Aa
Help figuring things out
First of all its really comforting seeing that i am not the only one going through a lot of pain. I am 22 and currently in a lot of pain. I've been trying to figure out things and all the doctors keep telling me that all seems normal. I have had an MRI done of my lower back (lumbar) and they didn't find any pinched nerve or degenerative disc or anything of that nature.
My flare ups have not come as frequently as before and i have gotten so used to some of the pains that I have not kept going to see the doctors but these past 3 weeks have gotten out of hand. Below are a list of my symptoms and I was hoping I could get feedback, suggestions and advice.
I have been in pain 24/7 for the past 3 weeks
These past 2-3 weeks:
Symptoms
Started with back pain the pain got progressively worse and wouldn’t go away. (from neck down to my lower back but primarily upper back)
Cold chills
Numbness, tingling in feet and arms
Muscle weakness- For about a day it was very hard to walk up and down stairs
Headaches-(right side, sometimes painful to look around)
Dizziness-lightheadedness
Joint pain-knees and ankles
Achiness in my calves and sometimes my shins will also feel achy
My history:
I’ve had lower back pain and joint pain since I was about 14.
I would feel these pains the most when I would compete, when I would walk for a long period of time or if I was standing for a long period of time.
These pains have gotten progressively worse over the years
My lower back pain also flares up when I get my period
My upper back pain started in 2005
It was primarily muscle tightness and muscle spasms
I was a long and triple jumper so I attributed a lot of the problems to my sport
I did physical therapy for about a year
I saw a chiropractor for about 6 months
Both of the aforementioned treatments helped for a while but the pain never really went away
Starting towards the end of 2006 my back pain started to change
It was no longer primarily muscle pains, spasms, and tightness. It felt like my spine would hurt. The pain would radiate and I would feel throbbing pain throughout my back, from my neck down to my lower back. Usually the pain focuses on my right side but it can be anywhere.
When I am stressed the pain would also flare up
Headaches/Migraines
Starting at the beginning of this year I’ve been having headaches that would sometimes just be on my right side
They would be throbbing pains or sharp pains
Chest pains
As long as I can remember I would periodically get chest pains. It would be a sharp pain in my left side. It would be pains that could last up to 10 minutes and rarely longer than that. When I get these pains its painful to take deep breaths
Its my last year in graduate school and i haven't been able to go to classes or work this past week and its very hard to concentrate on anything because of the pain. I've been on percocet, naproxen, tylenol-codeine, and cyclobenzaprine. I 've been taking the percocet for 2 weeks straight and i really don't want to get into the habit of taking it because of the sideeffects but nothing else seems to work. THere are days when the percocet does not work for more than a couple of hours even if i take the maximum dose.
All my bloodwork has come back normal.
The doctors keep telling me to wait to see if the pain will go away but this has been going on for so long now that i can't stand it.
Sorry for this being so long but its the first time i've really gotten an outlet to discuss my pain
My flare ups have not come as frequently as before and i have gotten so used to some of the pains that I have not kept going to see the doctors but these past 3 weeks have gotten out of hand. Below are a list of my symptoms and I was hoping I could get feedback, suggestions and advice.
I have been in pain 24/7 for the past 3 weeks
These past 2-3 weeks:
Symptoms
Started with back pain the pain got progressively worse and wouldn’t go away. (from neck down to my lower back but primarily upper back)
Cold chills
Numbness, tingling in feet and arms
Muscle weakness- For about a day it was very hard to walk up and down stairs
Headaches-(right side, sometimes painful to look around)
Dizziness-lightheadedness
Joint pain-knees and ankles
Achiness in my calves and sometimes my shins will also feel achy
My history:
I’ve had lower back pain and joint pain since I was about 14.
I would feel these pains the most when I would compete, when I would walk for a long period of time or if I was standing for a long period of time.
These pains have gotten progressively worse over the years
My lower back pain also flares up when I get my period
My upper back pain started in 2005
It was primarily muscle tightness and muscle spasms
I was a long and triple jumper so I attributed a lot of the problems to my sport
I did physical therapy for about a year
I saw a chiropractor for about 6 months
Both of the aforementioned treatments helped for a while but the pain never really went away
Starting towards the end of 2006 my back pain started to change
It was no longer primarily muscle pains, spasms, and tightness. It felt like my spine would hurt. The pain would radiate and I would feel throbbing pain throughout my back, from my neck down to my lower back. Usually the pain focuses on my right side but it can be anywhere.
