode, Tami walks through why tracking symptoms can be one of the most powerful tools for understanding your fibromyalgia. Tami talks about what improvement looks like in fibromyalgia, why progress doesn't usually mean immediate symptom elimination, how daily symptom tracking can make a significant difference on your healing journey, Tami's tips for making tracking sustainable, how to use your tracking and symptom logs, how the revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire can help measure meaningful changes in symptoms, the role of assessment, personalized planning, and ongoing adjustments in a wellness framework, normalizing setbacks and course corrections using the analogy of a GPS recalculating the route, common mistakes we make once we start improving, what remission actually means in fibromyalgia, what progress really looks like, the idea of the "sticky middle," when improvement is happening but hard to recognize, recognizing the real life signs of improvement, when it may be helpful to seek specialized support or coaching, and more.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a complimentary consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

"Asking for and receiving help is not about being less capable. It's about using your limited energy for what matters most." - Tami Stackelhouse

If you've been living with fibromyalgia for some time, you can probably identify with remembering how different thing were before when you were the capable and dependable one who everyone relied on. Shifting from being the helper to being the one who needs help can feel uncomfortable at best and heartbreaking at worst. That's why for so many of us, asking for help brings up feelings of guilt, fear of being a burden, and a quiet voice saying we should be able to do more.

The uncomfortable truth we have to learn is that asking for help is not failure. It's about choosing where your limited resources will go instead of spending it all on things that leave you wiped out and unable to show up for what matters most. Being able to name what you need clearly and accept help when it's offered with kindness and grace is good for our health but it can also strengthen relationships and model healthy boundaries. Receiving help cleanly, without over-explaining or apologizing, is a skill. And like any skill, it takes practice.

In this episode, Tami discusses the emotional shift when we become less independent, how poor timing makes seeking help more complicated, what happens when you don't ask for help and overextend yourself, what her childhood experience with a house fire taught her about community, recognizing thatreceiving help is a gift that strengthens relationships, how asking for help models empathy, responsibility, and healthy interdependence for children, how delegating can empower others, rewiring early messages we received about the value of doing it all alone, reframing help as a protecting your energy for what matters most, practical steps to start building the skill of asking for and receiving help with grace, accepting help imperfectly, beginning with safe people and low stakes situations, allowing yourself to learn through imperfection, and more.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a complimentary consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

Welcome to the final episode of our special Be a Coach series. So far, I've answered questions about our Certified Fibromyalgia Advisor® class and what it takes to become a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

Some of the topics covered in the first three parts of this special series were what a Certified Fibromyalgia Advisor® and a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach® is, the difference between the two, who makes a good Certified Fibromyalgia Coach® and who is better suited to be a Certified Fibromyalgia Advisor®, what you need and don't need to become a Certified Fibromyalgia Advisor® or Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®, why the world needs fibro coaches, and why you should consider becoming one.

In this final installment, I'm digging into the nuts and bolts of how you can become a Certified Fibromyalgia Advisor® or Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®; including the exact steps you need to take.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

• Did you catch our Virtual Open House? Tami answered the top six questions about our classes, plus the differences between our Advisor and Coach training paths, and which one might be right for you. Discover our tuition and payment options, and how our classes are tailored for fibro brains and bodies. Catch the replay of the event here.
• Don't like waiting? Get the full Be A Coach series NOW! Register to access the complete 'Be A Coach' series, along with several bonus episodes, delivered straight to your favorite podcast app. Use this link to sign up for FREE.
• Interested in hearing from our alumni about their journey in our courses? Register to receive our complimentary 'Fibromyalgia Stories of Hope' collection, automatically delivered to your favorite podcast app. Use this link to subscribe. Use this link to subscribe.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

There aren't enough stories out there of people with fibromyalgia who actually got better. Too often, we're told that we'll need to learn to live with the symptoms we're experiencing and that that's going to be our new normal. But while fibromyalgia can be debilitating and will change your life, it's not true that nothing can be done, and the stories we're sharing today are proof of that.

Hope doesn't come from pushing harder or pretending symptoms aren't real. It comes from learning how to listen to your body, making small shifts that add up over time, and recognizing that improvement can look different for each person. For some, it means finding the right medical care. For others, it's creating routines that protect their energy or realizing that healing can include both self-care and practical changes. Growth is possible even when the path forward feels uncertain.

