I have polyarthritis and fibromyalgia.
I have not slept more than about 4hrs a day at less than an hour a time . I am exhausted. My leg muscles feel like they're on fire, tender and as if I've had a good kicking, my thigh muscles feel twisted and ripped. I try to move my adjustable bed in many combinations but nothing eases it. any advice?
I get really bad pain in my thighs too and have to limit walking if I over do it I can't move the next day, like today 
I don't have polyarthritis or fibro I think mines due to undiagnosed long term hyperthyroid, hashimotos & vitamin deficiencys.
Have you had your B12, Iron & VitD levels checked?
Ive recently started using B12 patches and the pains have improved a little still a way to go tho hot bathes & deep heat distract from the pain for a bit. Hope you get some relief soon 
thanks sh3llD, I am on thyroxine and hadn't thought about that. My iron levels came back ok last week but I have just finished iron tablets 10 days ago. My vitd levels fluctuate as I forget to take my calcichew.
regards,
sandra.
It is a bit difficult to advise because I do not know what you have tried or are willing to try. Much advice is not worth the paper it is written on. Because you are in territory where there are no words to describe what needs to be done. There are healers out there who work with the muscles using touch. This is an area that the NHS knows nothing about and the previous government damaged by the requirements of registration.
Muscle has three states: tense, switched off and the right length. It is very easy for a muscle to become too tense and very difficult for a too tense muscle to untense. An experienced person with the right abilities can enable the too tense muscle to untense. This in the long term will reduce pain and discomfort. In the short term you are going to have to learn how to undo habits of doing things that you have learnt over the years and replace them with more beneficial habits. What these are I do not know as everyone develops there habits of misusing muscle.
stat.org.uk/ is a website worth looking at.
Another technique to look into is mindfulness. This is a technique that was originally dismissed by many medical pratitioners and now is recognised as having benefit in helping with pain. You can go on a very expensive course run by a psychologist or contact the Buddhist society (thebuddhistsociety.org/) who can put you in touch with buddhists who practice it as a spiritual exercise for very little cost. The Buddhist practice of Mindfulness goes back 2500 years.
Mindfulness is about observing oneself in finer and finer detail. It takes time to learn how to observe oneself. There is believe it or not a lot of skill involved which takes time to learn. When observe yourself in finer detail you will notice that by things you do you cause more pain and by things you do you can reduce the pain. Mindfulness is a practice that needs to be learnt from someone who has practiced it for a number of years. Like all spiritual exercises there are subtlties that are passed on by contact with someone who is doing it.
I hope I have given you something that you can investigate and look at to see if it can help your pain.
very interestng john, I do practice a form of mindfulness and some meditation. I have a friend who is a buddhist and may find a contact for him.
thankyou
sandra.
When I'm very bad I put my legs up on Pillows and cushions, sometimes two layers of pillows and large cushions to support my feet. I also raise my very bad leg up on another soft cushion on top of that lot! I have loads of pillows and a variety of cushions available on my sofa for when I need them and this can really relieve the pain.
I don't know if this is worth your trying, it may help. I find the arrangement can vary from day to day but at some point I get it right.
Also it can help to find something easy to do that can be absorbing such as watching a really good film or reading a book etc. I have loads of things around me for when I need them.
I realise these are simple suggestions but may be useful along with other things.
thanks bluejay, at the moment I'm trying anything and everything! taking the pressure off one part seems to worsen another. - at least it's never boring!
regards,
sandra.
Not nice at all. I get that type of pain in my derriere when my coccyx decides to let me know its there. I use hot and cold pads which gets the blood flowing to the area. Then hot for a while. Never goes completely but becomes bearable like a huge bruise or numb which sounds like relief but its not. Its weird like your mouth feels 20 feet wide after an injection at the dentist.
I use deep heat too although sometimes I can't feel the heat, it still works to take away the edge.
Maybe light massage down the thighs to clear the lymph glands might help.
Others have mentioned various things... the other I would look at is Magnesium levels. Like Vit D, (which I would also suggest) it is common to be very low in this country, and can lead to lots of muscle spasm and cramping. Google "Dr Myhill" web site for info on it - she gives some idea on how to apply various types, I use Magnesium Chloride (some sell it as Magnesium oil - it's not oil it just is a bit slippery, when dissolved in water) which I buy form ebay & dissolve in a *very* strong solution, put it in a spray bottle and rub into my skin a couple of times a week - reduced severe cramping and restless legs very quickly for me. Even if that's not the cause, it's safe, pretty cheap and as I say, many people are very low anyway, so no bad thing to top it up!
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