Myofascial Pain Syndrome Support Group
Myofascial Pain Syndrome (or MPS) is a term used to describe one of the conditions characterized by chronic pain. It is associated with and caused by "trigger points" (TrPs), sensitive and painful areas between the muscle and fascia. The symptoms can range from referred pain through myofascial trigger points to specific pains in other areas of the body. It may be related...
Hi everyone!
I can't explain how relieved I am to have found this site and this group. I have spent hours reading past posts and feel like I have finally found what I have been looking for. It is unfortunate that it is under the circumstance of pain that we meet here and I truly wish the best for all of you.
I will tell you a little about what I am going through and any advise or suggestions will be much appreciated. It is unbelievable to me how little research/information there is on myofascial pain. About 2 years ago, I herniated my L5/Si disc doing squats at the gym. I spent the next year doing PT, injections, IDET surgery and finally a microdiscectomy. About 6 months ago, i started experiencing myofascial pain. I sit all day at work and it felt like the pain would crawl up my back throughout the day and eventually take over my shoulders and my neck. Early this January, the pain became unbearable and I have not been able to work since. Trigger points had spread throughout my entire body - back, shoulders, neck, jaw, stomach, hips.. I am on my 8th week - 3x a week - of dry needling treatment, which consists of needled getting inserted into the trigger points to release the muscle and the toxins that have built up. Some areas have started to improve and some haven't. My doctor says that it may be until June before I am cured. I am not able to sit/stand for more than a couple minutes before the pain becomes unbearable.
Has anyone had any experience with dry needling? If so, how long did it take for you to see significant improvement?
I have had blood tests and have a Vitamin D deficiency so have been taking supplements. In the fall I also went to PT where they pushed very hard on the trigger points. I did not see any improvement with this and continued to get worse.
For anyone else receiving dry needling treatment, i have found that a hot bath afterwards helps with the pain.
Thanks for taking the time to read and I look forward to being a part of this group.
I can't explain how relieved I am to have found this site and this group. I have spent hours reading past posts and feel like I have finally found what I have been looking for. It is unfortunate that it is under the circumstance of pain that we meet here and I truly wish the best for all of you.
I will tell you a little about what I am going through and any advise or suggestions will be much appreciated. It is unbelievable to me how little research/information there is on myofascial pain. About 2 years ago, I herniated my L5/Si disc doing squats at the gym. I spent the next year doing PT, injections, IDET surgery and finally a microdiscectomy. About 6 months ago, i started experiencing myofascial pain. I sit all day at work and it felt like the pain would crawl up my back throughout the day and eventually take over my shoulders and my neck. Early this January, the pain became unbearable and I have not been able to work since. Trigger points had spread throughout my entire body - back, shoulders, neck, jaw, stomach, hips.. I am on my 8th week - 3x a week - of dry needling treatment, which consists of needled getting inserted into the trigger points to release the muscle and the toxins that have built up. Some areas have started to improve and some haven't. My doctor says that it may be until June before I am cured. I am not able to sit/stand for more than a couple minutes before the pain becomes unbearable.
Has anyone had any experience with dry needling? If so, how long did it take for you to see significant improvement?
I have had blood tests and have a Vitamin D deficiency so have been taking supplements. In the fall I also went to PT where they pushed very hard on the trigger points. I did not see any improvement with this and continued to get worse.
For anyone else receiving dry needling treatment, i have found that a hot bath afterwards helps with the pain.
Thanks for taking the time to read and I look forward to being a part of this group.
Thanks so much for your reply. I am very sorry that you have been dealing with this for so long. Are you still getting the injections/dry needling? If not, how long did you try it for?
The only myofascial release I have tried was at PT where they pushed very hard on the trigger points - didn't help. I recently bought a Theracane but have not been able to use it much because I am very sore from the needling. I have not tried spray and stretch yet. Is there another type of myofascial release you are familiar with?
I hope that you have found something to offer you some relief. I feel like I am trapped in a tight and painful body and am willing to try anything that may help.
Thanks again Kat!
Thanks for the reply and the encouragement. I am sorry that the injections and dry needling did not help you. Not sure if you have read the book "Fibromyalgia & Chronic Myofascial Pan - A Survival Manual" by Devin Starlanyl and Mary Ellen Copeland, but It discusses many causes and contributors of myofascial pain. This may help to figure out the cause of your trigger points. I have found it to be very helpful.
Thanks again and good luck!
Atlas Orthongonal Chiropractor, Bonnie Prudden trained Myotherapist (This is trigger point therapy.) a chiropractor trained in Active Release Technique (ART) and another chiropractor who has his doctorate in Medical Qigong. He does energy work on me and Chinese bodywork called Tuina and Anmo. Even with all of these treatments, I still have pain due to the perpetuating factor of hypermobile syndrome. There are several of us in this group who have this problem where our joints are too mobile. I did six treatments of prolotherapy to my SI joints and surrounding ligaments, but my pelvis still rotates forward and downward on the left. Maybe I need more prolo, but I am now trying to balance my body using the Egoscue Method of rehabilitation. Too early to tell if this is going to be helpful. Like Tink (Zingara) mentioned, each of us responds differently to therapy, so each person has to find out what works for them. It is trial and error, which makes this pain harder to resolve. You have caught it early, so that should work in your favor.
Thank you for the information. I am definitely going to check out the treatments that you mentioned.
My doctor also diagnosed me with hypermobility. I was getting really into yoga when my myofascial pain started so I think stretching too hard may have contributed.
Best of luck to you!
In around a week I will have my first series of injections, so I can't give you any feedback on that yet. I have one suggestion though. Have you ever tried the ball against the wall technique? It is very low tech but it works for me. I take two tennis balls and put them in a sock and start at my neck in the little trough right beside my spine on one side. I roll the balls vertically up and down, going down the length of my spine on both sides. I really feel it--you know that good kind of pain that signals that the muscles are releasing. The chiropractor cracks my neck (which is flat) and my spine too, but the results are limited.
Since you say your pain starts in your back maybe ball against the wall massage could help you.
Thanks for your response and advise about the tennis balls. I am definitely going to try and appreciate the advice.
My pelvis is also higher on one side than the other. I have learned that trigger points in your pelvic/hip area can cause this. My doctor has found trigger points in both of my hips but they are worse on my left side, which is the side that sits higher. Prior to starting my treatments (early this January) I was having pain and numbness down my left leg. This pain was recreated when the trigger points in my left hip/butt were needled so I know that these were causing the pain. I still have trigger points there but they are smaller and I no longer have pain down my leg. Maybe when you get rid of the trigger points you may have there, your pelvis will no longer be off center.
I definitely can relate to the good kind of pain that you mention. I think that you may experience that too with the injections. With the needling, it is bitter sweet because when they hit the trigger point, it causes pain when it twitches and releases, but then I know that they got it. No pain no gain right?
Good luck with the injections and please let us know how they go. If you are someone who likes coldness on sore spots, I have found that a frozen bag of peas stays cool for a long time and is easy to mold to a sore spot on your body. I keep thinking that I can't believe there isn't a pill or something that we can take to make the trigger points go away..
Take care,
Lisa