I'm so tired of pain

I've been consciously working on moving more and getting more exercise and it's just causing more pain. More pain, more tingling, more weakness, more fatigue. I realize that there's a period of adjustment but it's been a few weeks and it's at least twice as bad as when I started. My lower back in especially, which has always been bad, has had me in tears after my usual dose of tramadol or ibuprofen even with light activity. I was told by my pharmacist that they can't fill prescriptions for Ambien and muscle relaxers at the time, so I chose Ambien. I now realize this was the wrong decision. I don't know what to do anymore...

Maybe you are doing too much at one time or have some other problems. From all I've read and heard light activities is the best. Get restated just start slow and do some everyday but not too much.

Hope you can work to find a good combination, so you can feel better.

Jabeau

Evenkeel, what kind of exercise are you trying...sometimes our bodies need just gentle exercise...

I cannot tolerate muscle relaxers but wish i could at times...so i use moist heat , stretching, and topicals ....none of them are enough by themselves but they do help.

I read a study that because our muscles do not recover...to build back up ..exercise just a short time, rest and do it again...

I got beat up by my vit d level falling...pain and fatigue got so much worse so i am having to babystep my way back into everything...

One day at a time....do you take calcium at night? That can be relaxing..a calcium/magnesium blend

Hope tomorrow is better for you

Mostly it's house and yard work, with extra short walks and shopping thrown in. I try to watch my bending and lifting. It's just so frustrating because as soon as I start exerting any energy I'm exhausted, my back hurts so badly and my legs feel like they're going to give out. Maybe I do just need to rest my back for a while. We have a family pass to the pool that's opening in a week so I might do better to use that as exercise for a while. I take vitamin D and potassium at night plus a multivitamin in the morning. I tried a magnesium supplement but it gave me horrid GI issues, even with food. I guess I could restart it at half of what I was taking and see what happens. Acheybody, I asked my doc about it and he said the pharmacist was right in general but in my case it's not acceptable. I'm not so sure what we want to do about it. He wants me to transfer to a pain specialist and I really, really don't want to do that. *sigh* Thanks for the input, all. I'll take it easy for a bit and then start with some swimming.

Hi evenkeel -- I'm sorry you're having so much trouble. In terms of exercise, house work and yard work can be really hard. I know I have a much harder time doing yard work than I do walking a mile (in terms of energy expended). Try different kinds of things in terms of time, intensity, and type of exercise to see what works for you, personally. I've found that on a workday, more than 35 minutes (almost to the minute) of exercise (like walking, light aerobics, Pilates) is all I can do. On a weekend day, I can do up to 60 as long as I don't go beyond moderate intensity. Remember, if you're just trying to come back from a flare, start LOW and go SLOW.

I also have figured out that alternating between cardio and resistance exercise in the same session (like intervals) drains my energy faster than anything else. I can do cardio and then resistance, or resistance and then cardio, but going from one to the other and then starting over again (like circuits) is the worst. In terms of household duties, that means that laundry becomes difficult, because I have to fill the basket (repetitive motion), lift a basket (resistance), walk it down two flights of stairs (cardio), and do the repetitive motion of reaching into basket and then reaching into washer, and then repeat in reverse order later on. It doesn't seem like it would be "tough" enough to bother me, but those types of movements together do. We have to make different rules for what works for us and what doesn't :)

I take Ambien and muscle relaxants, but I know that some doctors hesitate to do that with some patients. If you don't mind me asking, what is your hesitation to go to a pain specialist? In my experience, it's made a massive difference in the quality of my life, and the pain specialists can sometimes offer meds, combinations, and/or procedures that other doctors can't or won't. My pain specialist practice has two neurologists, two anesthesiologists, two pain management specialists, an osteopath, a physio, an orthopedist, two sports medicine specialists, and a psychologist on staff, so there are tons of options for a consult. At my first appointment, there were three different doctors who met with me (from different specialties) so they could figure out a team approach. I know it's yet another doctor, but the cost/benefit ratio on a good one can be worth it.

I hope you feel better soon!

Right now it's not an option to not do the house and yard work. My wife works full time and is in college full time so I don't expect her to do anything when I'm not working, and the kids are pretty good at helping out with house work. I try to space out my chores but I often find that things are let slip too long and then I have to push myself really hard to get everything to a tolerable state. The yard work is killing me. I've mowed the lawn four times so far this year and while I feel it should be good exercise for me, my back and achille's tendons feel worse every time. I also have a big problem with heat intolerance and a heart condition to boot, so yeah, it's not easy at all. I'm hesitant to go to a pain specialist partly because I know good doctors are rare and the one I have is awesome. I'm also concerned that the specialist might want to do what ljm2014 said, and I don't want that.

Im very new to this forum but wonder why no one has mentioned steroid shots for pain? I just had my first one and it has helped tremendously. I too have fibro along with sever arthritis in my spine. You sound so much like me, pain after any physical activity for days as well as without activity. After my pain dr. sent me to pt, which didn't help and being on Norco, he said we needed to try the steroids. Ask your dr. about it. you are hurting too much and might get relief from the shots. Good luck lindy

Just because my experience with a pain specialist was bad..does not mean they all would be, as someone else found a pratice that has obviously helped...with the levels of pain you are having, a consultation would be worth a try..if you do not like what they offer, you just do not go back...

Achillies tendonitis is one of the worst pains i ever had..but i can turn that off with topicals. I do take extremely low doses of tramadol..1/4 at a time..low tolerance for pain meds is why i have to rely on topicals and other self help measures.

It takes a lot of trial and error to find your balance..i had managed ok with fibro...til the vit d thing..thank goodness i found that at a time when i can get into the sunshine to help build it up...

Hows the swimming going?

Ljm, I unfortunately haven't hit the pool in about a month. It's been too cold and/or I've been hurting way too much after overdoing it (stupid yard work) plus a death in the family. I'm weaning off of the gabapentin in preparation for starting something new when I get the results on the lower back MRI I had done this week. My doc suspects spinal stenosis or a slipped disk. I won't get the results until Tuesday, though, and in the meantime I'm in so much pain I could scream and I'm only down halfway. 100mg Tramadol doesn't even make a dent in the pain. I broke down and took an endocet this evening when I just couldn't take it anymore and needed some relief. Unfortunately, I'm allergic to the codones (itching) so I really have to save that for a last resort.

Since I originally posted I did the physical therapy thing and the back pain got worse, plus it exacerbated my hip and leg pain. I also failed on Mobic. I'm not able to take muscle relaxers at night anymore because i wasn't breathing well (wife observed it on many nights) and so I'm back to Ambien. RA rH was negative but my sed rate was 40 and eosinophils are elevated. I think he's going to want to put me on Lyrica, which I'm not really okay with. I'm pretty sure that my doc will also suggest the pain doc again and I guess I could give it a try, especially if something turns up on the MRI that they can treat. I have nothing to lose, really. Tuesday can't get here fast enough.

Post Edited (evenkeel) : 7/31/2014 1:17:39 AM (GMT-6)