This forum has been invaluable in terms of learning about PMR. One thing I have noticed is that we all agree there is no answer to what causes it. I was wondering if people would be interested in sharing what they think caused their PMR. Lots of people have mentioned developing it after vaccines and/or boosters. I would like to hear from others and think it would be a valuable source of unscientific information from which a larger picture might begin to take shape. I have a lot more questions in my search for answers, but thought it best to start with just one. Would love to hear from you.
Looking for answers: This forum has been invaluable... - PMRGCAuk
Looking for answers
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christi48
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In my own case it was a period of prolonged stress, having legal conflict with a family member over financial irregularities and caring for my mum with dementia for 7 years until she died. Both situations felt insoluable and relentless. The diagnosis came after the stress eased and I felt like I broke. I was on a plane to Australia and became very sick with acute PMR symptoms. My two daughters had emigrated, my younger one joining her sister was a big blow too.
Can't really help with this I'm afraid as I have absolutely no idea. Like others I'm sure I suffered for a good few months before diagnosis putting aches and pains down to my OA bring grumpy, but, as far as I know,I have nothing specific that triggered it.
Similarly to Sheffield Jane,
I'd experienced a very long period of of highly stressful situations
- weekends travelling an 8hr round trip to see sick father & MIL & then their consequent deaths
- increasing responsibilities, constant changes & deepening challenges at work
- serious worries and concerns within family (discovering my sister was an alcoholic being just one)
- supporting 5 close friends (over an 8yr period) through their cancer, & then dealing with the death of one of them who'd been my friend since I was 4yrs old
- a viral illness (flu) that layed me up for 3wks.
Up till then I'd never been that poorly for such a long time or required so much time off work.
My stress levels were through the roof and I was constantly busy, rushing from one thing to another with completely no regard for my own health or well-being.
After the succession of deaths, things did ease up slightly but that was when I began to experience lots of colds, sore throats etc, which finally culminated with me contracting flu.
It was approximately 6mths after this that I was diagnosed with PMR.
wow Kendrew, poor you! 🌼
The weird thing is, that looking back at that time, I can see how ridiculously stress-inducing all these situations were, but at the actual time I was living through these challenges, I was totally oblivious to the harm it might all be causing to my health and well-being. I wasn't aware of my body feeling under undue pressure....it was 'just life'!
Now I'm amazed I could even function at any level with such a relentless and continual stream of challenging situations to deal with...... but then I guess in the end, I couldn't!!.... Hence the PMR.
Everyone has their challenges in life so I don't see myself as any different or any more 'unfortunate' than anyone else. Haha!.... I could maybe just have done with a few more little 'breaks' to offer some breathing space, rather than one thing immediately following another.
I've paired back my life and responsibilities massively since my diagnosis and the positive consequences of that have been bountiful. Life is infinitely less stressful now because I'm in control of it!
I've also learnt to say "NO" and I do!..... frequently!😁
Well done! You loved your career and had a real struggle to let it go too. I ‘ve learned the power of peace and to rest. Nature and really appreciating the wonder of it has been a real gift and don’t get me started on birds and animals. I really love them.
Absolutely everything you've said resonates strongly with me too. My garden, the birds I feed, the wildlife I see & actively encourage, nature in general, are all my absolute go to therapy and 'restore' me when I feel low.
My garden is my sanctuary.
Haha!.... peace & harmony wherever and whenever possible. 😌
Why not ask for a poll to be created from the group organiser and then ask for comments to support it.
I started developing carpal tunnel syndrome, symptom of PMR, after the ‘flu vaccine. Slowly developed PMR until it got a strong hold. CTS cleared up as soon as I was on steroids.
Love your idea. Consider this an ask...don't know how else to do it...
I think only a group administrator can do this. I will private message the administrator to see whether a poll can be created. Not confident as the administrator has not posted for over two years.
Then try one or both of the other 2 moderators -Fran or Candy -they are employed by the charity.
I thought I would try the administrator first before contacting the moderators.
Sensible thought -but some of us who have been on the forum a long time know who is more active and what they do.
