Background. The narratives of patients with Fibromyalgia Syndrome (PwFM) indicate that delegitimation, disbelief and a general lack of understanding from others are a significant burden in their illness experience and can impact the quality of care and support they receive. This study sought to examine the challenges faced by individuals with FM as perceived by the Irish public.Methods. A cross-sectional online survey employing snowball sampling methods was carried out to examine knowledge and understanding of FM. Likert-scale type questions were used to explore knowledge and beliefs about FM among participants familiar with the condition. Participants were asked to identify challenges faced by PwFM in an open-ended question. Inductive thematic analysis was conducted on their responses.Findings. A total of 319 participants aged between 19-74 years (M= 46.9) responded to the survey; the majority were female (n=256) and reported having one or more chronic illness (n=211). Most respondents knew of FM (n=280) and indicated having an average to very good overall understanding of the condition. Thematic analysis of their responses revealed five key challenges: (i) Living with FM; (ii) Knowledge and Understanding; (iii) Assumptions, beliefs, and attitudes; (iv) Practical dimensions of healthcare, and (v) Human dimensions of healthcare. Survey respondents identified inadequate knowledge and scepticism as a barrier to the clinical management of FM. Societal attitudes and beliefs about FM were perceived as primarily negative, and participants with and without chronic illness described a lack of empathy and understanding among clinicians as a key challenge faced by PwFM. Many discussed the experience of not being listened to or heard, indicating a clear need to enhance communication in healthcare.Discussion. Results indicate that healthcare-related challenges are perceived as a dominant issue in the illness experiences of PwFM. While progress in biomedical research is needed to address the practical challenges in clinical management, findings suggest a need to improve patient-clinician dynamics.Poster presented at the International Conference on Communication in Healthcare (2023)