HELP!! PLEASE!! ANYONE!!??

[cnote]

27 male. I have had a couple posts on this, but now it's different... I'm so scared.
About a month and 2 weeks now, I have been suffering from neck/shoulder and low back pain.
Also muscle twitching all over my body.

It started with my neck being sore/stiff for a couple of weeks, then, my lower back started to stiffen up and has been sore. Then came the muscle twitching all over my body, the twitches don't hurt, but are annoying.

I've been to the Dr. 3 times, and he said to give it time, to keep excersising etc. He thinks they are just muscle spasms, and that they will eventually quit.

My anxiety went down about it, after he also did an x-ray of my neck, and did bloodwork, said everything is normal and fine. But he didnt x-ray my lower back. My lower back has been bothering me the most lately now, and not so much my neck.

After working out, I notice my back and stuff doesnt hurt almost at all. But if I don't work out for a couple days, it seems to come back.

Also, one night I had a what I would call a "brain zap" thing? I was fine, hanging out, and all of a sudden it felt like someone held a massager up to my head vibrating it for a few seconds. I also felt light headed for a few seconds with it. Scared me, my Dr told me not to worry about little things like that that only last a few seconds. He said if it keeps happening, then let him know. But it hasnt.

What I'm scared about now, is that I'm having a hard time sleeping good at night, and lastnight, I was laying on my side with my eyes closed, trying to go to sleep, then I remember dozing off, and then being awoken by the feeling of my entire body pulsating or spasming? its SO hard to explain! It's like my body was either spasming or pulsating 2-4x the time of my heart rate, but felt like it was all in sync.

I got out of bed, stood up to look at my arms/legs to see if they were spasming, but couldnt see anything. I turned on the light, and of course, after walking around for a second, it stopped.

This morning, I am having anxiety now about lastnights weird body symptom.

What do I do!? I feel like a hypochondriac... I'd HATE to call my Dr. again, and bug him... but I just want to feel good again!

[Julie359]

That is brilliant!! Im so happy that your finally getting some relief and have found a med that works well..... It's dam amazing what the mind can do hey!  Plus its funny you mentioned allergys, i'm suffering really badly at the mo from hayfever OMG i keep getting lightheaded and dizzy, i sneeze so hard (which feels like every 5 mins) it feels like im about to spread my brains in every direction, im getting pain in my sinuses as well so i think i may have an infection due to the hayfever and the itching in my throat and ears is torture as you cant scratch it.....  The madness is though that even though im miserable with all these symptoms, i bought a bottle of Benadryl but im scared of taking an adult dose of the medicine, i bought the children bottle and when things get VERY bad i take a small dose for a child of 6 and under.... What is wrong with me, why can't i get over my fear of med's and their side effects?

[cnote]

UPDATE** Yesterday was a VERY good day! And today for me! I had no back pain at all yesterday, and barley any neck pain at all... just would stiffin up a tad here and there, but with some stretching it would stop!

I was a little anxious yesterday morning at work, so my wife called and asked how i was doing, she then said "honey, just take one of your ativan at work... thats what they are for, for when you are feeling anxious, not to only just take at night."

So I took one, and the rest of the day was a breeze. I got so much done, I got appetite back...

And had a joyful evening with the wife and kiddos.

Today I woke up refreshed, didnt even THINK about my neck or back this morning...

Im pain free today, and NO SPASMS yesterday or today!!!

I think I'm FINALLY starting to CHILL out a little.

I am however a little light headed at times, but I'm thinking that could all be allergy related.. my left hear is kinda clogged... and my head has been feeling extra heavy the past few weeks. =)

Gonna take some allergy meds tonight and see how lightheaded I feel tomorrow. =)

Thanks again everyone for thier advice, and help. I'm hoping this is the END of this ANXIETY SPELL. =)

UNTIL NEXTIME... LOL. ;)

[Julie359]

Hey Sorry again, didnt mean to upset anyone with my suggestion, just thought id put a different spin on what may be going on thats all.  I tend to think sometimes its better to look at all avenues and think outside the box, that way in the long run you can turn around and know for sure.  Although it sounds as if you know exactly what your doing and hey, we all have a deep gut instinct of ourselves don't we, i think we all know deep down what if there is truely something physical going on, you know deep down its all anxiety related, its just your anxious mind that keeps telling you different...yeah ironic hey..lol  If after you start the anti-d your still suffering from muscle twitching etc then that would be the time to go get further tests but i think not, be safe, keep well and ohh congratulations on your little one...... :0)

[cnote]

Hey, the thing is I really havnt been working out that much. I worked out for about 2 months straight and that was about 4 months ago, then i took a few months off, and just stayed super busy with filming projects etc. and work.