Ok. Sounds like a very strong hint. I’ll assume moderators can do it or maybe consider an alternative. 😊
The last couple of polls have been actioned by Candy - you can find them under Posts -then Polls - but it’s not a common occurrence. No quite as simple as some think.
Thanks. I’m quite aware that polls need careful thought. Just felt the post needed a poll to summarise.
Well put your suggestions to Candy then -and see if she can help..
Nothing lost by asking.
Nothing lost and something gained. Candy will be looking at creating a poll but not for at least a week. 😊
Good..,
Fantastic!
Stress
Hi, In my case I put it down to possible reaction to the covid vax and boosters as the straws that broke the camels back! However, I am fully aware that I had several stressful years just before covid with husband leaving (now think thank God 😀), subsequent divorce, having to equity release house etc plus got very stressed about covid. So combination of stress and possible effects of vax in my opinion!
it’s a good question and in my personal experience I feel it stems from an extended period of both ill health and stress. Over a period of more than a decade, l have experienced a cancer battle, numerous surgeries, radiotherapy, and other more emotional events, some of which involved tragic loss of loved ones.
It maybe that these events are totally unrelated to going on to develop PMR but l do wonder if your body both physically and emotionally can only take so much before going into overdrive to try and cope.
It’s just a hypothesis but it’s one l feel has some validity.
No obvious cause for me
mine was stress 🌺🌺
there are some common themes here. Mine I think started with work related stress leading to depression. I was a willing workhorse that couldn’t say no in a high powered job. This was then followed by intense guilt that I was living 500 miles away from my mum when she needed help and then became ill with pancreatic cancer. For about two years I drove from Scotland to Southampton and back almost every weekend to see her. More guilt and grief when she passed away. Then a bout of flu which didn’t go away and the onset of PMR in 2013. I carried on working which didn’t help my condition at all. However, it could have been so much worse so in a strange way it’s been ok - it’s taught me much about myself and I have real strategies for dealing with stress and being able to say no. It’s not gone away and may never but I’m here, enjoying life and having some great adventures. This forum and its advice and support has been invaluable.
Hi, Christi48,
I think that is an interesting suggestion.
Causes of PMR and GCA may have been addressed previously, pre-covid, but I am worried that the RNA vaccines developed (largely) in response to it might be more likely to stimulate adverse autoimmune responses than the older protein-based or 'killed-virus' types. (There is some scientific evidence to support that.) So, another survey might shed some light.
I know there is the 'last straw that broke the camel's back' hypothesis. That straw might have been the final trigger, but was not really the cause if the camel had been previously loaded with half a tonne of concrete blocks!
In my case, I know absolutely certainly that the covid vaccine (Feb. and April 2021) triggered my PMR - although any number of accumulated insults over previous years might have made me more susceptible to that trigger.
I have a daily temperature record that shows when my inflammation started, even before I noticed the typical symptoms of pain, impaired mobility and tiredness. And I am pretty certain there were no other contributory factors at that time.
Do you think something triggered it for you?
Possibly the second Pfizer booster. Could have been the tipping point. As I learn more about the effects of stress on the body I wonder if the vaccine finally sent me over the edge. I have experienced overwhelming stress since I was a child due to many different situations. Ironically, my life is now stress-free and I am happy and content for the first time in my life, but now I have PMR😕
A cocktail of stress. Physical stress of a total hysterectomy which ended up being more complicated than the surgeon anticipated and threw me straight into menopause, followed closely timewise by the emotional stress of a heartbreaking and unexpected death of someone who meant the world to me, followed by a very stressful holiday caring for my lovely 91 year old father where I had no help or respite, plus a totally unsympathetic and demanding boss throughout who exhausted me physically and emotionally. Then I developed all the classic PMR symptoms.
interesting replies already. For me onset was sudden in Dec 2019, I had been retired since 2015 and can’t say I was under stress, far from it, and no illness at the time or preceding.
Mine was stress. 7 years ago, running a shared household with then, 94 year old mother, adult autistic son and bankrupt partner with replacement valve surgery, it was just waiting to happen. Then caught mother of all coughs which was the final straw!7 years on, moved (during Covid)separated three households, mother now 101 with lots of support (not all me) son coping fabulously well with support, again not all me, partner second failed heart op, but managing, I on 3.5 mgs, and amazing support from this site. Phew!!
