Pain?

[Sandydemop]

Dear friends, would like some feedback. I always (never a good idea) said at least i don't have pain from MS. I have other stuff. Well that was then. Now i ache. today i had a new pain in my calves which made it more difficult than usual to stand and walk. It was a nice day out but i just couldn't imagine putting myself through that extra pain to be more healthy. Usually it's my hip joints that hurt. I'm not looking for solutions like CBD or anything. I just want to ask if you have pain what do you tell yourself? thanks in advance, San

[jimeka]

Persistent Annoying Intolerable Nuisance Blue pain, purple pain, screaming pain

Who cares what kind of pain

It’s there, it hurts, nothing to gain,

Pop the pills and hope relief will come,

Seeing red, tempers rise,

How do you think of a disguise.

Family, friends see your discomfort,

How do they help? They can’t,

But they can. Just being there,

A distraction, anything knowing you are not alone,

Can lower the tone, even for a short while.

CBD oil, heat pads, oxycodone too,

Will have you bouncing around,

As you have to run to the loo.

Ms knows which buttons to press,

The ones which will cause you more distress.

The government decide which drugs you can take,

It makes it expensive for the ones that work

There should be someone in power who experiences pain,

Then maybe, just maybe, someone would listen.

It’s that time of year, when the cold makes it worse,

Nothing prepares you for something so diverse.

So all we can do is keep plodding along,

And hope the morning brings a new song.

[Sandydemop in reply to jimeka]

thanks @jimeka did you write that poem? it's very good!

[jimeka in reply to Sandydemop]

Yes I was in a lot of it that day 🤗

[Sandydemop in reply to jimeka]

Dear jimeka so sorry you were in so much pain. i hope you are feeling better now. I love that you channeled it into poetry

[twooldcrows in reply to jimeka]

oh so well said and i can agree ...thank you for your wisdom ....ahahhahahah...life is so fun but some make it easier to cope with with some great laughter to laugh at it ....thank you for your great humor ....love it ...take care and love and happiness be in your life always....

[erash]

So sorry you are in pain 🙁 I guess, first I’d ask myself why I have pain? Is it MS or something else? If I’m all over achey, I might take a Motrin. Often I will work though my pain but at a lesser intensity. Mostly, I try to be kind to myself, forgive self, rest if needed. Hope you feel better soon

[Sandydemop in reply to erash]

thanks Liz Much appreciated. what are you doing up at this hour?

[erash]

That’s my usual insomnia 😜😴

[Sandydemop in reply to erash]

oops. sorry. i hope you got back to sleep and rested well eventually.

[erash in reply to Sandydemop]

No, it’s truly my usual wake-up time

[Sandydemop in reply to erash]

omg. that's incredible. I hope you enjoyed your awake time and were productive.

[erash in reply to Sandydemop]

Ugh, I get more done before 10am than seems humanly possible (always been that way) and it’s why my battery runs out by 7p. Don’t invite me to an evening party 🥱

[Sandydemop in reply to erash]

I like how productive you are, even if it is before dawn. today i was very productive but then felt like I overdid it. Hard to find the right balance.

[goatgal in reply to erash]

I'm in the same camp. Some of it is lifelong (as a child I was out the door as soon as it was light, as a young woman I could fall asleep on an evening date) and some of it was conditioning from my career. Now, my neighbor texts to see if I'm okay if my kitchen lights aren't on when she leaves at 6:20 on her morning school bus run. And then, of course, there are intermittent bouts of insomnia.

[pamgarner in reply to erash]

you are writing my story,bed by 7pm and up by 5am

[NorasMom]

I've always said I rarely have pain, but I do get aches and discomfort. For me, I'm able to think about whether it equals childbirth or a toothache or another pain-causing issue that I've experienced and put it in perspective. Then I go from there at deciding how to treat it. Will an aspirin help? Do I need to smear parts of my body with Icy-Hot? Do I just go about my day and wait for it to go away, or do I crawl back in bed in misery and eat chocolate while watching favorite chick flicks?

Rather than focusing on "Is this MS?", I lean more towards how my actions or age contributed to the discomfort. That said, preventing aches and pains has become my primary goal over the last few years, much more so than "getting exercise" and being "healthy". I did that in my younger years. The old joke about "Doctor, it hurts when I do this" has become my mantra. "Well, if it hurts when you do that, then stop doing it!"

[Sandydemop in reply to NorasMom]

I get what you're saying NorasMom It's not that i need to know why. I agree with you. I need to know how. So when i got this pain in my legs I have to think how do i cope with this?

[Goldilockssearching in reply to Sandydemop]

I had this same issue earlier this week. I think It’s in our nature to want to know why. I’m continually beating myself up with it. I made a comment like “my legs seem really sore right now. I don’t know why!?” My husband said, do you have a neurological condition like say, MS? That’s why!!

Working on letting go & accepting this is what it is. 🧡

[Sandydemop in reply to Goldilockssearching]

hi Goldilockssearching , I have found certain foods have allergic reactions in me, and cause pain and stiffness. Some people have difficulty with night shade vegetables. I have allergies to "tree fruit" ugh.

[kdali]

Stretching, icy hot, magnesium.

[Sandydemop in reply to kdali]

thanks kdali I got a magnesium spray and i take magnesium at night. do you use the citrate or glycinate?

[kdali in reply to Sandydemop]

I use an extended release oxide and citrate combo sometimes during the day and threonate at night. There is some in my electrolyte drink and multi vitamin but not much I'm not sure what kind. Nothing that I take causes me to have diarrhea. For directly on legs, I use an oil body spray and a lotion on my feet and calves when I get out of the shower, but it doesn't relieve issues as well as Epsom salt baths. I try to visit a float tank once per week, which is also magnesium, and I highly recommend trying it if you continue to have leg pains....Epsom at home is much cheaper but you have to use more than the bag says to absorb much, and the bath temp can't be too hot, which isn't a problem for my heat issues.