I just started going back to the gym after my neck and back issue flared up... b/c i thought, maybe exercising again will help get rid of this. I've only been to the gym about 4 times now since my muscle twitching/and pains... and it does seem to help some, but not all the way.

I do take a multivitamin everyday (well lately i have), and my Dr. said I don't need to take anything extra like magnesium etc.

He said that this is simply a form of anxiety that is new to me. He said people with anxiety/depression hurt all over with no apparent reason.

I'm just learning to deal with it, and usually with me, it's just a matter of time before I get through a funk like this.

I am however going to go see a chiropracter here soon to see if he can find anything with my joints or whatever... but what im afraid of, is that the last chiropractor I've saw, would just look at me and say "oh sweety, look at you, you are all off"... she didnt even x-ray me or anything... lol. (i was having low back pain at that time for about 2 weeks, that was 2 years ago).

All she did was adjust me, and tell me to come back... I never went back and my back pain eventually left. lol.

So, I hope the chiropractor just doesnt say "oh yeah, your messed up." when I'm really not. lol.

Anyways, thank you ALL again for your gracious comments/responses and advice.

I WILL GET THROUGH THIS FUNK!!!

Tonight I worked out after work, felt pretty good, but got very lethargic towards the end. I'm a little light headed again tonight too... this light-headedness has been going on for a couple weeks too now... don't like it... it comes and goes though. It's usually during the early evening.

Thanks again!

[nursegirl6572]

OOOOO  Wait!

You DID say "alot"...my bad.

Thought you were having a senior moment by saying 'a little".

DAMN, thought I had you.  :0)

[nursegirl6572]

The wise Pax said....

"I'm a lot older than you, "


And the evil Nursegirl chuckled.

A LITTLE?????

LOL!

[Paxiled]

You know, you might just be getting old, and this is what happens to those of us who exercise a lot.  I'm a lot older than you, but I'm getting it big time now -- bad lower back, bad neck, bad knee, pain in my arms.  Some of it is from my discs, my knee is my meniscus, don't know what's going on in my arms.  Just from an old auto accident, and a lot of athletic activity.  Two questions:  do you stretch sufficiently before and after working out, and have you tried supplementing with magnesium citrate?  A lot of anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medication seem to interfere with magnesium absorption, and most Americans don't eat the right amount of healthy foods that contain magnesium, plus we tend to take in too much calcium, which in excess leaches magnesium out of the body, especially those who eat dairy thinking it's an appropriate source of calcium.  Anyway, just some things to think about.  I personally think you've probably got some wear and tear going on, which is natural, and you're young enough to start doing something about it.  Try making an orthopedist appointment these days -- I've been having to do that, and it takes a month to see one.  That's how prevalent these things are with the exercise set.  On balance, these are annoying things, whereas what you get if you don't exercise are worse, but as they say, humans were never meant to walk upright, and this is the cost.  While I think anxiety is playing a role, and lack of sleep will exacerbate it, I like the advice to see a chiropractor or massage therapist who can tell you if they feel overly tight muscles or inflexibility in your spine.  Assuming you can afford it, which has always been my problem!  And I hate to tell you, but everyone with small children feels somewhat like this for, oh, ten to twenty years or so!  Unless you go back a generation and raise your children with indifference instead of how manic people are now about ordering their children's lives, but that's another story altogether . . .  

[cnote]

You are the best nursegirl6572!! Once I get over and through this little funk, I'll be on the forum a lot more when I have time, and try to help others ease up a tad, like you all do for me. =) My Dr. did say he's seen a major imporvement this year on my anxiety. This is really the only funk I've been in this year. =) Hoping soon this will never happen again, but will always do my best if it does peak its ugly head out again. =)

Thanks so much for your responce.

