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Hashimoto's and muscle problems
I've had muscle & joint pain for many years & knew it was my thryoid but only recently have finally been diagnosed with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. I now also have hypothyroidism. I've had back pain for many years which is why I became a personal trainer & fitness instructor to fight the pain. I am 36. In the last so many years the pain was not just in my back but in ALL my muscles & joints all over my body including my intercostals, my skull, my ribs, feet, along my spine, you name it. I hurt all the time & it is very hard anymore for me to teach classes with a smile on my face trying to hide my constant pain. No matter where you can touch me on my body there will be a knot... My heart also hurts, either muscle pain in my chest near or directly around my heart, or muscle spasms in my back so severe that it goes through my body & literally hurts in my heart. My endo said that my constant fatigue & muscle problems couldn't be just from my Hashimoto's, that I probably have another problem. My regular doctor is leaning toward fibromyalgia. But I am at a standstill for now till my husband gets insurance again & I can go to a rheumatologist(sp?). We have not got my thyroid levels under control yet. Sometimes it hurts so bad in my side (my flank area) and I'm not sure if it's muscle or could be an organ. I even get spasms in my bladder! Can Hasimoto's cause this severe form of muscle pain all over my body?? I'm taking muscle relaxants and anit-inflammatorys twice a day with no relief. And also my endo suspected that I could have EBV virus & tested me for that -- I had mono at 15. My EBV Ab VCA, IgG level was 2786 (normal is 0-99) and my EBV Nuclear Antigen Ab, IgG level was 1104 (normal is 0-99). Does this mean anything?? No doctor is able to answer that for me nor able to give me any other answers or help. Please Help! This pain is literally killing me! Also my husband wants to have a baby so bad. Do you think it could ever be safe for me??
If you're having muscle spasms of any kind in any location, by default I would at least look into something called Chronic Myofascial Pain Syndrome. JFK's personal physician wrote a book on the subject, called Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction: The Trigger Point Therapy Manual. It's a well-established, widespread condition that, unfortunately, not too many physicians are aware of. Basically your muscles develop hyper-irritable knots in them, which then refer pain to other areas. Different trigger points have different pain patterns, so a trigger point in your shoulder could be giving you a headache, etc.
Another great resource that differentiates between Chronic Myofascial Pain Syndrome and Fibromyalgia (while providing great information on both) is Dr. Devin Starlanyl's website: http://www.sover.net/~devstar/ (The key difference between the two is FM entails widespread pain while CMPS entails pain points/trigger points).
Her website even has information sheets you can print out to bring to appointments. Apparently, she has both CMPS and Fibromyalgia, but was unable to find treatment for several years until she stumbled across the book I mentioned earlier. She has written a book herself, and I would advise you to go to Amazon and look up any book on trigger points and chronic myofascial pain.
If you're suffering to the degree that I am, please look into this stuff. If you have Fibromyalgia, it can be managed very well with the appropriate treatments. If, like me, you simply have Chronic Myofascial Pain, then you can most likely be cured (pain free), with the provision that you get body work done whenever you start to develop a trigger point again.
Another great resource that differentiates between Chronic Myofascial Pain Syndrome and Fibromyalgia (while providing great information on both) is Dr. Devin Starlanyl's website: http://www.sover.net/~devstar/ (The key difference between the two is FM entails widespread pain while CMPS entails pain points/trigger points).
Her website even has information sheets you can print out to bring to appointments. Apparently, she has both CMPS and Fibromyalgia, but was unable to find treatment for several years until she stumbled across the book I mentioned earlier. She has written a book herself, and I would advise you to go to Amazon and look up any book on trigger points and chronic myofascial pain.
If you're suffering to the degree that I am, please look into this stuff. If you have Fibromyalgia, it can be managed very well with the appropriate treatments. If, like me, you simply have Chronic Myofascial Pain, then you can most likely be cured (pain free), with the provision that you get body work done whenever you start to develop a trigger point again.
Hey thanks for the input! I really & truly don't think I have EBV or mono. My EBV acute infection antibodies Ab VCA IgM was normal (15). It just worried me that the VCA IgG was so high (2786) and the Nuclear Antigen Ab, IgG was so high (1104) considering that I had mono 21 years ago! But the weird thing was my endo couldn't tell me what the numbers meant & neither could my regular doctor! I'm currently looking for another doctor. Which is why when I saw this site, I was hoping that the Thryoid specialist would answer my pleas of help & possibly give me some answers... but you all have been most helpful! And it's very nice to discuss things with other people who have similiar circumstances.