When I am stressed the pain would also flare up
Headaches/Migraines
Starting at the beginning of this year I’ve been having headaches that would sometimes just be on my right side
They would be throbbing pains or sharp pains
Chest pains
As long as I can remember I would periodically get chest pains. It would be a sharp pain in my left side. It would be pains that could last up to 10 minutes and rarely longer than that. When I get these pains its painful to take deep breaths
Its my last year in graduate school and i haven't been able to go to classes or work this past week and its very hard to concentrate on anything because of the pain. I've been on percocet, naproxen, tylenol-codeine, and cyclobenzaprine. I 've been taking the percocet for 2 weeks straight and i really don't want to get into the habit of taking it because of the sideeffects but nothing else seems to work. THere are days when the percocet does not work for more than a couple of hours even if i take the maximum dose.
All my bloodwork has come back normal.
The doctors keep telling me to wait to see if the pain will go away but this has been going on for so long now that i can't stand it.
Sorry for this being so long but its the first time i've really gotten an outlet to discuss my pain
Hello Again,
It sounds as if your physician is listening. I am glad that he/she is leaving no stone unturned. I think the MRI is a good idea.
Sandee is correct, there are so many new treatments for Fibro, diet, vitamins,exercise is a big one, message, and the list goes on. And different things work well for different ppl. So keep an open mind and give it all a try until you find the program and meds that work best for you. Unfortunately it will not happen over night, this is a long, lifetime process. Your attitude will play a large part in your progress and it sounds as though you have a very good one. You must be relieved just to have someone finally "hear" you and acknowledge your pain.
We'll be thinking of you and watching for future updates. Please keep in touch and let us know how you are doing. Best of luck and take care, Tuck
It sounds as if your physician is listening. I am glad that he/she is leaving no stone unturned. I think the MRI is a good idea.
Sandee is correct, there are so many new treatments for Fibro, diet, vitamins,exercise is a big one, message, and the list goes on. And different things work well for different ppl. So keep an open mind and give it all a try until you find the program and meds that work best for you. Unfortunately it will not happen over night, this is a long, lifetime process. Your attitude will play a large part in your progress and it sounds as though you have a very good one. You must be relieved just to have someone finally "hear" you and acknowledge your pain.
We'll be thinking of you and watching for future updates. Please keep in touch and let us know how you are doing. Best of luck and take care, Tuck
I wanted to add that since you have been diagnosed you have a good chance of treating this in a way that will help you resume life as normal as you possibly can.
There is so many new options avaible now for fybro and new things coming out all the time to help us fight this disease.
There is a special diet that helped me for awhile and it is pretty somple and also there are certain viatimans and minerials that help too.
Please keep us updated on your progress and any questions you may have and we will do our very best to anser them.
Good luck
Atleast now you do know what your dealing with and thats the first step to recovering the best you can.
There is so many new options avaible now for fybro and new things coming out all the time to help us fight this disease.
There is a special diet that helped me for awhile and it is pretty somple and also there are certain viatimans and minerials that help too.
Please keep us updated on your progress and any questions you may have and we will do our very best to anser them.
Good luck
Atleast now you do know what your dealing with and thats the first step to recovering the best you can.
hi; There is an "Undiagnosed Symptoms" forum at Med Help. You can find it in the professional side (right colume) or the Left colume. It's just a thought. I hope you can resolve your issues soon.
Take care,
Mollyrae
Take care,
Mollyrae
That is a great idea,do not rely soley on meds as there are many other options that you have that you can add to your meds that will help you.
Medications are great for the pain but don't give up on the other things that can help you along with the medications.
You sound like you have thought this thru and you know what will be required of you to live the most normal life possible.
Massages are grat for fybro too and many insurance comanies will pay if you get a script for them.
Medications are great for the pain but don't give up on the other things that can help you along with the medications.
You sound like you have thought this thru and you know what will be required of you to live the most normal life possible.
Massages are grat for fybro too and many insurance comanies will pay if you get a script for them.
After talking to the doctor for quite a bit this past Monday she believes that i have Fibromyalgia. I'm going for an MRI on Monday just to make sure that nothing else shows up but she was pretty convinced that my symptoms fell under Fibromyalgia. After reading up on it these past few days i would have to agree.
I'm staying positive and I'm taking a break from work and school for the remainder of the semester so that i can figure some things out and so that i can take the time to figure out the treatments that would work best for me. I am thinking of starting up yoga or aquatherapy to help me get stronger and hopefully to help alleviate the pain a little so that i don't have to rely on drugs.
