Myofascia pain

[Kristina09]

 Does anyone else have this?

    I get big painful knots on the fascia in my back, next to my shoulder blades, along my spine, the bottom of my feet, arms, hands and chest.  They are very tender with referee pain. Am I the only one?  What helps this pain?

[Joe S.]

A good massage, chiropractic, reflexology, Flexoril, better pillow, better bed, marijuana, Tai Chi, yoga, meditation, a good nights sleep, etc. hopefully you get my drift. I find that PTSD/(Depression & Anxiety) can make it worse.

1 Don't panic as panic increases your pain.

2 Breathe. When we are in pain our muscle splint (or tighten up) to protect the area that hurts. This action cuts off circulation to the area and there for oxygen to the muscles. We tend to hold our breath. By breathing we can stop this cycle.

3 I have a simple meditation that I use when in pain that does help.

[Linda196]

You are most definitely not the only one! One of the persistent plagues of Autoimmune disease!

Myofascia pain is basically muscle pain, caused by inflammation ( making it common to many inflammatory diseases), injury or even repetitive contraction of a muscle or muscle group. Usually if it's wide spread the root cause is either inflammation, or stress resulting in tensing of the muscles. You can treat the pain itself with whatever pain relievers you prefer, but treating the root cause will be more effective in the long run.

My personal approach, after some trial and error, is heat, focused relaxation, and a myofacial release massage (which unfortunately is uncomfortable during, but provided the best long term results). My physiotherapist also uses ultrasound to increase blood flow to the area, and that has helped as well, but probably not much more than heat applied at home which is of course, more convenient. I already take Prednisone daily, and try to keep analgesics to a minimum, but when it's really bad I find naproxin is the most effective for me.

Joe's suggestions are spot on.

[Carebear]

I agree with Joe and Linda about a multiple approach to treat this type of pain.

I have chiropractic treatment that includes trigger point releasing with a fine needle, acupuncture, TENS treatment, massage, and physiotherapy. 

Ice helps me, as does a prescription anti-inflammatory/analgesic topic lotion, exercise and a healthy rest/stress management regiment.

[jazzlover]

and plenty of magnesium .. lotion, oil, or ingested

[SjoGirl]

I would add the low sodium levels, which seem to be persistent for me, also cause such pain. I've had to learn to control how much I drink and not worry about my salt intake.