I've never had cortisone injections and have never heard of giving these injections for myofascial pain. I've had trigger point injections with lidocaine. Where is your doctor giving you the injections? I read in the book Pain Free by Pete Egoscue that cortisone is a pain-killer but that repeated doses can destroy your bone and other tissue in the area injected. Cortisone is only masking the pain. The source of your pain could be from trigger points, structural misalignment , or strained/weakened ligaments. I think you mentioned that you couldn't find a trigger point therapist in your area. The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook Your Self-Treatment Guide for Pain Relief by Clair Davies might help you understand where your TrPs are located and how to deactivate them yourself. Did you check to see if there was an Atlas Orthogonal Chiropractor near you? If your Atlas or C2 is out of alignment that can cause migraines. Wishing you luck in finding the source of your pain. Kat

I have had headaches caused by trigger points high up in the trapezius where it attaches to the base of the skull. I had a trigger point injection there and I felt temporary relief.

I've never heard of cortisone injections for muscle pain either. I do know that it takes about two weeks for cortisone to provide pain relief.

Everybody's experience is so different. I have had some relief from some shots, and others have not helped at all or like the set of shots I just had, made the situation even worse. Most of the time when they did work, it was only for a short period of time. It usually ends up being a diagnostic tool for the Doctor. It could help break the cycle of the migrains you are having for the time, but if you could follow it up with another type of treatment to further the effects of the cortisone, maybe you can get longer relief.
I wish you all the best in your search for relief!

Lisa

HI Dave,
i know you have your shots scheduled, but you might want to look into what is used in a trigger point injection, as the girls have said, I have never heard of cortisone beig used for MPS> Cortisone is a steriod hormone
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cortisone
and is used to stop inflammation and suppress the immune system. Myofascial Pain Syndrome is not an inflammatory disease. That is why NSAIDs do not work. Travell says that steriods are not to be used in trigger point injections as they can irritate. I know I refer to her alot, but she was the leading doctor on myofacial pain .
You need longer lasting relief by getting at the source with trigger point therapy. MAnually, the therapist gets in there and works on diminishing or eliminating the trigger point.
I also think it would behoove you if you got the book, Fibromyalgia and Myofascial Pain Syndrome A Survival'a MAnual by Devin Starlynl, and it cane be found on Amazon, Barnes and Noble etc.. She talks about medications, what each disease is, your healing team, covers all the bases. It would help you as a referrance.
Unfortunatly, there is no quick fix with this illness, like we wish there was. I had a pelvic nerve condition and went to PT for internal work for 10 months before it was brought under control. I have just now begun to address my structural issues after 1.5 years of not knowing the problem, and I am only going into the 9th week of MFR therapy.
So perhaps you may want to research the cortisone shots, but they are given usually for inflammatory problems, with MPS is not.
Have you looked into any trigger point therapist or myotherapists on line, or looked into any massage therapists near you that do trigger point work. It took me alot of research, calls etc to find the right people. I hope you feel better

Hello all and thanks for the replys!! i researched about the cortisone and decided not to get cortisone injections. i did get some injections today with lidocaine instead of the cortisone. it helped SOME.... right after though i felt lightheaded and spacey for a few. i came home and took some magnesium and layed down. i woke up with some muscle spasms that are making me dizzy. and they are bringing on a headache. i have some soma left over that im gonna try and take tonight. sometimes they activate my trigger points and sometimes they dont. go figure. im gonna roll the dice though and at least give it a try!

Hi Dave;
Sorry to hear you are suffering so much. I've had both types of injections. I do get cortisone injections about three times a yr. I have chronic bursitis and tendonitis flares in both my shoulders and elbows. I believe the trigger points just tighten everything up so bad it really starts to aggrevate the muscles and tendons to the point that it puts me into these flares. Nevermind everything else....lol.
The cortisone injections are just a band-aid, my Doc hates injecting me with them and says it's just a band aid; however when the flares get bad it gets so accute that it's the only thing that keeps me mobile and with range of motion.
I hope you find some relief, i understand the headaches as well I suffer from them and they are hell.
Good luck.

Once in awhile, I just have to get a cortisone injection for pain relief and that is when nothing else works and I cry out to move or cannot walk standing up. I find them to be very useful but am careful not to do it often (more than once a year and not in the same place then). They are not the same as lidocaine injections for trigger points as they go deep into the joint and the needle is long - it is not so bad. I feel for you - my headache has been here since March 2 and I am sitting with an ice bag on my head as I type.

Hi Dave,

How do you feel today after the injections?

This might help understand cortisone injections better :

http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/paindrugs/a/cortisone.htm

Cortisone is not a pain killer, it is a potent anti inflammatory medication.