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Random sharp and concentrated pains throughout body

Since I was a teen, I have had these random sharp pains throughout various parts of my body that will occur in concentrated bursts of pain in a particular area for short periods of time. Sometimes pain will re-appear in the same area throughout the day and other times it will appear at seemingly unrelated part of my body. For example, it happened today and began with concentrated burst of pain half way up my inner left thigh. This pain would intensify which would cause me to wince in pain and then release and then repeat all over again every 5-10 seconds for about a minute. This pain did not radiate anywhere but only within a specific point. Then this same stabbing sensation occurred half way up to the first knuckle of my right middle finger about 30 minutes later. Then immediately following this finger pain I felt pain in my right foot at the joint of my middle toe. I have no idea what causes this and both of my siblings report similar type of pain issues. Friends think this is quite strange. As a teenager, everyone called these "growing pains" but I am 30 years old and don't believe this title still applies. Any ideas on possible causes? A friend of mine recommended acupuncture but of course I cringe at the thought of needles.
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Avatar universal
I have this same problem and have had it for years.  For me the pain is highly concentrated and sometimes extremely sharp.  However, there is nothing lasting about it.  It lasts a few seconds to a minute and once it passes, it's as if nothing ever happened.

Lately the pains are coming more frequently and are more wide spread, though not as intense.  Only a few seconds ago I had one in my right arm.  (Yesterday I had one in the back right side of my head that was extremely sharp, though.)  The only ones that really "grip" me are the ones that I get in my neck.  I can barely move when those happen.

My son has an amazing Rheumatologist that I'm going to pose this question to on my son's next visit but that's not until late February.  Perhaps I'll be able to get an appointment with him myself after that.  I'm just getting a bit more concerned now that the pain seems to be coming so often these days.  I was having them all evening yesterday.
Helpful - 2
Avatar universal
I have these same type of pains.  They are specific and localized and occur as an attack of some sort.  It is not a constant concern, but it does happen more often in recent months.  Has anyone found an answer to what causes these pain attacks?
Helpful - 1
4 Comments
I am 65 now and had the sharp pin pricks for 7 years from 2005 to 2011. Ruined my life. Lost my job, all my savings, my retirement--everything. Was ready to kill myself.
The pin pricks would happen anytime of the day or night, mostly on my legs and arms. Felt like they were coming from the inside out. Could not sleep, finally started taking up to 5 showers a day to relieve the constant pricks. Could not work, my mind is still exhausted from the years of stress. Doctors wanted to put me on psychological drugs--that's what they want to do if they do not know the cause. I tried every cure I found on the internet. Finally I tried several months on a raw vegan diet and the pain subsided. PURE HELL.
I am 65 now and had the sharp pin pricks for 7 years from 2005 to 2011. Ruined my life. Lost my job, all my savings, my retirement--everything. Was ready to kill myself.
The pin pricks would happen anytime of the day or night, mostly on my legs and arms. Felt like they were coming from the inside out. Could not sleep, finally started taking up to 5 showers a day to relieve the constant pricks. Could not work, my mind is still exhausted from the years of stress. Doctors wanted to put me on psychological drugs--that's what they want to do if they do not know the cause. I tried every cure I found on the internet. Finally I tried several months on a raw vegan diet and the pain subsided. PURE HELL.
Yeah, I think so. I think they are caused by stress. Check out my comment below. I get them, too. I found a website that seems to describe them appropriately:

http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety/symptoms/shooting-pains-anxiety.shtml
First Off, I'm 77 & Actually Suffer From Various Health Issues CAUSED By Our Local VA Medical Staff........I Sympathize With You As I've Had & Still HAVE Sharp, Shooting Pains Throughout My Body. They Occur Out Of Nowhere But Are Worse When ANY Muscle is Put Under Stress....In Other Words, "ALL The Damned Time"... Stops Me In My Tracks at Times, Wakes Me Up Screaming In The Middle Of The Night, Etc,. Have Been To A Couple Of Medical Teams Without Them Finding Out The Problem Nor The Help...  As You Can Clearly See, I Can't Help You..;. All I Can Do Is Say "It's a *****"...You Have Company....BTW.. I 'm On Medicare & AVOID The VA At All Costs....I Was Told by Their ER That I Was Close To Death( EMERGENCY Surgery Followed By a FULL Mont of Hospitalization)Due To My Primary Physicians Inadequate Health Care And Refusal To Allow Me To Be seen by Other Physicians... JER CASS..
Avatar universal
I get these too and my research has led me to the answer: anxiety. These sharp stabbing pains that occur in concentrated parts of the body at random times are from high stress and anxiety levels. I experienced a lot of these before big tests such as the SAT. They are caused by muscled receiving nerve signals that cause them to react in a painful way. Hope this answer helped you :)
Helpful - 1
1 Comments
Thank you! I got these before going to school and you have really helped me, so thank you xx
Avatar universal
Its built up anger in the body. Go somewhere and scream and yell until you're really hot and red in the face. It also works to balance out ecstacy feelings in the body. A common thread among many of you im sure, is that you are dreamer types, mostly positive, and possible people pleasers. Gritting your teeth allows you a slow, socially acceptable way of concentrating the pain in a place of your choosing. Hope this helps.
Helpful - 1
Avatar universal
EVERYONE PAY ATTENTION. I HAVE HAD EVERY THING YOU GUYS HAVE HAD. THERE IS A DOCTOR WHO HAS FIGURED OUT THE CURE FOR ALL OF THIS. IT'S CALLED TMS, TENSION MYSOSITIS SYNDROME. I WAS CURED OF HORRIBLE PINS AND NEEDLES, PELVIC PAIN, MIGRAINES, YOU NAME IT... IT'S ALL TMS. GO READ HIS BOOKS, LOOK HIM UP, STUDY IT, AND YOU WILL BE COMPLETELY FREE OF PAIN IN A MONTH OR SO.... DON'T BUY INTO THIS GARBAGE THAT DOCTORS SAY BECAUSE THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND THE CAUSE.

IF YOU GUYS WANT TO GET BETTER, GOOGLE DR. JOHN SARNO AND START THERE. GOOD LUCK!
Helpful - 1
1 Comments
Thank you for posting this! I have suffered from this since I was a small child. Just sharp throbbing pains that sometimes last a few seconds to about a minute or two. They move around my body. Sometimes they feel just below the skin sometimes they feel a bit deeper in the tissue. This has brought me a lot of peace and I hope I can seek treatment or more information at the least!
Avatar universal
Please get a test for Lyme disease western blot. You should try to rule it out since I have random stabbing pains and am confirmed to have Lyme. I got it 4.5months ago, Had two months of antibiotics, rashes went away but random stabbing remained. Not sure how to cure it yet but many people do well with antibiotics and no further problems.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have been told I have fibromyalgia. I take gabapentine (aka neurotin) which has reduced the attacks greatly. I do not have anxiety issues. The cause is over active nerves but no one can get rid of it just treat the symptoms. Not sure how it gets started.
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Avatar universal
I have the exact same thing. I'm pretty sure these are anxiety symptoms.

My first memory of these pains is of telling a nurse that I got them. I was about 12 years old when I told her. I explained to her that I'd been getting them for a while, but I couldn't figure out the cause. I told her exactly what they were like: sharp pains that randomly occurred in random places on my body, usually on the tops of my hands, sometimes on the side of my neck, but occasionally it'd be a different place. The pains were sharp, stabbing pains, that would sometimes slightly throb, but they would not hurt exactly. They were just irritating. They would occur in the same exact spots from time to time. On the tops of my hands, the stabbing felt like it might be within a vein. I remember being worried that there was something stuck inside my vein, possibly a tiny clot or maybe a cluster of parasites, like bacteria or something similar. The nurse had no clue. She drew some blood to test. Results came back completely normal. There was nothing wrong with me. I've continued to have these pains throughout my life. I'm 28 years old now. Over the years, their occurrence has fluctuated. Sometimes I would go months without feeling a single stab, other times I would feel daily stabs. The locations of the stabs have changed over the years. Lately, I've been getting these pains constantly. They happen on my chest most frequently and on my forearms and thighs. They definitely don't seem random anymore. Their occurrence seems to be directly tied to my stress level. I'm in college, and as the semester has progressed, they have worsened accordingly. Finals week is next week; I'm positive they will subside after exams and summer break starts.

I've tried to find the answer to these pains for years to no avail. Fortunately, there is no need to feel alone, as this is a common symptom among people. I believe it is stress-related. I found a website today that seems to be describing our symptom. I points to anxiety as the cause:

http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety/symptoms/shooting-pains-anxiety.shtml
Helpful - 0
20244670 tn?1493359838
HYPERMOBILITY SYNDROME.