I can only think of two possibilities that triggered my PMR. 1. I power washed a large patio that involved mover a lot of heavy objects, a job I have done every year for the past 15 years. 2. At around the same time I had my first Covid vaccine (AZ). My money is on the vaccine but 🤷♂️
Definitely stress for me. A series of stressful situations over a 6 month period, daughter’s marriage break up, stepmother’s death, husband in hospital with pneumonia and finally found myself in hospital with breathing difficulties.
I had been through a very stressful time in 2012 as my parents were struggling 200 miles away, Dad with Alzheimers and Mum virtually blind with heart failure struggling to look after him. No siblings. At the same time the new head of my school decided to get rid of me and many other senior teachers by bullying us into resigning. I couldn't take the pressure of all this, along with the menopause so I resigned. Parents died, house sold, probate done, CBT undertaken, new job at a FE/HE college which I loved. In 2018 I retired and we moved house to another part of the UK. My best friend was suffering with mental health and physical issues but I couldn't deal with this any more - all attempts to help her were fruitless, so I had to get away and put myself first.I now find I can't deal with any stress at all.
PMR and GCA started after my 2nd covid jab in 2021. I was not under particular stress at the time though we had to take a roofer to court but this issue had only just started. It may be worth noting that in around 2011 I was diagnosed with lichen sclerosus also have had tendonitis in many different areas over the last 10 years. I also had a spell of chronic idiopathic urticaria.
Hi, when I started with Pmr I asked the same question on the forum! I got lots of replies and found it very interesting. I can't work out how to find my past posts on here though!Personally mine started suddenly out of the blue. It was the beginning of Covid in 2020. I think I got a shock when the government said that everyone over 70 needed to stay at home! I was shocked, worried and indignant!
Many people said that it started after emotional strain and grief.
If I manage to find my post I'll try to re post it.
just look at your profile -and scroll through your posts -and attach as a link to your reply in this thread
healthunlocked.com/user/Blo...
it’s this one -
healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk...
Thanks DL. I found my post but don't know how to copy and attach it. Maybe I need to do it on the laptop rather than the phone..?
Doesn’t matter what device -pull up your post and then to add the link just copy the details in the top bar [URL and post details] and then paste into your reply.
Once you have tapped the reply button -the links should turn blue -as mine have in reply above.
Like many here, it was most likely stress on top of stress on top of more stress, but I don’t know why one more stressor finally bought on PMR. I was being treated for PTSD with a process called EMDR (involving rapid eye movement) when stiffness made it difficult to relax my body, days later I couldn’t get out of bed.
I had 2years of awful stress and worry,then I had a fall....6 weeks later pmr.
Here's my post from 2020 : healthunlocked.com/pmrgcauk...
PMRproAmbassador
There is no SINGLE cause - that isn't the same as saying they don't know what causes it. The immune system goes haywire and is unable to recognise the body as self and that is probably due to stresses on the immune system over time. Plus there is a genetic component which makes it more likely - it isn't hereditary and there is no single gene but the Scandinavian gene pool contributes.
We usually say that the best approach is just to accept you have it - and don't devote energy to worrying about what affected you personally. It will drive you mad and the energy can be so much better used elsewhere.
once again PMRpro I agree with you. I have GCA not PMR but my life was great before diagnosis. I had a job I loved, good family and friends. I wasn’t under any type of stress. In fact I had just been thinking at work one day about how satisfying my life was even though I was getting older. Then BAM. I suddenly didn’t feel well. I tried understanding it but just accepted it. It’s just like any major illness. You take good care of yourself but life takes over and you have to adapt
Not really thinking about what affected me personally. More interested in the disease itself and believe that knowledge is power and may lead to a cure...
