Recently Ive been having tingling in my hands and fingers and now the last couple of days Ive had like a buzzing feeling in the base of my thumb with some twitching. I e en feel like I want to put gloves on in the house or wrap my hands with something tight.
I also have some numbness and tingling in the bottom of my heels which I have had for a few months but with already having so much wrong and on so many meds I've not gone to the drs as dont want anymore medication.
When I've been outside I get stinging and tingling in my fingers and when I come in it feels like it burns. I mentioned it to the rheum at last visit but he never really acknowledged it or responded. I dont want to keep asking them cos u feel like are constantly going on about different things and new things.
Does anyone else have this and know what it is?
It woke me up this morning at 5am and the tingling and buzzing goes off every 10 20 seconds its annoying.
I do get very bad headaches and have occipital neuralgia if that has any significance?
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Sara_A
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Hi, I certainly do feel the same and have had it for years. I have stopped mentioning it to my rheumy as it all comes back to lupus according to him. As i have raynauds, fibromyalgia and vasculitis i dont really know which one causes it. At times i even ask my children to feel the buzzing and they say they can't feel it. Yours takes a few seconds but mine goes on for more than 5 minutes especially in the morning or when I have been outside.
I also get bad headaches but just think it's to do with empty sella syndrome, lupus, and vasculitis which i have. The feeling of stinging and tingling and the burning after is the one that pains me most. At physiotherapy they gave me some exercises for my hands and legs as they said it could be nerves causing it. At times the exercises help but most of the time they don't.
I tend to divert my thoughts to something else rather than think about it. I also don't want any more medication hence why I now keep it to myself.
I know I didn't give you info on what to do but for you to know that you are not alone can help a bit.
I have the same numbness and tingling in my hands and feet(worse in my feet) and my doctor said it is called Peripheral Neuropathy and prescribed me Gabapentin. They started me on a relatively low dose but now after about 5 or 6 years I'm on 600mg three times a day, which im almost certain will be increased at my next appointment. Hope this helps.
Hi Sara I too have similar and my Drs and rheumatologist both do not pay Amy attention to my symptoms too. How annoying is that. The buzzing is it like an internal twitching. You may have some nerve damage and have you had a test for diabetes as I have been advised to get my bloods checked so am off to the Drs on Monday. The problem is when we have so many symptoms Drs seem to concentrate on same and leave out or ignore the rest. How annoying is that. I would keep a symptoms diary list every thing and put them in order of severity then present a copy to your dr and yoir rheumatologist. Best of luck. Let us all know how you go on. Have a nice day. Elena.
I saw one for my headaches a d she gave me something for those said I have 4 different types migraine, ice pick, occipital neuralgia and something else cant remember a d discharged back to gp.
What do u think they will say? Do u think its nerves or to do with the headaches I have aps too
Usually tingling means nerves , your neurologist should know after examining you. I don't see how would this be connected to your headaches thou since it's a peripheral nerves in your hands, but again you need to be examined. Nobody could tell you anything meaningful before examination
I was just having a read thro I have the same twitches pins and needles etc
Nerves can be irritated by inflammation doesn’t always hAve to be nerve damage xx
Hi Sara, a couple of years ago I started getting this feeling and also had it in my right thigh. My doctor sent me to the neurology department at the hospital where they tested me for MS!!! As he didn't even mention my lupus he obviously didn't see the link with the 2. Last year when my lupus relapsed big time my consultant said straight away after I told him my symptoms that it sounded like Antiphosphlilid Syndrome. You normally have either that or lupus at different times where I have both at the same time effecting me. It's got better over the last few months but it's still annoying when it does appear. Hope this helps
