night stiffness

[lubarr]

I am awaiting a knee replacement and have spinal stenosis. I also feel joint pain in almost every joint.

Nights are very big problem, I fall asleep but wake about 4 hours later and as try to move realize there is pain in both legs. I try to stretch but immediately get like cramp and muscles size up , so difficult to move. so I try to get out of bed and then find my left hand is completely numb. Somehow I am able to stand and hobble shakenly round the room. After about 15 mins, go back to bed then the whole think repeats about 3/4 hours later, I get up walk off the stiffness and tiredly start another day. Anybody know why this should be?#

[Kemptville]

Hi Lubarr

I suffered with spinal stenosis and had the same problem at night . I would get to sleep but would wake up about 4 hours later and as soo as I tried to move my back would go into spasm. This would cause my legs to flex violently and this would be followed by an equally violent extension quite often resulting in cramp. After the hemi laminectomy things were much improved . Then the pain came back and I needed a second op for a disc . Once again things improved for a time then the pain recurred and an X-ray showed arthritis in lumbar vertebrae. At this point I was referred to a pain consultant. I was put on Buprenorphine patches , Duloxetine , Etoricoxib and amitriptyline. This enabled me to sleep through the night and wake up without the muscle spasm. I have recently ha d denervation of the facet joints in the last three lumbar vertebrae and am now in the process of reducing the dosage of the medicine.

Hope this is some help to you.