Hi my name is Verygrumpy and....

[Extremelygrumpy]

I am here from the fibro and ibs forums on here.. Have fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, constant pain in neck and shoulders, and migraines, ibs and am totally fed up of being in constant pain.... I am super sensitive to meds so don't get much pain relief.... If anyone has any of these symptoms and gets meds for the pain would love to hear from you....

VG x

[hamble99b]

hi , I'm sure you'll hear from someone soon, many on here read weekly.

sandra.

[teadrinker]

Hello Verygrumpy

I don't have fibro but get pain in my shoulders & neck, and migraine. The pain and migraines all seem connected to me. I have tried the usual run of pain medication (antidepressents, antiepileptics, opiod-based pain relief, and a few of the migraine medications) which didn't particularly help or made things worse. Also tried osteoptathy (didn't help, made migraines worse), & accupuncture (not helpful for me but I know lots of people who find it helpful). Got some relief from physio for my neck & shoulder - painful as it was to begin with it helped to losen up the stiff muscles over time & the exercises are still helpful. A TENS machine was also good.

I now have botox injections which helps the pain and eases the migraine headaches a lot. I can cope without medication (except for the odd dose of something when it's really bad). Heat packs also ease the pain a lot, as does (surprisingly - and hard to think about when you are in pain) a bit of exercise. I am learning all the time about what makes the pain and migraines worse and I can now choose to do those things & suffer the consequences or to try & avoid them the best I can.

It's not always medication that works the best, but a combination of things. But I know how hard it can be to find a way through the pain when it is constant & you are at your wits' end with it all. When it was really bad for me I kept a diary - it was somewhere to let off steam about how awful everything was, and was a useful record of what I'd been doing to try & make things better & what effect the pain was having on my life that I could take to the doctors (edited!)

I hope you find some relief, and go from "Verygrumpy" to "notsogrumpy" soon.

Teadrinker