Muscle pain and TENS

[monkeybus]

Used to ride a motorbike, so many low speed spills, and I always landed on my right shoulder. For years, if it was cold, was like I had arthritis or something. Dull, aching pain. Then when the AMN cranked up I commenced to falling. Always landed well. Right hand down, right shoulder absorbed the impact.

After I started taking 4-Aminopyridine, I pretty much stopped falling over. Stumble-a-plenty, just never go down. Just in the house is the danger, when I'm indoors, I give the meds a rest. Falling over time.

Couple of weeks ago, when I went head first into a door, my shoulder took another whallop, and since then, the top of my shoulder has been hurting like hell. Stiff, rock hard, and muscle pain like a vice. Muscle pain can be agony. Like I want to cry.

And, it's like a doctor said to me a few years back, the spasticity is all over. Likely it's compounded by the spasticity aggravating an already diabolicaly tight muscle. Wouldn't surprise me if my lopsided walking is a factor in all this as well

I didn't even bother with a doctor, I learned long back that if you mention pain, they just give you the skunkeye, treat you like a drug addict on the make.

Throw in a load of platitudes about hot baths and whatnot.

I dug out my TENS unit and strapped it on. Absolutely beautiful, as soon as the juice flows into my muscles, pain be gone. I wore that thing for 8-10 hrs every day for over a week. Can't use today, I'm starting to damage my skin, but the pain is down 90% so I'll just wait it out now.

I know some of us have had mixed results with TENS, but for me, for muscle pain at least, it simply cannot be beat.

[easygoin1]

Hi Monkey,

Sorry to hear about the pain in your shoulder. My shoulders and elbows have been giving me a lot of grief the last few years and I started seeing a physiotherapist and she is a very hands on therapist and she does dry needling, which is similar to acupuncture in some ways but not completely. Anyway, she feels around and finds the knots in the muscles and the muscles associated with the knots and inserts a needle and attempts to get a reaction or spasm in the muscle and then once there has been a reaction the muscles then tend to relax and there has been amazing results. My right shoulder had been so bad for a time that being right handed even wiping myself was painful and the physiotherapist got that repaired and now it is good. Most of these issues, I think, are from the cane and walker use, as well as from the falls I'm sure. Definitely something to look into! I regularly see a massage therapist regularly and chiropractor as needed, and between all three they keep things pretty good.

All the best!

[monkeybus in reply to easygoin1]

Dry needling.

Never heard of it, but I like it already.

I went pain free for a few days, did plenty of stretching, then the pain came back. I'm now back on the TENS.

I suspect I'm losing my upper body strength. I'm going to attempt to rebuild it. Surely I can manage a few more press ups.

Can't remember the last time I carried an item of furniture, never mind heavy shopping. If I go out for something, if it doesn't fit in my rucksack, I don't buy it. Amazon loves me, it all gets delivered.