After finding out that my car accident had onset my RA,and osteoarthritis in my 4th,5th and 6th vertabres(wich they say is not that bad to cause much pain),I went to physical therapy for a couple of weeks for neck pain and muscle knots,the doc said I had spained my neck in the accident and I was fine.well I felt much better for about 2 weeks,and the pain and stiffness in my neck has returned...even worse now,it travels to my shoulders as well now.to where at times I cant move my neck too much or I get knots and hurts bad,and some days its better but the more I seem to move around the worse it gets,I dont sleep well it all seems to stiffen up and if I put my arms above my shoulders my hands will tingle.my arm muscles seem to feel sore alot as though I have lifted weights,well my RA doc says he thinks I have fibromyalgia,any one else have this and does it sound like it...Im 42 and feel like my body is falling apart..is there anything else that will be affected by having RA?my family doc says the pain in my elbows and neck is the osteoarthritis,but I never had pain in my elbows and I dont think that osteo travels like RA.and my RA doc says that my RA is under control .....just know Im sick of not feeling anybetter......
Emily
Yeah, it sounds like you have FM too. I have very similar symptoms to yours with the neck, shoulders and arms and it absolutely KILLS to lower my arms if I've had them tucked under my head for any length of time and the RD suspects FM as well. Your confusion is understandable. It's so hard to differentiate all the different pains, some traveling, some tingling, some stabbing, etc. One other thing, my neck pain is from herniated discs too, do you have any herniated discs? I know you had an accident, but many times disc problems can cause the type of pain you're feeling too. Well, anyway, welcome, glad you found us and keep those questions coming. I'm sure there will be many others posting to give you their experiences and their take on your situation. Thanks Jesse,
They did an x-ray and said thier was no herniated disc,just oa,do they give you anything for the FM? they have me on muscle relaxers at bed,and pain pills...
EmilyP
Hi,
I have similiar problems and my dr thinks I may have fibromyalgia but I have not been diagnosed with it. RA is such a complicated disease and can affect so many things, I have trouble telling what pain is from what problem. Usually FM is diagnosed by checking specific pressure points on the body to see if they are sensitive. That's about all I know about it. I think Lyrica is prescribed for FM.
Laker
Emily it does sound like you have fibro. I have all over muscle pain. The doctor did the test on me and said I in fact have it. She said my RA is under control but it's the fibro that is causing me the most pain. Does it ever feel like every muscle in your body hurts?? Do you have a burning feeling in your muscles??? Is your body really weak at times?? If so, those are alot of the symptoms. Tramadol really helps me with the pain. Im thinkingaobut the lyrica but need to get more info on it before I decide. Hope this helps. Hope you feel better.
MOT
Hi Emily. I'm not anything for fibro, probably because I don't have the trigger points and he's not 100 percent sure but I was thinking of asking for Lyrica in place of one of the RA drugs. Many people have gotten good relief from it. I also have OA in the cervical spine and I'm still not convinced that your neck pain is the FM although it may be FM in other areas. I'm far from an expert, but with our symptoms so, so similar it makes me wonder if your pain is from the OA and not the FM. Still, if you definitely have FM the Lyrica would probably help you overall. I'd be interested to hear what your doctor ends of doing for the FM and RA. Are you on any meds at all? Why does he think your RA is under control?