Leg Pain relief

[Zacksmomi]

I have been having progressively worsening pain in my hips and right leg.  My left hip hurts on the outside  It get stiff and tired and very painful.  Now the right leg is a mess.  Right hip (maybe gluteous muscle) and groin muscle just fight against me to walk if I am on my feet more than a few minutes.  I just get severe leg pain and fatigue.

I have noticed that my right foot is turning outward when I walk.  I am taking 20 mg of Baclofen 3x daily.  I just switched back from zanaflex and I am gonna go back to the zanaflex.

Last night I took a vicodin which I usually can't do since the side effects kill me.  
So 4mg of zanaflex 3x a day is not stong enough to control the spasms and pain, but 6mg is too strong and makes me weak which causes more pain.

I can't take vicodin all day for sure.

I am in PT and that just kills me but I try to push through.  When I get home  from PT I am generally in complete spasm.

I see an orthopedic on Jan 27

Does anyone have any ideas about what to do in the mean time to relieve this??
Do you find that using a cane helps to relieve fatigue or pain??  I feel wierd using it cuz I don't really limp too bad but I am wondering if the cane serves a bigger purpose after some of the earlier posts I read.

Thanks
D

[Wobbly]

hi everyone... do you take Gabapentin or Lyrica for this type of Leg pain... I get these pains and use a heating pad...(one you put in the microwave)...almost everyday, it helps the pain temporarily.. but at times, my hubby will massage them and it will also help temporarily.  

the Neuro I see for meds tells me that Gabapentin or Lyrica is supposed to help with this pain?  I wonder if it helps anyone?

take care
wobbly
dx

[Heather3418]

I can DO relate to what you are describing.  It seems like my legs and hips have a mind of their own.  One muscle starts, then stops, then another starts and so on and so on.  Then comes severe burning pain, from all the spasms...like I have overworked the muscle in a gyn.  I can only describe it as feeling like someone is holding a blow-torch to my muscles.  My word, it hurts.  It's BAD.

I too have gone the Balofen route.  I cannot take it during the day, because it makes me too weak.  I take 30mgs. at night, only.  I also have Restless Leg Syndrome, so my doctor has me on 3 mgs. of Klonopin at night for that.  The combination of the two medications, seem to help with the nighttime spasms.

There are other drugs that work on spasms, but I will not list them here.  Some of them are addicting, like the Klonopin that I take.  But these kinds of things you need to talk with your doctor about.  Maybe the two of you can come up with a plan that will work for you.  I have to be honest with you though, D; I have not found anything that takes these spasms away...only something to make them less frequent.

My Neuro tells me that all this leg action I have, she feels is coming from the lesion I have in my thoracic spine.  I will be having another spinal MRI this coming Monday to check on things, since my spasms are more intense now.  We are lookiing for lesions, arthritic changes and/or ruptured/bulging disc's.  Something is causing the pain to become worse.

Your PT should not be making you feel so much worse.  Your therapist may be a delightful woman, but she needs to be well versed in treating some with MS.  The  MS exercises are different from exercises for other problems.

Is any of what I am describing sound like what you are going through?  If it is, you need a follow up visit with your doctor to see if something can be done to bring you relief.  Spasms are just hard to treat successfully.  But you can get some relief.  Maybe even something for pain, if all else fails.

I hope you get to feeling better soon.  I can so understand how you are feeling and how much pain you are in, dearheart.  You may need to add a "rollator" to help you when you walk, like Quix said.

All the Best,
Heather  

[jensequitur]

It was difficult for me to accept, but eventually I bought a walking stick.  I use it for outdoor events where I have to do a lot of walking or standing, and it really helps.  

I don't have a cane, and every time I have a flareup of walking problems, my DH asks me if I need a cane.  I haven't gone there yet, mostly because I'm too embarassed to admit I need one when I need one.  And how would I explain it at work?

But I have to admit that when I use the walking stick, I'm a lot less tired.  My arm gets tired!  So obviously I'm putting some of my weight on the arm.

[Zacksmomi]

Jen I am gonna bribe DH for the massage.  His hands get sore so I will suggest fists and elbows for sure.  Thanks :)

Quix,
Ok so I admit the PT I am seeing is not educated about MS.  She is trying though.  The assistant is the local workout queen and she really wants me to push but the PT tells her off.  Atleast she understands it is important not to over do it. There is one other PT here in town and I am not sure about an OT.  Otherwise it is 45 mi away.  

I will talk to my PT at my appt wed then prob not reschedule.  I did not catch it, but I guess my neuro did point out that the PT was not helping. He didn't specifically tell me to stop though so I guess I just accepted my appts when they scheduled me (duh brain)
I do go mostly to get out of the house.  I homeschool my 5 year old :)

Ok so the walker... I have one sitting in the spare room.  It is new and shiny and I took the plastic off the wheels which is a big step.  It was issued to me on accident (I think) by a home nurse (solumedrol)who "accidentally" checked the wrong box on my discharge.

I never asked her if it was an accident or intuition. I find myself checking out all the walkers people use in public and I am all "Mine is better than yours is" in my head (I hope it isn't outloud anyway).

I am 34 years old for krikey sake.  You can't bring me to use it.  I don't even have a single gray hair yet.  NO you are supposed to tell me there is some miracle pill that I have not been told about yet and I can wipe out all the other meds and just feel better (Picture me singing "When you wish upon a star...")

Thanks both of you for your thoughts.  I guess I just don't want to admit it is this bad yet :(
D

[Quixotic1]

I am concerned that your sessions with PT leave you worse off then when you went.  Sore and tired is okay, but perhaps you should discuss this with your neurologist.  Does seem quite right.  Some PTs are not well trained with neurologic disease, but with sports injuries or post-op.  The methods they need to use are very different.

Do you find that it is much easier to walk through the store with a cart than alone or with a cane?  If so, it might be appropriate for you to use a rollator.  Walker with wheels.

Quix

[jensequitur]

I would recommend finding a way to stretch the muscle - no, wait a second, what am I saying?  Seems like we've talked about this before.  Has the PT given you any stretches for the problem muscles?

Do you have anybody that can give you a massage?  

I know that I've had problems with the hips before.  There's a muscle at the top of the hip bone that really makes a difference - if you reach in with your fingers, you can press around the top of the bone and get that muscle.  

I have another muscle on my gluteous that causes a problem - I usually sit on my hand and use the knuckles to massage that muscle.  One time I got hubby to put his knee on my butt, which really helped.

And I have another muscle in my thigh - inner thigh, stretching from the groin to the knee, that really can be a problem.  Sometimes I can put my forearm on my thigh and lean forward, squishing those muscles, including the problem child.  Or use my elbow and work it around to hit the muscle.  When that muscle is a problem, I find it's easier to walk with my right foot turned sideways.

As for the cane - when I have to use a cane, it makes getting around less exhausting.  You have to find ways to do stuff with one hand, but if you're doing any walking, it really comes in handy.  It's also good if you have balance problems, because you can reach out and use it like a third leg.