Today, in the twelfth installment of our Stories of Hope and Healing, you'll have another opportunity to hear directly from people living with fibromyalgia who have found ways to feel better. You're going to hear stories from four recent graduates about the growth they've experienced through coaching and what they've learned from our programs.

In this episode, you'll hear about why these stories of hope and healing need to be shared, Sabina's journey to realizing that not all her pain was fibromyalgia, when healing can start with greater awareness and what feels like a step back, Kirsten's fitness background and how fibromyalgia forced her to rethink her ideas on self-care, redefining what is possible with fibromyalgia, what's behind Kirsten's 80% symptom improvement, blending lived experience with coaching, Biani's decision to act quickly after diagnosis, what's behind her 48% symptom improvement, her decision to focus on non-medication strategies, sleep hygiene, and routine adjustments, the importance of consistency and being open to trying different things, choosing supportive communities on your fibromyalgia healing journey, working with personalized coaching support and tailoring strategies to individual needs, Megan's continued improvement even after thinking she had plateaued, the impact of supplements, mindset shifts, and combined strategies on sleep and energy, Megan's coaching goals, and more.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a complimentary consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

Welcome to episode 03 of our special Be a Coach Series. In this series, I answer questions about our Certified Fibromyalgia Advisor® class and what it takes to be a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

In episode one of the series, I explained what a Certified Fibromyalgia Advisor® is and what a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach® is.

Episode two of the series was all about who makes a good coach and who is better suited to be an advisor. I also covered what you need and don't need to become a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

In this episode, we're taking a deeper look at why someone would want to become a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®, why the world needs fibro coaches, and why you should consider becoming one.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

• Did you catch our Virtual Open House? Tami answered the top six questions about our classes, plus the differences between our Advisor and Coach training paths, and which one might be right for you. Discover our tuition and payment options, and how our classes are tailored for fibro brains and bodies. Catch the replay of the event here.
• Don't like waiting? Get the full Be A Coach series NOW! Register to access the complete 'Be A Coach' series, along with several bonus episodes, delivered straight to your favorite podcast app. Use this link to sign up for FREE.
• Interested in hearing from our alumni about their journey in our courses? Register to receive our complimentary 'Fibromyalgia Stories of Hope' collection, automatically delivered to your favorite podcast app. Use this link to subscribe. Use this link to subscribe.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.

"A fibro-friendly, fresh start isn't about staying on track forever. It's about gently correcting your trajectory when things drift off." - Tami Stackelhouse

Fresh starts are supposed to feel hopeful, but with fibromyalgia, they can feel heavy instead. The start of a new year brings many of us pressure to get it together, do better, and somehow reset everything at once, even when we're already exhausted. Then, when our bodies don't cooperate the way the plan expected them to, we start wondering what's wrong with us.

The truth is, most fresh start advice isn't made for fibro bodies. They have quiet assumptions of consistent energy, predictable capacity, and unlimited willpower. But when your nervous system is sensitive, and your energy fluctuates, pushing harder usually makes things worse, not better. A fibro-friendly fresh start looks different. It's gentle, flexible, and based on today's reality, not who you wish you were. Small steps, compassionate restarts, and creating space for healing often matter far more than motivation or perfection.

In this episode, Tami shares what a fibro-friendly fresh start looks like and why discipline-based plans don't work for those of us with chronic illness. She explains why discipline-based plans fail for people with fibromyalgia, how the just-do-it mindset activates our threat response and worsens fibro symptoms, why it's not your fault when fresh starts fail, what a fibro-friendly fresh start looks like, why small steps matter more than motivation, recognizing that rest and space are essential for healing, checking in with yourself and choosing one realistic next step, letting go of perfectionism and rules about productivity, focusing on one small change at a time, how to restart gently when things go off track, why kindness is the key to sustainable progress, why rest is not a reward, personalizing your fresh start instead of copying what works for others, understanding your Fibromyalgia Wellness Style℠ and what fits you, why long-term planning can be hard with fibromyalgia, how getting a little better every day adds up over time, and more.

Note: This episode is not meant to be medical advice. Every person and every situation is unique. The information you learn in this episode should be shared and discussed with your own healthcare providers.

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

For daily doses of hope, inspiration, and practical advice, join Tami on Facebook or Instagram.

Need a good book to read? Download Tami's books for free.

Ready to take back control of your life and health? Schedule a complimentary consultation with a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach®.