Hi Sara - sorry to hear you are having all this. I have had this for quite a few years now... its getting much worse. I have very bad migraines (sometimes with visual kaleidascope patterns obscuring most of my vision) when stressed or working - and general nasty headaches off and on too... but not so much since being off sick. Do you have raynauds? I have always had this since very young but only started taking Nifedipine about 3.5yrs ago (was anti meds until last 5 years.,, now Im a believer since Nifedepine and methotrexate as they work so very well) . Nifedepine is great for making the blood go into my hands/digits and feet. I spoke to my rheumy about the hands tingling and feet tingling but he said its probably reaction to the Nifedipine... er, but I had the symptoms way before the nefedipine. My feet/ankles and to lesser degree lower leg feel like they have severe pins and needles when I get up from sitting down and just generally off an on if standing/walking. Quite nasty. And my hands come and go thorughout the day but very bad at night, through the night (hello insomnia as it totally keeps me awake) and very bad on getting up. Feet too in the night. I think a lot of us have this... and many think it is erythromelalgia - see this link nhs.uk/conditions/erythrome.... . In this link it says it can be a symptom of lupus.... so there we go. Bit worrying the mention of potentual link to antiphosphilid as mentioned above... my ma had extremely severe varicose veins and multiple times huge blood clots in her legs.. I definitely think she had lupus as had so many similar symptoms she was textbook. Another thing for you to discuss with Reheumatologist eh? You can see one of my posts from last year I think about my hands and all this business... with a photo of my hand. You should have seen my hands last night! Awful. So... definitely talk to your rheumy and have a good ole read up pre the appointment I think.. they need a nudge! All the best and hope you get some support/relief, D
A tingling sensation in both the feet and hands can be caused by a few different factors.
One could be due to Raynaud’s phenomenon.
In people who have Raynaud’s, the small blood vessels in the extremities are over-sensitive to changes in temperature. This causes a Raynaud’s attack where the fingers sometimes change colour (but not always) from white to blue, to red. Sometimes the fingers may become painful or have a tingling sensation during the event. Symptoms of a Raynaud’s attack can last from a few minutes to several hours. We published a blog article on ‘Coping with Raynaud’s Phenomenon’ which you can read here: lupusuk.org.uk/coping-with-...
The other could be due to Polyneuropathy. Polyneuropathy typically affects the nerves that are responsible for sensation and feeling things. Damage to these nerves can cause numbness and tingling of the feet more commonly than the hands. To learn more about lupus and the feet, click here lupusuk.org.uk/wp-content/u...
According to The Lupus Encyclopedia, peripheral neuropathy is a common nerve problem due to damage of small nerves of the legs and arms. It common causes gradual onset of decreased sensation in the feet sometimes follow by similar problems in the hands. Sometimes the person will notice a burning sensation or “pins and needles” as a result of this.
It is important to speak to your doctor about your symptoms, your doctor can provide you with the correct advice and can also refer you to a specialist if needed.
Please let us know how you get on, wishing you all the best.
Hi Sara i was initially diagnosed in 2000 in Canada. RA, lupus and polymyalgia. For me the tingling sometimes worsening to pins and needles will tend to worsen with different activities and the weather and sometimes the combination of meds that you are on. Keeping a diary is essential so you can start to correlate things you do, eat and meds with your symptoms. A chap in his 90’s in Toronto suggested this fix for the bad pins and needles: placing the affected limb/s under a tap and gradually making the water colder until tolerable and let them cool down. I find this works well for me and the paraesthesia dissipates. Had a fab rheumatologist in Kent (now retired 😢) who advised the cooling of the joints would reduce swelling and pressure on the nerves causing the paraesthesia. I must say it and slight tremors from muscle “weakness” used to alarm me, but now most nights i have slight tingling in feet and hands and it doesn’t bother me, but i haven’t had any significant deterioration in years.
If there is active worsening of symptoms you need to bug and nag the rheumatologist and get your GP to back you up with correspondence regarding your concerns. I also went the pregabalin route several years ago but it affected my memory and cognition too much and i decided it wasn’t worth it. The other thing that really helps me is yoga, it reduces the paraesthesia and tremors significantly.
Good luck and let us know how you get on. Take care
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