But that is unlikely to come from the myriad theories about what caused your own version of PMR. What is important to know is the mechanism of the immune system going wrong and, since PMR isn't the disease but the expression of an underlying disease, even more important is a marker of some sort that makes diagnosis more defined,
Mine came on while we were living in Spain, trying to cope with the authorities in a foreign language. After 3 yrs my husband had a stroke and lost some vision so the driving was all down to me.I thought I was coping well, learning Spanish and driving on the right, and caring for Graham, but the stress must have been building. Then after 9 years there we decided to return to UK. It took a year to sell up and we lost £30,000 in the process I started to get symptoms before we moved, but didn't get a diagnosis until we got back to UK.
We are now moving again back to Scotland after 7yrs in England because Graham has had 2 more strokes, to be near to our daughters.
The stress of the move and being his main carer has brought on a flare, so up to 9mg again.
The practice nurse thinks I have OA in my left hip as well! Happy days! We are moving out on 25th April. Tigger the cat is travelling up on 19th by pet transport and into a cattery for a month while we get organised.
Marcia
No cause.
Absolutely 100% stress for me, family bereavement and support for another family member, totally exhausting physically & mentally. And a misdiagnosed ‘frozen shoulder’ (couldn’t see a doctor during lockdown) when I think now it was most probably PMR.
Much the same as Sheffield Jane except no-one emigrated, but I always felt the last straw was Omeprazole
I think my PMR was triggered by stress. Covid lockdowns, 4 months of continuous IBS followed by a colonoscopy and a live shingles vaccine. Like Pro has said we will never know for sure and we need to keep looking forward🌸
In my case the smoking gun was a severe bout of the flu in Oct 2009, which I caught off the colleague I shared a desk with at work. He is much younger than I was at the time, so he got back to work within a few days, but it knocked me sideways for over a week, which is rare for me. He was about 30 yrs old then, and at the time I had just turned 59.
After that, although the symptoms of flu gradually receded, I began to notice that I had a persistant backache that painkillers didn't have much effect on. This just got worse and worse as the year ended, and by Christmas I needed a walking stick in order to walk at all.
I still went to work through the worst winter we'd had here in London for some time (2009 - 2010) and found it difficult walking to the bus stop on the compacted snow and ice, even with the walking stick.
By the new year of 2010 I was really struggling with unforgiving pain throughout the pelvic area, severe stiffness all up my spine, and stiff and painful shoulders and neck. However, due to an inguinal hernia I had to go into hospital at the beginning of February to have it fixed, and a mesh inserted. When I woke up from the surgery, the pain and stiffness were gone!
I was so relieved at the loss of the pain and stiffness I thought it must have been the hernia that caused it all, until the next day. That's when the anaesthetic wore off and the pain and stiffness came back with a bang. After that my missus took me to the doctor and he referred me to a specialist at our local hospital.
The specialist put me on diclofenac tablets at first, and these had a good effect, but they didn't cure all of the stiffness, nor remove all of the pain. After several different treatments, including a steroid injection into my bum, by mid July 2010 he'd given up trying to decipher what was going on and put me on Prednisolone at 15mg per day.
For me that was the turning point. The following few days were wonderful. No pain, no stiffness, and I found I could run and jump almost like a teenager. Then things settled down a bit and I began to remember that I was nearly 60 and perhaps shouldn't be skipping around like a newborn lamb.
Since then I've had two bouts of GCA while reducing the Pred, both at around 10mg per day. However, by being very very careful, and reducing extremely slowly, I finally managed to get down past the 10mg barrier after around 3 yrs, and since then I've very slowly tapered down to my present dose of 3mg per day.
I think I may have to stick at 3mgs though, because now I suffer from extreme fatigue all the time, as well as painful shoulder and thigh muscles, so I think I have adrenal insufficiency.
It's a rocky road we travel, and none of us know when that road will end before we can rejoin the highway and speed up to the normal pace of life enjoyed by the rest of humanity.
a lot of people say stress. Ive never met a single person who isn’t stressed, not one—even the ones who don’t appear to be; when you truly get to know them, they’re as stressed as everyone else. For me when I got pmr I was in the best physical shape I had been in for a long long time and I was incredibly happy with life. We had just built our winter home in Florida which was a dream come true, life was good. I wasn’t mentally or physically challenged. Whammo! Therefore, I’m leaning towards a genetic cause.