I'm staying positive and I'm taking a break from work and school for the remainder of the semester so that i can figure some things out and so that i can take the time to figure out the treatments that would work best for me. I am thinking of starting up yoga or aquatherapy to help me get stronger and hopefully to help alleviate the pain a little so that i don't have to rely on drugs.
Thank you for the update. We are here for you when ever you need to ask a question or just vent. I think you are taking the right step. I am glad you have an appointment.
Have a good nap, Tuck
Have a good nap, Tuck
Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to me. It has been such a tough day today.I am in so much pain i had to leave work early so that i can take my meds and take a nap before attempting to go to class.
After calling the doctor's office multiple times I was finally able to set up an appointment for this upcoming Monday with an orthopedics doctor. Hopefully i can get something positive out of it and I'm going to demand that I get an MRI and anything else needed so that we can start working towards some kind of solution.
It has been very frustrating and its been very hard to convey my thoughts and experience with this chronic pain to my family. I am so thankful to have found this website.
After calling the doctor's office multiple times I was finally able to set up an appointment for this upcoming Monday with an orthopedics doctor. Hopefully i can get something positive out of it and I'm going to demand that I get an MRI and anything else needed so that we can start working towards some kind of solution.
It has been very frustrating and its been very hard to convey my thoughts and experience with this chronic pain to my family. I am so thankful to have found this website.
II agree with Tuckamore that fibromyalgia is a good guess. Doctors today are getting more educated on this disease and they are more willing to look for it and treat it than they were in the past few years. I would ask your Dr what he/she thinks about it.
When you have nerve damage it does not always show up on the test they order. Have you had a nerve study done? That would be something that might give you some answers.
Keep us up to date and we are here for you:)
When you have nerve damage it does not always show up on the test they order. Have you had a nerve study done? That would be something that might give you some answers.
Keep us up to date and we are here for you:)
Welcome to the Pain Management Forum at MedHelp. I am glad that you found us. We are here to support you and offer suggestions. I am so sorry you are having so many painful symptoms. You are too young to have this kind of undiagnosed pain. If you are being prescribed pain medications than I encourage you to take them. You can worry about the side effects when you have a diagnosis. We all know how devastating untreated pain can be.
There are so many conditions that you could be afflicted with and I would only taking wild guesses if I began addressing each symptom. So with that said the suggestion I do have I beleive you are in need of a complete and thorough work up from labs to CT's and additional MRI's. The "waiting game" should be over and you are entitled to some answers.
Because your symptoms are so wide spread I am more inclined to think you have a systemic condition or possibly Fibro. But I could be 100% wrong. If your current physician is unwilling to get to the bottom of your pain after you have had an honest and lengthy discussion with him than you need a new physician. We hire them and they work for us. If they are not doing the job that we hire them to do than we need to locate a PCP that will. I would call my PCP today and make an appointment. Copy your post and take it in with you if it covers all your symptoms. Make sure he/she understands your pain and your concerns.
Other's may recommend a PMP and that is also an option but I think you need a diagnosis before you go that route. Much depends on the state you live in as in WI the PM Clinic's generally do not do diagnoses. Other states there PC Clinic's may be different. In WI it is the PCP that treats CP and usually handles the diagnostic process.
Best of luck to you. Please keep us posted and let us know how you are doing. If you just need to vent you can PM me any time. Most importantly is to take care of you and don't accept "I don't know" or "we'll wait" for an answer. Good Luck, Tuck
There are so many conditions that you could be afflicted with and I would only taking wild guesses if I began addressing each symptom. So with that said the suggestion I do have I beleive you are in need of a complete and thorough work up from labs to CT's and additional MRI's. The "waiting game" should be over and you are entitled to some answers.
Because your symptoms are so wide spread I am more inclined to think you have a systemic condition or possibly Fibro. But I could be 100% wrong. If your current physician is unwilling to get to the bottom of your pain after you have had an honest and lengthy discussion with him than you need a new physician. We hire them and they work for us. If they are not doing the job that we hire them to do than we need to locate a PCP that will. I would call my PCP today and make an appointment. Copy your post and take it in with you if it covers all your symptoms. Make sure he/she understands your pain and your concerns.
Other's may recommend a PMP and that is also an option but I think you need a diagnosis before you go that route. Much depends on the state you live in as in WI the PM Clinic's generally do not do diagnoses. Other states there PC Clinic's may be different. In WI it is the PCP that treats CP and usually handles the diagnostic process.
Best of luck to you. Please keep us posted and let us know how you are doing. If you just need to vent you can PM me any time. Most importantly is to take care of you and don't accept "I don't know" or "we'll wait" for an answer. Good Luck, Tuck
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