Statistically some of you will have it and there is a simple set of initial tests you can do at home which will give you all that you need to get a referal to a rheumatologist if you're in the UK - if you're elsewhere I don't know what the deal is but at least you'll now be clued up if you meet the criteria on the beighton scale and it's on the hypermobility syndrome website linked at the bottom.

Officially called Joint Hypermobility Syndrome, but that is a terribly misnomer because it affects vastly more than the joints because it's primarily a genetic excess of collagen and collagen is the most common protein the human body - even our bones are fifty percent collagen. Statistically this is what some of you are suffering from because over a million people in the UK have it but diagnosis rates are depressingly low, with estimates ranging between 0.5 to 3% of sufferers receiving the correct diagnosis - and even then it can take years and years. It's also known as Elhers-Dhanlos syndrome type iii - hypermobility type, which is actually the old name for it.

In addition to random pain of every conceivable type appearing suddenly or slowly, anywhere on the body, lasting from miliseconds to weeks and ranging from barely noticeable to excruciating, it is an utterly horribly condition which totally controls your life if you have it bad. I only have moderate HMS but it doesn't stop there.

around 75% of people with hypermobility syndrome also have some autonomic nervous system problems,and given how many processes in your body are automatic it doesn't take long to realise that there are literally thousands of things that can go wrong: with me it's mainly vertigo and balance problems, a bladder that tells me it needs emptying every ten minutes - which has been the case since before I started school - sudden attacks of blurry vision, spontaneous attacks of fight or flight - i.e. the physical symptoms of a panic attack but in the total absence of any stressor, numerous other annoyances too many to list, but the worst of the lot is excessive sleepiness which necessitates 12-14 hours a day + usually one or two naps and I am nearly always tired. I also have chronic fatigue (not syndrome, just fatigue that was clincally chronic) for over four years but eventually got it under management with vitamin B12 Injections - and it took more than three years to get my GP to give it to me monthly, which is what I need, and that was only through the fact that I'm a professional scientist who had access to all the top medical databases and thus could present my doctor with proper medical papers rather than print-outs from "Doctor Google" and the fact that the British Council for Standards in Haemotology published new guidelines in 2014 stating that the standard test is up to 35% inaccurate.

But that's secondary stuff. In the last hour I've had acute burning pain in my achilles tendon,, throbbing/pounding ache in my left thigh, clenching in my chest - which I used to think was a heart attack every few weeks before I got diagnosed - my jaw currently feels like I've just been punched, my right knee like someone's rammed a knitting needle into it, my shoulders feel like a giant is standing on them, and my second toe on my right foot both feels like it's in a vice and the BONE is itching.

http://hypermobility.org/
Helpful - 0
2 Comments
I am very happy to be wrong because I have just discovered that the terminology has changed and the term joint hypermobility syndrome has been dropped.
I also have ehlers danlos syndrome hypermobility type and I get these stabbing pains (along with a thousand other symptoms) so yeah anyone reading this might want to take a look and see if it sounds like them.
Avatar universal
I'm very sorry for what you're going through. I have a similar situation but I'm affected to a lesser degree. I want to tell you all about Sahaja yoga, something that can change your life forever and I cannot stress enough on how it's the greatest of all gifts bestowed upon us. I don't know if you're a believer but it doesn't matter as long as you try it out before tossing it aside as irrelevant. It's empirical and has a complex system which is explained by logic and reason and not blind faith. Sahajayoga is meditation where a person in the state of thoughtless awareness causes the residual energy lying dormant at the base of his spine to rise up and travel through a channel where the 7 energy centers lie. As it rises up it aligns these centres or chakras into a perfect form where they resume their proper functions exerting control over the body and powering up the system to ward off diseases. This is the primordial power that remains inactive until recollected in a state of Sahaja meditation. Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi ( Mother) has taught us the practice of meditating in collectivity for the greater good of mankind. Please do not consider this propaganda as this comes from a person who was tied to her bed by her ailments until Sahajayoga came along. It will give you peace, hope and direction if you so much as give it a go. There are many frauds in the spiritual business that exhort money and distort the truth. But Sahajayoga gives you results first and then you see the truth for yourself. You establish its credentials through genuine experience that rids you of your ailments and shortcomings whatever their nature might be. I wish for people to find some reprieve where doctors fail to provide it. Anyone reading this, I want you to give it a try and see your life become better as the days of pain and suffering are left behind for a healthier, happier tomorrow. I want for us to be free of all mental strain and physical suffering and lead a life we all deserve.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Just got it. I Googled Lexapro helps Fibromyalgia and NOW THIS SECOND I will start taking my meds again.
I'm writing this very moment with a lot of pain. I have been weaning off Lexapro but I guess I will never leave them.
These pains make me cry like a child and I didn't have them for sooooo long. Hope I am giving someone a some hope.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have this as well and am wondering if it may be Hashimotos or a food intolerance, such as to gluten, sugar or dairy.As I know this can cause inflammation in the body.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Possibly, but I think my pains are caused by stress (check out my comment below). I think this website describes the pains accurately:

http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety/symptoms/shooting-pains-anxiety.shtml
Avatar universal
I'm 22 female mother one 2  and lately for the past year and half I get shots of pain almost everywhere in my head back of head lungs chest arm lately it feel I might have a pelvic problem or appendix I have been feeling pain on my right side for three days idk does any one exactly know we all wanna kno
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
i too have a a pain like this, but its short bursts almost a stabbing pain. I did a test where i tried to figure out what this problem is, heres my conclusion:
i figured out that when i ate, and laid down or sat in a funny position, i would have these pains, even hours later. I tried this and have been doing for about a week, i found this helps but doesn't fully cure it. i do hope you try this and tell me what happens, thanks -Rob
Helpful - 0
14204945 tn?1476919677
It might sound crazy.. but I had all types of weird pain, last month I discovered that I have gluten sensitivity/allergy.. so I stopped taking gluten.. right now, I do not have any more weird pain happening to me..
It feels like I had slime in between my muscle fibers which was causing pain.. also was causing hyper active sinus and I had a cold almost every week!  But now I don't have any of them any more.. hope this helps!
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Wow! I haven't heard anything like that before. Thank you.
Avatar universal
I am having exactly what you have described. Random shooting pains in random places seeming unrelated to each other . Can be in my foot for 10-30 seconds then disappear next tone in my thumb. Very strange. Not so painful its unbearable but slightly uncomfortable. Doctors have tested blood for everything cant find anything wrong! Driving me mad. Had it around a year now and Im. 27 . Anyone ever get any answers? Only happens in legs arms and neck
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
I'm pretty sure it's caused by stress. For me, I think it's strictly anxiety-related. I've had my random, sharp pains since before I was 12 (I'm 28 now), and they seem to correlate with my stress level. Sometimes they go away for months. It could be that it's different for others. Allergies and diseases of all kinds cause physical stress to the body, so it's possible that the stress from the illness causes something similar. I found this article today that seems to explain the symptom accurately:
http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety/symptoms/shooting-pains-anxiety.shtml
Avatar universal
I am a 60 year old male and I suffer the exact same thing.  I have for as far back as I can remember and I have a long memory.  They can happen at any point in my body.  Including my abdomen and thorax areas as well as my face, head or extremities.  They come on quickly out of no where and can last from a minute or so up to several minutes before fading away.

The cascading effect you described can happen but seems to a rare event for me. I rarely make a sound when it hits but it does make stop what ever I am doing and wait for it pass. It can occur at the same spot with multiple events. It seems to be happening more frequently these days and can wake me out of a sound sleep. It sure would be nice to learn what causes it.  
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Avatar universal
I have what I call "Sparks" in every part of my body. Even my cuticles and nail bed hurt. After holding my phone after 10 minutes, my hand freezes. It hurts bad. I know I have Lyme Disease. I'm trying to also find out what this is?
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Avatar universal
I've been experiencing the same symptoms as you but I've never had an infection or virus or really anything. It just started and I'm only 15. I get these throbbing pains and they form everywhere. They seem random though. What could I do to get rid of them. And the muscle spasms, I get them in my face too.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
I'm 14 and I get these quite a lot. Due to anxiety I panic a lot more! Even an odd ringing noise now and then scares me. I like to breathe in and out. It calms me, please try. X
Avatar universal
I've been an RN for years now & about to graduate to nurse practitioner. I recently have been experiencing similar sharp or burning pain twinges and it's not something I'm professionally familiar with nor know any medical professionals that could give me any good answers but my best guess is that it's some kind of circulation problem, similar to how diabetics get those types of pains in their feet. It's peripheral neuropathy, or nerve pain, caused by lack of blood flow to the nerve tissue. People with this condition are commonly prescribed Gabapentin. I personally noticed that when I am more active, my circulation is better and I get less pain. The pain gives me more motivation to stay active, go figure.
Helpful - 0
2 Comments
I've been suffering from these sudden pangs of pain from a long time now. Since their frequency is not alarmingly high, I never paid heed to these random concentrated pains throughout the body. I'm not sure about you but I have been experiencing these pulsating pain since childhood. They occur periodically on a part of the body for some time and then disappear automatically. The average interval between these pains has been about  over a month. The most common areas that I have noticed where they've occurred many times are, calves, shins, thighs, lower back, biceps, near temple.
Lala_pronurse, I don't think these twinges are a circulation problem. While it's possible poor circulation could be the cause for some, I'm pretty sure these are caused by stress. My circulation is healthy, and I get these twinges. Interestingly though, exercise is a stress-reliever, so I bet exercise helps some. Although, I exercise at least twice/wk and have a job that almost counts as exercise and don't seem to see any improvement with exercise. What seems to make mine go away is relaxation.