I think there are different levels of stress. Sure there are stressors in modern life, but there are also the soul-crushing, heart-breaking, on-going, overwhelming situations that can keep out immune system overtaxed for months or years and I think that can be a factor in the development of serious ailments. I have experienced extreme stress since I was a small child with many causes over the years. I'm 75 now and wonder if it all finally caught up with me.
As my mother had PMR, and I wasn't especially stressed at the time my PMR started, I too lean towards genetics playing a part.
But at least because of my mother's PMR I recognised the symptoms, and pushed for a diagnosis.
My mother and her sister had pmr and gca. I’ve had pmr for 11 years and it started after a massive shock when my son in law left my daughter and his son. Loads of stress as we had no idea there was anything amiss. I’m now reducing to 3mg and hoping I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
In my case, PMR developed within days of having a bad case of strep throat. When I asked if there was a connection, they told me no one knows.
I was prescribed Aldara Cream and had an adverse reaction. Otherwise I was fit 68 year old. Been on Pred 5.3 years and currently taking 1.5 😊
I had no reason to be stressed …then in January 2020 our daughter visited with a virus! (Sore throat/cough/cold but not the “new” Covid). Husband shook his off quite quickly but mine lasted longer and Dr. said there was a lot of it about and affecting people differently. By early March I was ok but had stiff legs and shoulders. Had last FtoF appointment with Dr before lockdown and diagnosis. Now down to 2 &1/4 pred with lots of help from this wonderful site.
SURE it wasn't Covid? They hadn't identified it in Europe then but it was here. In February 2020 my daughter caught something from a colleague who'd just spent NY at home in the Veneto - everyone in the unit got it. She has had it twice more, confirmed with tests, and swears it was identical.
You could be right PMRpro…I ruled it out because both daughter and husband had it quite briefly, and later when we all had Covid it seemed different…but I had an infusion then because of my PMR so I expect that helped.
No obvious trigger whatsoever.
I developed PMR out of the blue, thinking at first it was some kind of 'lockdown lethargy' around spring of 2020 before the pain and stiffness took hold and my GP had my blood tested and diagnosed me immediately on 1st August 2020.
So it came before my first covid vaccine January 2021. It wasn't coincidental with flu jab which I've had for years and without any difficulties, and arduous breast cancer treatment predated PMR by some years, .
Now stable but tired at 4.5mg.
It was definitely stress with me - prolonged period of years when my husband had cancer. He is now recovered.
note my diagnosis is Stills Disease which for me manifests as rheumatoid Disease and is considered autoimmune with overlapping PMR symptoms despite being a different illness.
When diagnosed the Prof. cited stress or bacterial infection as the trigger but inconclusive. I do acknowledge stress makes it worse.
Currently being investigated for a ‘cancer’ or autoimmune pancreatitis/hepatitis which may also be triggered by stress. Recent stress was my Dad and step Dad both passing away on 29th December, yes the same day then my ex husband also died mid February . So three funerals, two aged grieving widows and two distressed adult sons to deal with.
This my new profile here as I stupidly managed to delete my original one in a moment of brain fog!
I believe mine happened after my partner died suddenly and unexpectedly. It was, I think, caused by the the shock, grief and stress of it all.
In my case the GP put it down to long term stress/anxiety. Issues with family illness and a high pressure IT systems admin job was probably the cause.
Genetics? Both parents had PMR. Shingles vaccine? First symptoms shortly after shot; full on PMR six months later.
Mine was stress. Marriage breakup and responsibility of designing, furnishing and moving to a new office location. I actually thought at first that it was sore muscles from carrying file boxes but it quickly escalated to not being able to dress myself.
PMR developed for me after my second shingles vaccine in late 2019. This vaccine caused flu-like symptoms, and several weeks later, the soreness began in my shoulders and hips. However, my research suggests stress on our immune system can stem from various things. In the years prior to PMR, I had increased training significantly and run races that exceeded 6 hours, which is now believed to stress the immune system. I suspect these factors, and an overall lack of needed rest, seemed to contribute to my PMR. Most medical establishment reading tends to agree that some of us are genetically predisposed and only need a trigger. Perhaps stress, in whatever form it presents itself (vaccine, exercise, life) can be the trigger. This forum is a lifesaver.