[Elizt3 in reply to kdali]

How much magnesium do you take in the supplement? I’m thinking of starting it and just gathering information.

[Sandydemop in reply to Elizt3]

Hi Elizt3 I take two tabs of Magnesium glycenate which is different from Manesium citrate. I ran out recently so i don't know the dosage but it helps me sleep.

[kdali in reply to Elizt3]

I believe it's 250mg. Not sure on threonate, but it's available on Amazon, Life Extension brands for both.

[Sandydemop in reply to kdali]

I bought the magnesium oil but it hasn't helped much if at all. glad it works for you though.

[kdali in reply to Sandydemop]

It's probably placebo effect 🤣

[Sandydemop in reply to kdali]

awwww i don't think so. I ran out of it a few weeks ago and i have not been sleeping through the night and in a lot of pain since then so I don't think it's a coincidence.

[twooldcrows]

well i am still a live for i feel pain...ahhahahahahahahaahha..have a great day and hope it eases up for you ....yes at times it is hard to walk for the pain but after awhile it does ease up ...take care ....love and happiness....

[Sandydemop in reply to twooldcrows]

thanks so much.

[falalalala]

Sometimes I get random sharp pain. Usually in my feet.

It goes away when I put frankincense oil on it. While it's uncomfortable, I think others have it a lot worse so I don't know how well the oil would work for these people but it might be worth a try.

[Sandydemop in reply to falalalala]

thanks falalalalalalalala

[starlight5]

I used to be able to say the same, "At least I don't have MUCH pain....." but that has changed this past year...

[Sandydemop in reply to starlight5]

hey starlight5 Sorry you are in pain. what do you tell yourself to get through it?

[goatgal]

I'm in the same camp. Do I have MS pain? I honestly don't know. Are the flickering pains I experience (as if the aurora is flowing over my body) from working in the garden, or age, or MS? What is the cause of the short stabbing pain on my back, in my jaw, behind my eyes, or in a limb? None of what I experience lasts for long but it's every day present, sometimes enough to stop me in my tracks for a minute or two before moving on. I learned long ago not to bother others by saying anything about it. But here, I feel safe, not crazy, not attention seeking, free.

[Sandydemop in reply to goatgal]

Dear goatgal thank you for saying that. I appreciate this safe place and I'm really not looking for pity. As long as you offered to listen this morning i woke up so weak my legs barely carried me with the walker into the kitchen. I don't know why. Maybe i overdid it on Sunday. Anyway, thanks for sharing and have a wonderful day. I appreciate you.

[goatgal in reply to Sandydemop]

I'm always so grateful when I come here. I try not to unload simply because my load is so much lighter than what others here are forced to carry. I sincerely hope your legs are slowly regaining strength as the day continues...my guess is that if you might have over done it on Sunday, you probably did! And consequently may have tapped into your energy reserve. Give me a nice spring day after a winter spent mostly indoors, and I will overextend myself in the garden...and find my legs have turned to lead when I try to come inside. I usually recover slowly the next day so I hope that this is true for you as well.

[Sandydemop in reply to goatgal]

thanks goatgal you are right. i've been better this afternoon but i get scared like i'm always going to be like that. I appreciate you.

[ahrogers]

I was having hip pain and started sleeping with a pillow under my knee to lift my leg into a neutral position. I sleep on my side and before using the pillow my top leg would cross over my lower leg until my knee was resting on the bed. Now with the pillow holding it up higher my hip pain is gone. I used to get a lot of calf muscle cramps at night for about a year then they suddenly stopped without me doing anything different.

I hope your pain gets better!

[Sandydemop in reply to ahrogers]

thanks ahrogers much appreciated. I have thought about a body pillow. Last night pain woke me up.

[ahrogers in reply to Sandydemop]

I just use a regular pillow since it only needs to be big enough to support my knee and lower leg. No need to buy a big body pillow unless you want one 😊

[Elizt3]

I’ve had MS pain for the last 10+ years. The worst is from my knees on down. I also have it around my middle (MS hug, not sure?) I appreciate everyone sharing their ideas. I’m always looking for something new. For my calves and feet I use compression wear. There are compression sleeves for the shins and calves and they help quite a bit, especially if I need to walk any distance. I also use (live by) compression sleeves for my feet, where my pain is the worst.

[Sandydemop]

thanks Elizt3 I have not tried compression attire yet.

[Goldilockssearching]

I hate to use the pain scales because I find that pretty much every day I ache, so that is what I use for terminology. My previous physical therapist just had me do it is it better the same or worse than last time I saw you?

[mrsmike9]

I have yet to have MS pain. I have a back issue, which covers that one. The other day it felt like a needle was pushing into my calf and all I could do is wonder if MS pain was starting. It did finally stop and (knock wood) has not come back.

[Mollyabigail]

Hi, Sandydemop! Your question is a good one. I have hip and back pain too. It's hard to stay positive when pain is present, so I hate to sound like a Pollyanna. I remind myself and thank God that I do not have a terminal illness, like a brain tumor, etc. My "go to" verse, written on a plaque by my bed is Isaiah 41:10. I repeat that a few times. "Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand." That just blows my pea-brain, that the God who created the universe will strengthen "me" and help "me." When I am hurting, I do try to be kind to myself. I take a pain reliever, lay down somewhere and watch dog videos on Instagram or Youtube for a while. Hope you are better very soon.

💛🙏

[Sandydemop in reply to Mollyabigail]

Mollyabigail thank you SO much! for the validation. I had been feeling apart from my Higher Power but the last few days really turning more and more to Gd. It's wild to think Gd loves me and wants what's best for me.