From Crippling Pain to a Second Life: A Woman’s Recovery From Fibromyalgia
Udumbara
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In 2017, 47-year-old Li Bijuan twisted her right ankle while walking down the stairs. She felt intense pain in her ankle but believed it would go away soon—like any other sprain.
However, when it didn’t, she tried osteopathy, massage, acupuncture, and medication, but nothing helped. Instead, her condition only worsened. The pain in her right foot became so intense that she had to crawl to the bathroom. Eventually, the pain clawed its way up from her ankle, seizing the entire right side of her body.
“That pain was in every single cell of my body—constant, unrelenting, every minute of every day. Sitting felt like resting on a bed of needles; lying down was the same. Even the lightest touch felt like a blow,” Li told The Epoch Times.
At that time, Li was a trade manager at a multinational company in Taiwan who insisted on going to her office despite the pain.
After seeking medical treatment from multiple doctors, Li was finally diagnosed with fibromyalgia, a disease marked by widespread body pain, fatigue, sleep disturbances, and cognitive and emotional difficulties. Because the cause of the illness is unknown, there is no cure; her treatment focused on medication and psychological therapy, which only helped manage the symptoms.
Li’s doctor prescribed morphine to dull the pain, and the side effects left her mentally foggy.
When Li’s doctor told her that the disease was incurable and that she would “never get better,” a deep sense of despair washed over her.
“I kept telling my daughter where my insurance papers and bankbooks were. I was terrified that one day I wouldn’t be able to endure the pain anymore—that I might end my life.” Li said, “I felt like I had no future.”
Turning Point
Six months into her illness, Li’s colleague suggested she try a traditional spiritual practice called Falun Dafa—a practice originating in the Orient that combines gentle exercises with moral self-cultivation.Li’s colleague shared that her own uncle had once suffered from colorectal cancer, but after taking up the practice, he regained his health. At first, Li hesitated, unsure if her aching body could handle standing or sitting to perform the meditative exercises. Yet when she opened the book of the practice, “Zhuan Falun,” its principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance struck her deeply. She read it again and again, feeling the words resonate in her heart.
On Sept. 1, 2018, Li made a decision: She enrolled in a nine-day video lecture to learn Falun Dafa. As she attentively listened to the video lecture, something unexpected occurred.
“The stabbing pain—which had tormented me for a year and always flared whenever I sat down—simply vanished,” Li said.
For the next two-and-a-half hours, she felt nothing but ease.
Awakening to the Mind-Body Connection
After completing the nine-day lecture, Li began going to the park every day to join group meditative exercises.While performing the meditative exercises, she noticed that in areas where her body had felt uncomfortable, there was a change, as though it was gently clearing long-standing blockages.
Beyond Symptom Relief
Seven years have now passed, and she has remained in good health.“I have endless energy throughout my body, I walk lightly and swiftly, I don’t need much sleep each day, yet I’m full of vigor and spirit all day long,” she said.
What Science Says About Mind and Pain
Dr. Wang Xinghan, a neurologist at Taichung Hospital in Taiwan, told The Epoch Times, “In clinical care, we often observe a strong connection between patients’ lifestyle, the way they cope with stress, and the recurrent flare-ups of their illness.”“By adjusting the pace of life, managing stress, and practicing mindfulness, we can help the body establish a more stable regulatory mechanism. This gradually improves how the brain processes pain and brings both body and mind back to a more balanced state,” he said.
“A patient’s understanding of their condition and their active participation in self-care are often the decisive factors in recovery,” he added.
He also said that the treatment of fibromyalgia requires a multifaceted, integrated approach. In addition to medication, non-drug therapies play an important role. For example, exercise, psychotherapy, and meditation all provide varying degrees of benefit.
Falun Gong has also been studied for its potential health effects.
While individual experiences vary, Li’s story illustrates how mind-body practices may play a meaningful role in recovery for some people living with chronic pain—especially when conventional treatments offer limited relief.
For Li, the transformation went far beyond symptom relief.
“It didn’t just heal my body,” she said. “It changed how I live, how I think, and how I treat others. For me, it was truly a second life.”
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