GCA - extreme stress over a two year period culminating in a virus. An assault on the immune system over a long period of time.
I was 74 - felt rotten - thought it was Covid as it was June 2020. Had telephone conversation with GP.. he said ‘ from your symptoms that you describe … I think you have PMR - he was right. Life hasn’t been a beach … (whose is?) Just getting on with life as it is now… no old normal, new normal.
It would be helpful if people said which kind of shingles vaccine they received as PMR is a known possible effect from Zostavax, the older, live vaccine, and is contraindicted for autoimmune patients. If the same thing happens with Shingrix, which is not live vaccine, then we need to know. I had the two-shot Shingrix vaccine. There were several months between the two vaccinations, and the only result appears to have been an improvement in my condition, in that it became easier to taper from increased dose I;d been taking for a PMR flare. I did react strongly to the vaccine both times, more to the first than the second, but it was mostly just extreme fatigue. i slept for about a day!
It may be worth noting that I had about six months between the shots, and I know in the UK they are rather insistent it be the minimum not the maximum spacing, which is two months, and sometimes even one. I don't know if spacing makes a difference when it comes to the possibility of adverse side effects from Shingrix? These are all details which would be good to be collected and analysed. I was told four months, but I was eligible for a covid vaccine at that time and felt covid needed to take priority, and had to wait another month after that to get Shingrix 2 (I think it's since been decided that a wait isn't necessary). (The manufacturer suggests between two and six months, and even if past the six months you can get the second shot and are not to restart the series.)
While on the subject of vaccines I hardly reacted at all to Pfizer covid vaccines, had a strong reaction to a Moderna booster and somewhat lesser (although I felt more ill if you know what I mean) with Moderna bivalent. Recently had a Pfizer "spring dose" and barely even had soreness at the site. So all in all, I blame PMR on stress, or possibly also earlier virus infection (e.g. Epstein Barr when about 20), but not on vaccines. I wasn't even getting flu shots when I got PMR, only the 10 year adult booster for whatever it is.
Stress. My GP had me visit a clinical psychologist and they had me do a multi year inventory of life events which helped me with more context. I'll try and search for a copy so I can give a proper reference to it.
During the 5 years since onset of PMR I've had two significant flares which are associated with stress. In one case this was in combination with a lapse in my prescribed anti inflammatory low carb diet. No flares associated with vaccines or illnesses. I've had a couple of things (first acute bacterial prostatitis and sepsis in early Feb 2020, then a kidney stone two months later) which landed me in hospital for a few days. Following the sick day rules did the trick so I avoided a flare.
Started after prescribed Statins to control cholesterol
Statins are awful! GP put me on them - within a week I was visiting him on crutches with rampant sciatica. It was really unpleasant. . They were stopped and sciatica went about 3 weeks later. ❤️🩹
in my case I definitely think it was a period of prolonged continuous stress having to cope with my husband’s death, followed by my son emigrating to Australia, my daughter cutting herself off from her family, me being made redundant and finally my mother’s death.
The life stress inventory I mentioned above is the Holmes-Rahe.
stress.org/holmes-rahe-stre...
My scores for the years leading up to my 2018 PRM were
2009 78
2010 156 << over 150 50% chance of a major health breakdown in next 2 yrs
2011 89
2012 69
2013 108
2014 251 << heading for trouble
2015 202 << year after
2016 261 << year
2017 312 << over 300 80% chance of a major health breakdown in next 2 yrs
2018 223 << PMR onset
2019 213
I haven't done a reassessment since 2019. Now that I've thought of it I'll fill in the rest of the years. For a few decades I've kept diaries with enough health details to go back and look at associations. If you do the Holmes-Rahe (or at least look at what it covers) you will see positive stressors like a vacation or major holidays, as has been mentioned in this thread.
My GP knows I'm a retired specialist (PhD non clinical) in quantitative research methods in public health so I'm always up for a good questionnaire and statistical modelling. 😉
Each to their own...but think too much self analysis is likely to add to stress..
but perhaps I'm a bit laissez-faire about life... must be the Viking Goddess in me!😊
It would be great if you designed a better questionnaire for this forum to search for a common theme that might suggest a cause of PMR. So far it looks like stress is one of them. I'm also interested in age at onset and/or a genetic predisposition. It frustrates me that so little is known about this disease, even among medical professionals.