I'm still twitching in my muscles about 20 times a day now, but just little minor muscle twitches, like ones you'd get in your eyelid. They don't hurt, but are annoying.

Again, you are right, probably just my body reacting to stress in a way.

My lower back pain is easing up too, and my neck isnt seeming to bother me as much. It will stiffen up at times during the day... but stretching helps.

Thanks for taking the time out for me!!! God Bless!! Will keep you guys up on my progress!

[nursegirl6572]

I found a stress questionaire that I feel any of us would benefit from taking...I think most people would be surprised at just how many things in your life add to stress, increasing anxiety levels.  Im going to post this is a seperate thread so that people can utitlize it.  There are other, similar "stress tests" that mental health professional use to help assess anxiety, etc as well, although this one is pretty darn close to the one I remember taking, if not the exact one.

Heck...just glancing at it, it's a wonder I'm not wearing a white jacket that buttons in the back!!!  (JOKE!  Meant to generate smiles)

http://www.stresstips.com/lifeevents.htm

[nursegirl6572]

HUGS to cnote!  While I hate that you occasionally have to return to us, it's good having you....you're a great guy, full of life and energy....I wish you'd stick around more and help others...you really are a caring guy!

I think one of the obvious answers lies in your very own words.....

"If my spasms were caused by something else more serious, then ativan probably wouldnt have taken them away... but they did, so it must be nerves/anxiety. "

Remember, when you have a history of anxiety and loads of medical documentation giving you a clean bill of health (which you do)...when these weird things pop up, the most obvious culprit is anxiety, which you will (unfortunately) probably struggle with on and off to differing degrees for a lifetime.  The important thing to do is IMMEDIATELY start ultilizing the techniques you've learned and things you've done to help combat the anxiety.  In the meantime, if you want to have a once over by your doc...it never hurts....it will put your mind at ease.

It's normal in someone with anxiety to worry about diseases like ALS, MS, etc, because of what you've read about them.  To be honest, ALS is actually VERY rare, and yes, it is a horrible horrible disease, but a few muscle twitches most certainly aren't indicative of ANYTHING like that.  Plus, there would be other symptoms obvious to your doctor if you did have a serious illness like those you mentioned. One must meet very specific diagnostic criteria to reach that kind of diagnosis.

As for the seizure possibility...same thing.  While some seizure activity can be kind of vague, you would be likely noticing other things that would be obviously NOT anxiety.  There are more mild kinds of seizure disorders that can mimic anxiety, but again, those are rare, and again...you must look at YOUR history and what the most OBVIOUS answer here is.  The great thing about seizure disorders, is they are quite easy to rule out.  So, if you have a lingering doubt...again, your doc could put your mind at ease.

If you treat your symptoms as anxiety (ie, with your ativan) and the symptoms dissipate, that is another sign pointing towards good ole anxiety rearing its ugly head...and at this time in your life....why not right?  While a new baby is a joyous and wonderful thing...its stressful as he**!  Sleep deprivation, your bodily schedule being out of whack, etc. It's important (for everyone) to remember that even GOOD life changes cause stress in our lives that can lead to new or recurring anxiety.  As a matter of fact, there is a questionairre one can take to measure "stresses"...I'm going to look it up and post it...I think it would be very helpful for our members.  I remember the first time my p-doc gave it to me I was shocked.  (Positive) life events such as moving, marrying, having a baby, job promotion, graduation, etc...ALL add to the anxiety/stress spectrum.

My advice to you is (probably, lol) the same as it always is...IF you feel you need to, then by all means, go see your doc...it never hurts to rule out a physical cause, and put your mind at ease.  Secondly....employ all of your anxiety weapons STAT.  :0) You have a gift that most of us are jealous of...being able to harness your anxiety pretty swiftly.

Lastly...my UNOFFICIAL opinion is that you do not have anything medical wrong whatsoever, and your anxiety is the (annoying) culprit.  As a matter of fact, I'd bet BOTH of my kids (to YOUR custody of course) on it!

