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Pain in joints throughout body
Hello,
I'm a 27 year old male, and generally in good health. However, over the past month, since about December 5th, I have been experiencing pains in joints throughout my body. It seemed to start as a pain in the back of my head/upper neck. I took some migraine medication and went to bed. The next day my neck was stiff and could barely move, and stayed like that for 3 days, though it has gained back some of its mobility, but not all, and still hurts to turn. Then my right shoulder began to hurt 2 days after my neck, and when I first wake up, is stiff, and judging by my collar bone visually angling up and back a little, appears locked in an upward position, as if I'm shrugging with one arm. Rotating my shoulder is quite difficult, especially when I first wake up. Then about 3 or 4 days after my shoulder began hurting, my right thumb swelled to the point where it couldn't bend, and even now will not full bend inward. The joint by my thumbnail stings if I try to bend it. My groin and lower back began to hurt a few days after that. Then about a week ago, both my ankles began to hurt, mainly on the inside around the ankle bone, making it quite hard to walk, and they appear to have a light bruise or tinge under the ankle bone on the inside of my leg. All of these pains get a bit easier to tolerate throughout the day, but when I first wake up, I don't even want to move. Rolling over hurts, lifting my head up is difficult, standing hurts, and generally any movement is uncomfortable. I spend a good 20 minutes stretching, most of the time while still laying down, which alleviates some of the stiffness, but the pain doesn't really become tolerable until about halfway through the day. I tried home remedies such as massaging, aspercreme, sitting in a jacuzzi, Ibuprofen, anything I could think of really. I went to the doctor a week ago, hoping he could give me some answers, but he kind of brushed it off as standard muscle pains and gave me more Ibuprofen, for my swollen thumb. All of the pains are still there as I write this, my thumb has decreased in size slightly, but still does not bend as it should, and still hurts. I really have no idea what is going on exactly, I have never experienced anything like this before. I don't know how or if these things are correlated, but they all are directly in joint areas, and all triple in pain the longer I don't use them. I really would love some input or answers, something to possibly point me in a direction. A month of this is plenty. I greatly appreciate it.
I'm a 27 year old male, and generally in good health. However, over the past month, since about December 5th, I have been experiencing pains in joints throughout my body. It seemed to start as a pain in the back of my head/upper neck. I took some migraine medication and went to bed. The next day my neck was stiff and could barely move, and stayed like that for 3 days, though it has gained back some of its mobility, but not all, and still hurts to turn. Then my right shoulder began to hurt 2 days after my neck, and when I first wake up, is stiff, and judging by my collar bone visually angling up and back a little, appears locked in an upward position, as if I'm shrugging with one arm. Rotating my shoulder is quite difficult, especially when I first wake up. Then about 3 or 4 days after my shoulder began hurting, my right thumb swelled to the point where it couldn't bend, and even now will not full bend inward. The joint by my thumbnail stings if I try to bend it. My groin and lower back began to hurt a few days after that. Then about a week ago, both my ankles began to hurt, mainly on the inside around the ankle bone, making it quite hard to walk, and they appear to have a light bruise or tinge under the ankle bone on the inside of my leg. All of these pains get a bit easier to tolerate throughout the day, but when I first wake up, I don't even want to move. Rolling over hurts, lifting my head up is difficult, standing hurts, and generally any movement is uncomfortable. I spend a good 20 minutes stretching, most of the time while still laying down, which alleviates some of the stiffness, but the pain doesn't really become tolerable until about halfway through the day. I tried home remedies such as massaging, aspercreme, sitting in a jacuzzi, Ibuprofen, anything I could think of really. I went to the doctor a week ago, hoping he could give me some answers, but he kind of brushed it off as standard muscle pains and gave me more Ibuprofen, for my swollen thumb. All of the pains are still there as I write this, my thumb has decreased in size slightly, but still does not bend as it should, and still hurts. I really have no idea what is going on exactly, I have never experienced anything like this before. I don't know how or if these things are correlated, but they all are directly in joint areas, and all triple in pain the longer I don't use them. I really would love some input or answers, something to possibly point me in a direction. A month of this is plenty. I greatly appreciate it.
have your blood tests results come back? has rheumatoid arthritis been ruled out yet? if it has and there are no other leads try seeing if you might have a food allergy. altho i dont know if a food allergy would give so much pain to so many parts of your body
i was having joint pains but not as extensive as yours. my doctors told me that it was osteoarthritis, just wear and tear. but it seemed more like an inflammatory situation to me as the pain moved from one joint to the other and stiffness as if there was an inflammation. i asked my naturopath to test me for food allergies and i was found to be allergic to eggs and almonds.
having eliminated these foods my pain and swelling in the joints has improved a lot.
good luck! all the best
i was having joint pains but not as extensive as yours. my doctors told me that it was osteoarthritis, just wear and tear. but it seemed more like an inflammatory situation to me as the pain moved from one joint to the other and stiffness as if there was an inflammation. i asked my naturopath to test me for food allergies and i was found to be allergic to eggs and almonds.
having eliminated these foods my pain and swelling in the joints has improved a lot.
good luck! all the best
I agree that you do need to make an appointment and see a doctor again.