Yes the endo did tell me one autoimmune disease usually comes with another. The EBV testing was ran in Jan. 08 & the last time I had a complete blood count was Oct. 07. My bloodwork looked fine in October, but I know that can change quickly & I'm due more testing... as soon as my new insurance goes into effect...
Thanks so much for your help!
Yes the endo did tell me one autoimmune disease usually comes with another. The EBV testing was ran in Jan. 08 & the last time I had a complete blood count was Oct. 07. My bloodwork looked fine in October, but I know that can change quickly & I'm due more testing... as soon as my new insurance goes into effect...
Thanks so much for your help!
Yes doctors tried giving me anti-depressants too! And I too tried to tell them I was depressed only because I hurt all the time but I am NOT clinically depressed!!
And yes I do have many other symptoms as well. The ones I have listed are the most troublesome. And so far fibromyalgia seems highly likely. My endo did say if you have one autoimmune disease such as Hashimoto's it is very likely you have another. And I have read that hypothyroidism can be linked to fibro... but good Lord I do not want it! And I truly don't think EBV or mono is part of the picture either.
Good luck on your own search. You're welcome to keep in contact with me if you'd like! I'm still looking for a good doctor who will listen to me & try to help... and I have not found he or she yet. But I will!
And yes I do have many other symptoms as well. The ones I have listed are the most troublesome. And so far fibromyalgia seems highly likely. My endo did say if you have one autoimmune disease such as Hashimoto's it is very likely you have another. And I have read that hypothyroidism can be linked to fibro... but good Lord I do not want it! And I truly don't think EBV or mono is part of the picture either.
Good luck on your own search. You're welcome to keep in contact with me if you'd like! I'm still looking for a good doctor who will listen to me & try to help... and I have not found he or she yet. But I will!
You got infection in the past, that's why you have positive IgG antibodies.
EBV Nuclear Antigen Ab, IgG level can persist all your life (only detected 3-6 weeks after symptoms, you had them at 15).
EBV Ab VCA, IgG : A high amount in this test means that you either are currently having or have had mono. If you're sure you already have had mono in the past, this is likely normal. You might also want to look at/have tested other blood levels, such as a complete blood cell count, which gives an overall picture of your immune system.
If not sure about EBV in the past should be tested EBV Ab VCA, IgM (recent infection).
Fibromyalgia, you only have the diagnostic if you rule out other autoimmune diseases. Fibromyalgia can be associated with other autoimune diseases, like Hashimoto. Is common people that have an autoimmune disease have another one.
EBV Nuclear Antigen Ab, IgG level can persist all your life (only detected 3-6 weeks after symptoms, you had them at 15).
EBV Ab VCA, IgG : A high amount in this test means that you either are currently having or have had mono. If you're sure you already have had mono in the past, this is likely normal. You might also want to look at/have tested other blood levels, such as a complete blood cell count, which gives an overall picture of your immune system.
If not sure about EBV in the past should be tested EBV Ab VCA, IgM (recent infection).
Fibromyalgia, you only have the diagnostic if you rule out other autoimmune diseases. Fibromyalgia can be associated with other autoimune diseases, like Hashimoto. Is common people that have an autoimmune disease have another one.
I am new to the community so I hope I am doing this right- I had the same problems as far as severe pain and my Drs kept saying that I was depresssed and they kept giving me anti depressants. This went on for about 10 years-I tried everything to work through the pain but nothing worked.
Finally I found a good Doctor that really listened to me-I kept telling him I was depressed because I was in pain not the other way around. Anyway I have fibromyalgia
and have been trying different meds to help cope with the pain. You might look it up on the internet because pain is not the only symptom of fibro-it has many, many other symptoms.
I also read that there is an association between hypothyroidism and fibro-I am not sure how true that is but I am trying to research it to find any answers that I can get.
Mary Ann
Finally I found a good Doctor that really listened to me-I kept telling him I was depressed because I was in pain not the other way around. Anyway I have fibromyalgia
and have been trying different meds to help cope with the pain. You might look it up on the internet because pain is not the only symptom of fibro-it has many, many other symptoms.
I also read that there is an association between hypothyroidism and fibro-I am not sure how true that is but I am trying to research it to find any answers that I can get.
Mary Ann
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