Take good care, keep in touch!

[cnote]

haha. Thanks Julie359! =) I took 2 ativan lastnight (I usually take 1)... but I was having bad anxiety... and guess what? My body REALLY relaxed, and I noticed I had no muscle twitching while laying in bed... and I slept SOUND through the night. =)

If my spasms were caused by something else more serious, then ativan probably wouldnt have taken them away... but they did, so it must be nerves/anxiety.

[Julie359]

So sorry i stressed you out further but by the looks of things good came from it cause your now realising it is all anxiety and your gona try an anti-d, which is great!  I think your doing the right thing before putting yourself through loads of tests, well done and i hope once you get a drug you start to feel much better very soon.

[cnote]

My Dr. never called me tonight... but I have finally chilled out a little bit... I don't think I am having seizures. I think I would def. know it. Or if I am... I'm having them 24/7 lol. I think the muscle twitching is NOT seizure activity, bc I get the muscle twitching a lot during the day.

As crazy as this sounds... my Dr. may be right... THIS MAY ALL BE SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION/ANXIETY... I went to a website that had common anxiety symptoms, and believe it or not... all of mine were on there.

Symptoms I have and that are symptoms of anxiety! according to anxietycentre .com

Back pain, stiffness, tension, soreness, spasms
Body jolts, body zaps, electric jolt feeling in body, intense body tremor or “body shake”
Chronic Fatigue, exhaustion, super tired, worn out
Clumsiness, feeling clumsy, co-ordination problems with the limbs or body
Difficulty speaking sometimes
Dizziness, feeling lightheaded
Electric shock feeling, body zaps
Feel wrong, different, odd, or strange
Increased or decreased sex drive
Muscle twitching
Pulsing or throbbing muscles. Pulsing or throbbing sensation.
Shooting pains, stabbing pains, and odd pressures in the neck, head
Startle easily
frequent urination
Weak - feel weak, weakness, low energy, light, soft
Fears about irrational things or situations
Fears of going crazy, or dying,  unusual feelings and emotions, unusually frightening thoughts or feelings
Heightened self awareness, or self-consciousness
Head zaps, head tremors (this happened to me once)
Desensitization
Difficulty concentrating, short-term memory loss
Difficulty thinking, forming thoughts, following conversations
**Obsession about sensations or getting better
Short-term memory impairment, can't remember what I did a few days ago
Depression
Feeling down in the dumps
Have no feelings about things you used to
Not feeling like yourself, detached from loved ones, emotionally numb
Lack of appetite or taste
Teeth grinding
Tongue symptoms - Tingly, “stretched,” numb, frozen, itchy, “crawly,” burning, twitching, “jumpy,” aching, sore, or swollen tongue (when it isn’t).
Difficulty falling or staying asleep
Frequent bad, bizarre, or crazy dreams
Distorted, foggy, or blurred vision
Fear of having a serious undetected illness


All of those symptoms are me! Maybe it's time I go see my Dr. and again and try some anti-depressants this time... and see if that works? If so, I'll know that's what it was before I start racking up the hospital bills with MRI's CT scans etc. etc. lol.

[cnote]

Julie359

Oh my goodness, I know you didnt mean to cause any panic/anxiety... but ya did. lol.
I just got off the phone leaving a message with the nurse to have the Dr. call me. lol.

No hard feelings. I do feel like he does need to know about my last night symptom.

I'm thinking he needs to Run the appropriate tests to REASSURE ME THAT IM FINE! Then, after that, I will be ready for the next step, which will probably be an anti-depressant?

[Julie359]

Hiya mate, sorry your still having such a hard time.  I want to put something to you that you may not of thought about before, i do hope that this dont start you panicking i really dont as this IS NOT meant to cause you further distress, but to help you and your doctor make a dignosis and help you to get better.

So, some of the symptoms you are describing could and i only mean COULD be a symptom of seizure activity.  There are several differnet types of seizures that a person can suffer from and a mutitude of reasons as to why a person can suffer from them as well.  To suffer from seizures you dont have to have a full blown tonic-clonic seizure you can have mild muscle twitches that are hardly noticable to everything inbetween, also anxiety and panic attacks can be a symptom of seizure activity.