You are asking for a large representative retrospective sample study to consider prevelance of PMR and associated risk factors (genetic and environmental). That's not something I can do anymore. You need some major University/Hospital institutional based study and major funding. There have been some, but to show you how far out of the loop I am, I can't even post a few links to what is out there off the top of my head.
Yet again stress and anxiety. I was an extremely fit and healthy 58 year old but following the death of my brother, my father two years previously and supporting my 90 year old mother I had sudden onset of PMR. I am now 7 years in and the only time I have had a significant flare was three months ago when it was thought that my breast cancer had returned. Waiting for the results caused intense anxiety and a flare up that was almost as bad as the first onset. Still struggling to get it under control.
What I have learnt is to try and reduce stress in my life as much as possible and make the most of the good times.
Like lots of us stress piled on top of more stress, again caring for elderly parents travelling miles each week coping with death and all the difficulties we have to go through with selling houses, probate etc..I was completely exhausted lost weight and woke up with a very bad attack of shingles....a month later I couldn't move my shoulders/arms and subsequently diagnosed with PMR.. neatly 4 yrs on and 1 flare I am down to 3mg but have aged massively and now have to come to terms with accepting I can only do so much, I've learnt to say no ! Good luck to everyone here we are all routing for each other..
No idea really. Went to bed fit as a fiddle, well an old fiddle. Woke up next morning and couldn't move my arms. Think it is now a life long condition.
mine was after a simple ear infection. No such massive stresses like Kendrew or Sheffield Jane.
I reckon mine developed after my first Pfizer covid jab. I can’t recall any other associated events, such as stress or family worries at the time.
I originally joined the group on behalf of my elderly mum who had GCA she passed away last year at the age of 96, in answer to your question she’d had PMR several years before contracting GCA at that time she could not tolerate Prednisolone so was only taking it for a few weeks but it did settle the PMR. She developed GCA about a year after my dad passed away (his death was traumatic) but it literally developed overnight after she’d had a fall bumping her head on a wall & needed several stitches the specialist said it had nothing to do with the injury but we’d never associated it with the stress of losing my dad. My mum did take part in a survey which was looking at whether GCA can be hereditary but we never heard any results so I guess there was no definitive result, so remains a mystery how she got it.
In answer to your most recent question I did an ancestry DNA test a while ago & it indicates I have Scandinavian heritage very interesting
Accumulated deep stress over seven years of looking after much loved mum who had become angry and resentful in extreme old age and lived in part of our house. Then the first covid vaccine was a trigger - temples swelled up and diagnosed in 5 days.
The one, technically avoidable, thing most of us are saying is stress. I did lots of things to try and mitigate it but I think something in the mother daughter connection ran very deep. Interestingly she had GCA in her eighties but sailed through it, unlike me....
I live in the USA. Had my Covid Booster in Feb if 2022 then traveled to Ireland/Scotland in April of 2022. Got Covid while there. Had lung issues, night sweats and fatigue for months after. Started with PMR pain in Sept. So I believe the Covid triggered the PMR .
Mine was Stress/anxiety. My brother, who I was close to, died of Lung Cancer and even though he had an opposite life-style to me (smoked, drank, poor diet & little exercise) - I started to worry about every twinge and I feel my mind talked my body into being unwell. When a routine blood test put me in the pre-diabetic range (due to stress but then brought on more stress as my mother went blind with undiagnosed diabetes) - it all seemed to stem from there.
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I haven’t been on here for awhile because I was doing well. I have had PMR for for 3.5 years....
Post Op Looking Forward
I have finally got my new hip but now feel I am having a flare up? Only got home from hospital...
A thread or sub-group for all long-term PMRers
I'm gathering information, please share your story if you're a long-timer, say over about 6 years...
I am a new PMR victim searching for answers.
I was so happy to find a current blog about PMR. I am in the US and there doesn't seem to be...
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