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Chorea, chronic pain, anyone else like me?
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Chorea, chronic pain, anyone else like me?

I will try to be brief as my story is kinda long. I am a 40 yr old male. About 6 years ago I noticed decrease in my hand strength. Slowly I have had symptoms cropping up. About 4 years ago I started having episodes of all over 'shivering'. These episodes last anywhere from 20 min to an hour. I remain conscious during the episode and I feel like I have been hit by a bus for two days after. I still continue to have these to this day. In Oct. 2010 I started 'shaking' and have not stopped. I also started having chronic pain. It is shooting, stabbing, throbbing..etc. The pain lasts all day long. I also started having muscle cramps and charlie horses in my arms, legs and feet. I have now had a charlie horse in my left foot for 2 years. I went to my regular pcp and she sent me for brain MRI and referred me to a neurologist. I waited nearly two months to get a neuro appt. I got an appt in Jan 2011. I had neuro exam, major blood work( including heavy metal workup,ck,rpr) brain MRI, cervical and lumbar MRI, nerve conduction study, sleep study and everything has come back normal with the exception of slightly low vitamin D. My 'shaking' has been diagnosed as choreathetosis. The neuro diagnosed me with fibromyalgia because he couldn't find anything else wrong with me. He basically never told me why I was shaking even after asking him why my legs continously rub together. I am being treated with several medications which may dampen the pain but the pain and cramping never leave. Some days are definitely worse than others. I cannot stand or walk for very long without causing major cramping and pain and I will definitely pay for it the next day or so. I finally got my medical records and that is how I found out the movement was called chorea. Fast forward nearly 2 years...I had another round of bloodwork and it is all normal. I am seeing a movement disorder specialist who's assessment of me is paroxysmal choreathetosis. This neuro thinks I have a progressive hyperkinetic movement disorder of unknow etiology and had me genetically tested for Huntington's disease and DRLPA. These test came back fine. My neurological exam came back with "unable to tandem walk, unable to heel walk or toe walk". She said I was very writhing and snakelike and had inturning of my left foot and hand. I had blood smear done to check for acanthocytes..it was normal. I had ceruloplasmin tested...it was normal. I had another ck enzyme test done...normal. I had another rpr test...normal. I had a full lipid profile done...normal. They have tested me for all of the autoimmune markers...normal again. The only thing that has come back different is my cervical spine MRI. The first one I had done in jan. 2011 came back as minor bulging at c6-7. The second MRI came back (mind you, it has only been 18 months) as degenerative changes that are advanced for the patients age. I also began seeing a pain management doctor who has assessed me with cervical spondylarthritis, generalized arthritis and muscle pain. He has referred me to a rheumatologist. I do not want narcotics and he said they dont work on my kinda pain anyway. My muscle movement disorder specialist has now referred me to the Mayo clinic because she said she doesn't know what is causing my choreathetosis. My life has completely changed in a short time and I am always moving, always in pain..yet I can honestly say that I try to focus on other things because I wouldn't make it. So now I have an appt set at Mayo and hopefully someone will know what this is. I need someone to see the 'big picture' and connect the dots for me. At this point I need answers. I would like to hear from anyone suffering with anything similar.
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