You say you feel clumsy, you have brain zap feeling which would indicate a change in electrical activity, you have muscle twitching on regular basis.

On the other hand seeing as you say you dont actually feel anxious but your still getting the symptoms and you get lower back pain and neck pain it could be that you have trapped nerves and a course of sessions with the chiropractor may be whats needed.

Maybe when you talk to ur doc again you could ask him for a EEG, which measures the electrical activity in the brain and can see if there is any disburbances, also a CT scan will rule out damage or abnormailty.  

I do hope ive been of some help and havent caused you extra stress.

[cnote]

MMahon, thanks so much for writing. I'm not currently seeing a psychiatrist. I've just been seeing my regular Medical Dr. for 3 years for anxiety etc. I'm currently not an any anti-depressants either... if I can't rid this shortly, I will probably try another anti-depressant short term. The only thing I take is a .05mg Ativan before bed at night.

Whitecat78, Thanks again for writing. I am not on any anti-depressants, so I think mine has to be either stress/anxiety/depression or I really did something to my back or neck or something.

I just can't quit thinking about it... and I can't stop thinking I need more tests to get to the root cause of all of this. A month and a half is a long time. But I HATE having to complain to my wife who takes care of our 2 children while im at work all day, that i think I need to go back to the Dr. again to make sure I'm okay...

But I've read that it can take 3 months for back pain or whatever to heal.

I also get lightheaded a lot sometimes too. Or clumsy feeling. This could be lack of sleep and I guess stress/anxiety?

[whitecat78]

i just want to say another thing, your symptoms sound very similar to mine, i had a nervous breakdown a couple years ago with on going panic attacks and depersonalization for a couple months, then it turned into severe depression. i didn't sleep either. i had a lot of stress in my life at that time and i also think  negative thought patterns were part of the problem like constantly thinking everything was wrong with me, i thought i had schizophrenia, i thought i had a brain tumor, and i also thought i was having a heart attack at another time. i have slowly gotten better and i don't think i have any health problems anymore. i just think that negative thought patterns change your brain chemistry and cause weird physical sensations and it can manifest into severe mental disturbances.

[whitecat78]

i have had twitching and spine stiffness too, i think that was caused from a anti-depressant and not my mind.

[MMahon]

Congrats on the new addition!  Sorry you are having problems that are interfering during this good time.  
Having a new baby is a great thing, a happy time, so it's very difficult to understand how it can impact us in a negative way.  If you have an anxiety/depressive disorder, life events, even good ones, are frequent triggers that amp up the symptoms we get from it.
the reality is that positive events are more stressful then the negative ones.  And lets face it, a newborn is an eating/crying/pooping machine that can try even the strongest nervous systems :-)    At least for me I felt I was losing my mind for sure. Here was this beatiful little angel we'd tried years to have and I couldn't have been happier about and then there was me, a virtual cripple.  I had no clue about anxiety or depressive disorders at the time and thought surely I was going insane.  
I can truly relate to muscle and back symptoms.  On more then 1 occassion, out of absolute nowhere, I would be laying on the couch watching tv at night and get up to go to bed.  Only to find that I couldn't even stand up due to severe back pain.  I would be sick to my stomach and unable to even go up the stairs.  I would haave to take NSAID's and wear a TENS unit to just get thru the day.  The problem would dissappear in time as oddly as it arrived.
Anxiety and depression can and do cause these symptoms and they may be the only thing you feel as the result of these ailments.  
I would discuss these symptoms with your psychiatrist if you have one and see if a medication adjustment is in order.  It sounds like your exercise program helps keep your anxiety at bay, so when you stop it starts.  I know it's very hard to exercise when you feel like crap and are flat out on your back so meds then become even more important.
You have good insight into your situation and I'm sure you'll find the thing that works for you.  

[cnote]

The thing is, I don't feel THAT anxious, and I really don't think its my thoughts that are causing these symptoms. I can be so relaxed in bed, and have muscle twitching all over... or my back is still stiff...

