s there a relationship between hypothyroidism and chronic upper back and neck pain?

[leanma]

s there a relationship between hypothyroidism and chronic upper back and neck pain?

[jimh111]

I found if I was a little low on thyroid hormone I got lower back pain that would resolve when I i creased my dose a little. It's also important to check your posture, avoid cold draughts and try exercises for pain.

After more than a decade I found that I could prevent my lower back pain my ensuring my shoulders did not get lower than my hips when lying on my LHS! I do this by making sure my elbow is away from my body when sleeping on my left side. I have a minor spinal problem (everybody has imperfect spines) but this little adjustment has eliminated my problem. You have a different problem but it's worth experimenting to see if any minor changes make a difference.

[Marymary7]

Others will help you I'm sure but I also suffer this. My doctor said it was connected to a problem thyroid as the neck muscles go into spasms. I find any draught makes my neck hurt. (That doc left, sadly) I have found it all gets better when optimal but I'm suffering with the same as you now. I'm also now getting pain where a dowagers hump would be (if I had one) I've had frozen shoulder a few times... in both. It feels like they could go into it at any time but are ok ish now. It's so boring isn't it. I think we need to get all levels of our meds and vitamins optimal ...easier said than done. Good luck 😀

[jimh111]

Following on from Marymary7 post I used to get frozen shoulder. It cured a year or two after I got an electric underblanket so that I could preheat the mattress on cold evenings. Matresses have a lot of specific heat (try lifting one) and suck the heat out of your body if you get into a cold bed. It wasn't a quick cure but was 100% effective.

[TSH110 in reply to jimh111]

I had a frozen shoulder too and was advised by physios to do a list of exercises with a Thera band and swim as much breaststroke as possible. It sorted it out. It’s known to be more common in those with thyroid disorders as are all skeleto-muscular problems. I have/ have had Achilles tendinitis, costochondritis, ankylosing spondylitis, osteoarthritis and bakers cysts in both knees. Quite a collection. The neck aches improved with thyroid hormone therapy I found lifting my head when I was untested untreated and very overt very difficult, mostly I was very hunched. I presume the loss of muscle strength would cause that. It’s fine now thank goodness.

[limonene7]

Hi! I think muscle pain like you describe can be connected to thyroid. I have had wide spread pain- neck, shoulders, arms, hands, back, hip and leg- that would come and go over the past 10 years or so. Osteopath was helpful but not entirely and out of desperation, I bought this book about ‘myofascial trigger points’ …

smile.amazon.co.uk/Trigger-...

…on the strength of so many reviewers that said that they had managed to get rid of their pain after all the specialists they had seen had failed to get to the bottom of it. Unbelievably, after following the book and simply massaging a ball against a painful point between my shoulder blades, the mystery throbbing pain that I had had for months just disappeared within about 2 minutes! Myofascial trigger points are hyper-irritable spots in muscle tissue that causes the muscle to contract and causes what is known as ‘referred pain’. The book explains things that can cause myofascial trigger points, such as hypothyroidism, vitamin deficiencies and food intolerances. For me taking out nightshade vegetables from my diet for a while made a tremendous difference to my pain too! Injury and repetitive movements are also notorious for setting up trigger points.

Personally, I feel that trigger points are always worth exploring as they are often involved in many muscle pain conditions. Hope this helps. x

[HashiFedUp]

There was for me. Five years of neck and back pain, pre diagnose, doctors not a clue why. Post diagnosis, I have learned that as part of the condition, the immune system attacks lots of different parts of the body, including tendons, especially where they connect to bones (joints and small tight spaces, like neck and shoulders). I take celebrex for global joint and muscle pain and it is amazing! Sports massage is also very helpful.

[jgelliss]

Hello leanma. I too was having upper back issues and I found out it's related to gallbladder. Using digestive enzymes before meal is very helpful and raising a small dose of T3 2.5mcg I find to be very helpful too. Hope you feel better soon.