My first memory of these pains is of telling a nurse that I got them. I was about 12 years old when I told her. I explained to her that I'd been getting them for a while, but I couldn't figure out the cause. I told her exactly what they were like: sharp pains that randomly occurred in random places on my body, usually on the tops of my hands, sometimes on the side of my neck, but occasionally it'd be a different place. The pains were sharp, stabbing pains, that would sometimes slightly throb, but not hurt exactly. They were just irritating. They lasted anywhere from a short twinge to up to 30 seconds, with the shorter versions being the most common. They would occur in the same exact spots time after time. On the tops of my hands, the stabbing felt like it might be within a vein. I remember being worried there might be something stuck inside my vein, possibly a tiny clot or maybe a cluster of parasites, like bacteria or something similar. The nurse had no clue. She drew some blood to test. Results came back completely normal. There was nothing wrong with my blood. I've continued to have these pains throughout my life. I'm 28 years old now. Over the years, their occurrence has fluctuated. Sometimes I would go months without feeling a single stab, other times I would feel daily stabs. The locations of the stabs have changed over the years. Lately, I've been getting these pains constantly, happening on my chest most frequently and on my forearms and thighs next most commonly. They definitely don't seem random anymore. Their occurrence seems to be directly tied to my stress level. I'm in college, and as the semester has progressed, they have worsened accordingly. Finals week is next week; I'm positive they will subside after exams and summer break starts. They always calm down, even leave, when my life is less stressful.

I've tried to find a scientific answer to these pains for years to no avail, however, I believe they are stress-related. I found a website today that seems to be describing the symptom fairly accurately. It points to anxiety as the cause:

http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety/symptoms/shooting-pains-anxiety.shtml
Avatar universal
I'm probably even younger than you, but I have some problems with random pains also. My issue, though, is that while I do have random pains in random places, I also get twitching, and really bad cramping (I'm a guy). The cramping got really bad yesterday. I hope that I could get some reliable answers on what might be happening
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
I believe the sharp, random pain twinges are caused by stress/anxiety. The twitches I get are most likely caused from sitting on the couch too long doing homework. Sometimes I strain my back or shoulders from too much homework on the couch. Twitching is caused by a variety of issues, though, stress being one cause. Cramping is usually related to dehydration and a lack of electrolytes and magnesium. I'd recommend re-evaluating what you're doing, i.e. your lifestyle, and ask a doctor to test you for vitamin and mineral deficiencies. In the meantime, try these sites:

http://www.healthline.com/symptom/muscle-twitch

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/01/19/magnesium-deficiency.aspx
Avatar universal
This may not help. But wanted to put it out there in case, when I was having what felt like bad heart palpitations and tightness in my chest it ended up being bad esophageal spasms. I had foods that triggered it but that isn't nearly so bad since I quit pain meds years ago. My family has sensitive digestive systems it seems. Now I only take ibuprofen etc when I desperately need to.
Helpful - 0
16985545 tn?1452818985
the electric shok I get is in the shoulders in the middle near my spine
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Avatar universal
Hi every one! I'm 17 years old and I've had these pains for about 3 years now. like many of you I've experienced the sharp shooting pain sensations in random places all over my body. For example I'll get one in my calf that isn't that bad and then 10 minutes later I'll have one in my head that put me on the the ground in tears. I've gone to the doctor about this and have had an x-Ray and a blood test done both coming back completely normal. My doctor is now sending me to a specialist on muscles but of course it's been four months and I haven't heard back yet and meanwhile my pains are getting more painful and more frequent. I'm scared that I'll have this for the rest of my life.  If any one knows what cause this please let me know
Helpful - 0
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