[whitecat78]

i constantly have weird body symptoms, i know some were caused from anti-depressants and some were caused from my brain. for example i went to a camping party up in the mountains with my boyfriend and i was exhausted from lack of sleep, i started getting agitated with the loud environment, whenever i get agitated it causes extreme painful physical symptoms and i get very dysphoric and panicky. i was also doing mushrooms at the time, so i took myself out of the environment and went to listen to my favorite music in the car and basically meditated the agitation away. my mood changed dramatically and my bad physical symptoms went away, so basically your thoughts might be causing these symptoms.

[cnote]

Greenlydia!!! I've been waiting for you to comment! haha. You are the best! Always good to hear from you!

What's funny, is when this all started, I wasn't feeling stressed out at all!!! I however was staying very very busy, which was a good thing for me.

Then my neck started hurting one day, went to the Dr. he had me try some NSAIDS or something like that, but I took 1 and it made me too gittery! So I didnt take them.

I then developed low back pain, which started when my wife was in the hospital after having our new little addition to the family. =) But I was staying home with my Dr. and was a little stressed out at that time. But my lower back hasnt quit since then. I have my good days and bad days with it. And my neck doesnt seem to bother me as much anymore.

I do however feel very lethargic and tired a lot during most of the days in the week, but lack of good sleep could be contributing to that, due to my low back pain, and having a baby wake up to eat every 2-3 hours a night. lol.

My ativan isn't working as good either as it used to.

He hasnt given me any muscle relaxers, but I don't really like to take those...

So you are thinking a chiropractor is the best choice for right now?

If I had something terribly wrong with me like MS or ALS or cancer or whatever, you think my Dr would know those symptoms by now?

My bloodwork came back good, so I know if I had a tumor or cancer, it would show in my white/red blood count. But he said everything was good.

I also know that an X-RAY won't show muscle or ligaments etc. Only bone... so should I request an MRI or do you think I should just TRUST in my Dr and really believe that nothing serious is wrong with me?

I just can't help to shake that something is wrong, either neurologically or something... which stinks.

Maybe I need to try another anti-depressant? I've read that anxiety/stress/and even depression can cause unexplained muslce pain/joint pain and spasms... I havnt been feeling too anxious, but I have been feeling kind of down/depressed.

Thanks again for writing! =)

[RubyWitch]

Hey cnote! Glad to "see" you again, but I'm sorry you're going through a rough patch. I can understand your fear and frustration, but you're seeing your doctor and that's good. He's checked you out and found nothing organically wrong, so I'm thinking you've just got your muscles so tight and knotted up from the anxiety that that is where your problems lies. Last night, after you dozed off, your muscles began to relax, but I think they are wound so tight, it probably did feel more like spasms than normal relaxing which doesn't wake us up.
You know I'm not a doctor, so this is just my opinion, but it's what I'd do. I'd find myself a very reputable chiropractor who has an LMP, (Licensed Massage Practictioner) on staff and have him/her check you over. Make the appointment so that as soon as you're done with the chiro, you go in for the massage. Also try to make the appt. for a time when you can just go home and relax. Many insurance companies now cover chiro and therapeutic massage, if not, it's kinda spendy, but I think this might prove to you that it's your tense muscles causing so many of your problems. The chiro most likely will ask you to request your doctor write you a script for muscle relaxants and possibly some antiiflammatories.
Just an idea, cnote, but I think it would be worth checking out. Might be just what you need to soothe your muscles and your mind.
Let me know how you're doing, OK?
Peace
Greenlydia  

[Rich99]

If your doctor has done medical exams and testing and says you are in good physical condition then the culprit has to be anxiety/panic attacks.      Getting stressed and tense will cause body muscles to stiffen and then can even cause pain.     You sound like you are experiencing this.    Your thoughts cause uncomfortable body symptoms which you then react to with more anxiety and panic.    It becomes a vicious cycle since getting more anxious and tense contribute to keeping your body tense and hurting.    You were even suffering from rapid heart rate caused by the fear and adrenalin.    Often doctors will prescribe some sort of sedative but if you can avoid it,  trying therapy and re-assurance from a professional.