Energy healing tested for fibromyalgia – real or just placebo?
NCT ID NCT06552728
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether energy healing (a hands-off therapy that aims to balance the body's energy) can reduce pain in women with fibromyalgia. Twenty-five participants will receive both real and fake (sham) energy healing while their brain activity is scanned with fMRI. The goal is to see if real energy healing changes pain-related brain networks more than the sham version.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- energy healing
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a non-drug option for easing fibromyalgia pain.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early study (25 people) with no blinding for the practitioner, and the effects may be no better than placebo.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 25 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Dec 2024
- Expected to finish
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May 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 75 years
- Sex
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Female participants only
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Female * Over 18 and under 75 years of age. * Fibromyalgia patients must meet the 2016 Fibromyalgia Diagnostic Criteria for the classification of FM. * Mean recalled pain over the last seven days (7-day recall) between 4-10 cm on Visual - - - - Analog Scale (VAS) for pain with no pain free days in the last 2 months and active pain in resting state lying on back. * No contraindications for MRI, such as metal in the body or electrical devices in the body. * Willing to limit the introduction of any new medications or treatment modalities for control of FM symptoms during the study. * Able to travel to the study site to receive MRI, EH, and sham EH sessions up to twice weekly. * Understanding and willing to complete all study procedures. * Capable of giving written informed consent. * Proficient ability to speak, read, and write in english. Exclusion Criteria: * EH within the last 6-months. * Have received past treatment from Charlie Goldsmith or know of him or his work. * Contraindications to MRI and fcMRI methods. These may include but are not limited to: surgical clips, surgical staples, metal implants, and certain metallic dental material, claustrophobia, etc. \[Note: a more formal description of contraindications for MRI is present -in our DSM Plan\]. * Presence of known past procedures, devices in the body, claustrophobia, or other contraindications for MRI * Presence of a concurrent autoimmune or inflammatory disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, inflammatory bowel disease, etc. that causes pain. * Peripheral neuropathy that interferes with activities of daily living. * Routine daily use of narcotic analgesics or history of substance abuse. * Stimulant medications, such as those used to treat ADD/ADHD (e.g., amphetamine/ dextroamphetamine \[Adderall®\], methylphenidate, dextroamphetamine), or the fatigue associated with sleep apnea or shift work (e.g., modafinil), are excluded. * Concurrent participation in other therapeutic trials. * Pregnant or nursing. * Severe psychiatric illnesses (current schizophrenia, major depression with suicidal ideation). * Active substance abuse disorder in the past 24 months as determined by subject self-report. * Use of PRN over the counter (OTC) pain medications (NSAIDs, etc.) on day of MRI scan. * Use of PRN narcotic pain medication 48 hours prior to MRI scan. * Current active litigation for FM pain. * Any impairment, activity or situation that in the judgment of the Principal Investigator or other team member that would prevent satisfactory completion of the study protocol. This includes unreliable, or inconsistent pain scores as deemed by the principal investigator.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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University of California at Irvine
RECRUITINGIrvine, California, 92617, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can a Hands-On nerve technique ease Fibromyalgia's grip?
- Why some days hurt more: charting Fibromyalgia's daily swings
- Zapping the vagus nerve: a new hope for fibromyalgia pain?