Having the pains in back of your head and neck followed by other joint pains could be from a bacterial or viral infection.
The spread of inflammation and pain in other joints around your body would also indicate an inflammatory disorder or autoimmune disorder like Rheumatoid Arthritis.
I am surprised that the doctor didn't order a blood test to check for any autoimmune disorders and inflammatory diseases as well as to find out it you have a bacterial or viral infection causing these symptoms.
Anti-inflammatories do not suit everyone, so if you do experience any side effects it would be advisable to stop taking the medication and inform your doctor. Make sure that that you take them with or after food, if your doctor has not prescribed medication to protect your stomach lining.
Make sure that you get plenty of rest, keep warm and drink plenty of fluids, especially water and take pain relief as directed by your doctor if prescribed or as prescribed on the packet.
Keep a record of everything that you eat and drink. Some inflammatory disorders can be exacerbated by some foods.
You are doing the right thing by body stretches etc. Just pace yourself so that you do not aggravate your condition whilst you are in the acute stage.
A lot of arthritic problems have flare ups.
Make an appointment to see your doctor and request for further investigation due to the widespread joint inflammation and feeling unwell.
Best wishes.
Having the pains in back of your head and neck followed by other joint pains could be from a bacterial or viral infection.
The spread of inflammation and pain in other joints around your body would also indicate an inflammatory disorder or autoimmune disorder like Rheumatoid Arthritis.
I am surprised that the doctor didn't order a blood test to check for any autoimmune disorders and inflammatory diseases as well as to find out it you have a bacterial or viral infection causing these symptoms.
Anti-inflammatories do not suit everyone, so if you do experience any side effects it would be advisable to stop taking the medication and inform your doctor. Make sure that that you take them with or after food, if your doctor has not prescribed medication to protect your stomach lining.
Make sure that you get plenty of rest, keep warm and drink plenty of fluids, especially water and take pain relief as directed by your doctor if prescribed or as prescribed on the packet.
Keep a record of everything that you eat and drink. Some inflammatory disorders can be exacerbated by some foods.
You are doing the right thing by body stretches etc. Just pace yourself so that you do not aggravate your condition whilst you are in the acute stage.
A lot of arthritic problems have flare ups.
Make an appointment to see your doctor and request for further investigation due to the widespread joint inflammation and feeling unwell.
Best wishes.
Thank you for your comment. I do hope the doctors are able to figure out what is causing your pain and suffering.
It is so frustrating when all the tests come back "normal" or "negative" for anything. We know our bodies better than anybody else and know what feeling normal for us is all about.
My daughter has Lupus and has connective tissue disease with it - lots of pain and some weakness in one arm and side of the body. She drinks Tonic Water from time to time which contains Quinine. Quinine seems to help Lupus - but was originally "concocted" to help with Malaria.
Wishing you the best...
It is so frustrating when all the tests come back "normal" or "negative" for anything. We know our bodies better than anybody else and know what feeling normal for us is all about.
My daughter has Lupus and has connective tissue disease with it - lots of pain and some weakness in one arm and side of the body. She drinks Tonic Water from time to time which contains Quinine. Quinine seems to help Lupus - but was originally "concocted" to help with Malaria.
Wishing you the best...
Thank you for your replies! Much appreciated. Since my post, my left shoulder has began to hurt at night, as well as my left knee. Not much else has changed. I do not drink diet soda, or chew gum. I can rule out ticks for the most part, we have them in my state, but this time of year they aren't around much, as it's about 10-15 degrees on average, I haven't recently put myself in a position to be bit by one (camping, hiking, near animals, etc.), and I have found none on me, nor any bites. Though I won't entirely ignore the possibility. I have been taking multivitamins over the last week or so, after I went to the doctor, thinking perhaps I have a form of deficiency, and this is my body letting me know. Unfortunately, it has done little as well, though it didn't do any harm either. I bought epsom salts today, hoping that would at least help me relax a little. The next morning I felt the same as I do every morning, so it is very much a band-aid, but it did help me to relax at the time. I did find out my grandmother has rheumatoid arthritis, and recommended I consider that. Its unlikely, but possible, so I have decided to go to the doctor again in a few days, maybe have an x-ray and a few tests ran, and perhaps they can help narrow it down, any answer is an acceptable answer at this point, lol. Hopefully this doctor actually takes some time to help. If I do find anything out, I'll be glad to share it here in case someone else is having this odd set of symptoms. Otherwise, I'm still open to any and all input, I appreciate it!
Lyme disease or Lupus.... but the doctor didn't say anything like that. Did they do blood work for either or both?
A lack of Magnesium and postassium can cause this type of symptoms. So can Aspartame poisoning. You don't say if you chew gum or drink diet sodas. Aspartame is in all chewing gums except for Bubble Yum.
A magnesium deficiency can also prevent you from absorbing calcium - thus causing widespread pain.
Wishing you the best
A lack of Magnesium and postassium can cause this type of symptoms. So can Aspartame poisoning. You don't say if you chew gum or drink diet sodas. Aspartame is in all chewing gums except for Bubble Yum.
A magnesium deficiency can also prevent you from absorbing calcium - thus causing widespread pain.
Wishing you the best
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