please adviice , i'm totally freaked out !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[larissa]

Just woke up and as i turned my head i could hear my neck makin a grinding noise as it moved !!!!! Its still doing it evertime i turn my head . Really scared , please reply , i cant go to sleep now

[Angelcake]

My neck has done this for so long that I didn't even tell my consultant about it, because it wasn't until I read a few things on here, that I realised it DOESN'T happen to normal people! When I turn my head from side to side I can hear a crackling sound like rice crispies, it never occurred to me that it shouldn't! Isn't that stupid! Before i had any idea i might possibly have lupus, my consultant actually asked me if I had hair loss and I said no! I thought he meant coming out in patches or something, but the fact is my hair has generally been falling out so badly (for 17years) that I have to put a sink drainer in the shower to stop the drain blocking. It's mad that we have so many things wrong with us, that half of our complaints become 'normal' for us!!

Getting back to the neck, I've just had an MRI scan and it has revealed I have degeneration in that area, which is probably why I hear crunching, but I am going to discuss this with my consultant the next time I see him. My collar bones also make the same sound when I rotate my shoulders.

[Redtape in reply to Angelcake]

OMG! The only downside of this website is that I keep finding out that things I've ignored, like my crackling neck, aren't normal! I had already guessed that my hair loss wasn't normal. Twenty years ago my pillow used to be covered in loose hairs in the morning. That seems OK now but my family is amazed that I can fill a plug-hole strainer every time I wash my hair yet still have some hair left on my head!

I have a reasonable head of hair so I can't work this out. I dread the thought of going bald in addition to everything else that's wrong with me.

[gillirun1]

Me too! I have mentioned this to consultant but we were in the middle of going through a deluge of other symptoms and it got overlooked. I want it examined next visit as a lot of my head pain travels up from the affected vertebrae

[talula]

Me exactly the same, I can't remember when my neck started to mimick a crisp packet but as I had a bushel of other things I've not mentioned it presuming its just another flaw!

[Davros]

Same here - also my mum who is under investigation for Lupus. We are so used to it I used it as one of the warning signs re my 10 year old when she started to complain of it. She is classed as high risk for SLE but not diagnosed. Usually kicks in before the lupus flares

[Sher78]

my bones do it every so often & it's not just my neck, it's knees, hips, wrists etc. Mention it 2 u're Rheumy but please don't panic, chances r if u have been diagnosed with lupus U may have another autoimmune illness such as some type of arthritis or MCT which can cause grinding

[larissa]

Its not just me then !

I dont feel so scared anymore , so thankyou all for taking the time to reply.

Also i forgot to mention that my ears feel stange , like they've popped or something and i started to get a headache shortly after which was still there until about 11 today !

I am going to the docs later x

[Sher78]

Nope, u aint strange. I get the grinding in my knee alot, especially when I turn, my other half has even heard it b4 which freaked him out (must admit, it did me too!). U can get sinus probs with lupus too so could explain the ears. Good luck at Docs x

[larissa]

my gp isnt concerned about my neck so i'll have to see how i go ! but ears need syringing ! I've got pains in my head again too x

[Sher78 in reply to larissa]

not nice :0( They don't help 2 reduce u're fears much do they?! Hopefully the syringing will help with u're head x

[Hidden]

I have had this for many years but always assumed it was caused by a car accident when I was younger. Now wonder if it was yet another early warning sign. Hope you get some comfort from knowing you are not on your own x

[FredFlintstone]

Hi I used to get the creaking noise when I turn my head, more noticable in certain positions. I had a dexa scan because I was on steroids & diagnosed osteoporosis. I started treatment along with calcium & vitamin D, 6 months later the noise isn't so bad. So get your vitamin D, calcium levels checked & discuss a dexa scan (checks bone density ) with your doctors.