For me, the aching I've felt since having rhabdo in 2010 is different than over-exercising or getting too little sleep. First of all, I don't over-exercise anymore for fear of getting full-blown rhabdo. I do walk daily and I have a physical job but as far as working out in a gym, I do not do that. Plus I've been very conscious of getting enough rest. I'm in bed by 9 PM most every night. The "humming" sensation and fatigue I feel in my legs from time to time since having rhabdo is a different feeling than I ever had previously to having rhabdo. I've also talked to my doctor about these odd sensations and he doesn't believe it's indicative of any other disease. I have had a full blood workup several times since my last full-blown bout with rhabdo and nothing suspicious shows up. All in all, I can't help but think that these strange feelings are rhabdo related, especially since they mirror so many others on this site. But there is so little information about rhabdo, that maybe we are all wrong, it just seems coincidental that many of us are experiencing the same after affects once having rhabdo, which has lead me to believe it all has to do with the rhabdo.

Hi, Im currently recovering from Rhab...I was taken into hospital 2 weeks ago now and was given fluids through the machine for 72 hours.CK Levels were at 48,000 and then proceeded to drop slowly by the day. After 5 days of being in hospital I was discharged and told to go home and rest. CK levels were at 8,000 on discharge.
I was told the main cause was not enough carbohydrates in my diet and over training but I think there were many other reasons. A week previous to this, I was feeling feverish and very fatigued and like an idiot still went ahead with my weight lifting. The fever seemed to have passed however and I thought I had fully recovered ... I went back to the gym the next week and thought nothing of it. 2 days later I was in agony. My muscles had just gave up on me from head to toe and completely siezed up on me. Any movements and I was screaming in pain. I have never expereinced pain like that before and never ever want to experience it again!
I am now feeling more energetic and no longer wish to just sleep. I went on a walk yesterday as I felt its best to build myself up, but today my legs are really aching. It seems to me as though this will be a long road to recovery? Does anybody know expected recovery times? My doctor is unable to give me an estimate on this, but this is worrying as I am self employed and need to get back to work.
I would appreciate any advice,
Thankyou!

Hi, Im currently recovering from Rhab...I was taken into hospital 2 weeks ago now and was given fluids through the machine for 72 hours.CK Levels were at 48,000 and then proceeded to drop slowly by the day. After 5 days of being in hospital I was discharged and told to go home and rest. CK levels were at 8,000 on discharge.
I was told the main cause was not enough carbohydrates in my diet and over training but I think there were many other reasons. A week previous to this, I was feeling feverish and very fatigued and like an idiot still went ahead with my weight lifting. The fever seemed to have passed however and I thought I had fully recovered ... I went back to the gym the next week and thought nothing of it. 2 days later I was in agony. My muscles had just gave up on me from head to toe and completely siezed up on me. Any movements and I was screaming in pain. I have never expereinced pain like that before and never ever want to experience it again!
I am now feeling more energetic and no longer wish to just sleep. I went on a walk yesterday as I felt its best to build myself up, but today my legs are really aching. It seems to me as though this will be a long road to recovery? Does anybody know expected recovery times? My doctor is unable to give me an estimate on this, but this is worrying as I am self employed and need to get back to work.
I would appreciate any advice,
Thankyou!

Rich319--so sorry to hear about your rhabdo problems. I think the amount of time for recovery varies a great deal from person to person. I do know for a fact that even after your CK levels are considered "normal" you will have after effects. My doctor said to expect these after effects for 4 months, but mine lasted much longer. However, I was not incapacitated and was able to do most of the things I was used to doing. I got tired more easily (and still do) and I still cannot exercise as strenuously as I once did. But I don't feel ill. Keep checking with this site. It is so helpful to know you are not going through rhabdo alone and that others have experienced what you are going through.

Rich I would take at the VERY least a month off. After My first round of rhabdo I waited a month to train and came back slowly to the gym. I went from one exercise per body part to a split in a few weeks. I continued to lift until 6 months later the end of January I got it again!! Like you, the first time I got rhabdo was because "I wasn't eating enough, and lifting to hard...." bull crap I've been lifting my entire life much harder than I was at that time. In january I was eating 4000 cals a day and lifting and I still got rhabdo. I know how hard it is to not exercise as I am a competitive bodybuilder...well was. Wait the month, you will start to feel better sooner but do not exercise. Unless you won't to end up back in the hospital again. At those hgh of CPK levels people have been put on dialysis. Anything of 5000 is considered lethal in which your levels were not even below that. If you need to work stay away from exercising. I've been to 5 doctors and only 1 doctor had actually heard of the disease. Once you get back to training you will have to stop your self from over training. Like AK said, you will most likely feel the leg issue from a long time. I've had rhabdo for a year and my legs "hum" and burn everyday.

Not trying to scare you Rich. Its just what I've experienced.. I hope you are different but do not rush the recovery! Make sure to drink at least a gallon of water a day to flush kidneys.

I've had rhabdo twice. In 2003, I felt pretty much back to normal after 8 months but this time, when I came down with it in September 2010, I've had a much harder time bouncing back. My CPK in 2010 was only 2,800 so I didn't think it would be any big deal after a couple of days in the hospital to get to feeling like myself again but I've had a rough time. I still get leg fatigue and a "humming" sensation in my legs, especially if I'm tired. I've been able to work but for the first few months after my hospital stay, just getting thru the day was challenging enough so I wasn't exercising at that point. I clean houses, so I figured that was exercise enough. It was at least 6 months before I made myself take walks in the evenings.

Unfortunately, I don't think there's a set timeline for rhabdo. Some people seem to get over it (meaning the side affects) in weeks. It seems from reading on this site that by 6-8 months most people are feeling better and I know I was much much better within that time frame, but to feel totally symptom free has still not happened to me yet. Like I said, I get tired easier and my legs ache if my schedule changes or I don't get enough rest.

I find that walking and light exercise seems to help, so take it slow but keep moving when you can.

I also had a sore throat both times that I came down with rhabdo and my doctor seems to think having a virus along other stresses on your body at the same time (like over exercising) can bring rhabdo on in some people.

You're not alone in what you're feeling. It does get better but it does linger on so try not to get depressed about it. You will be able to function but you'll probably notice tiring easier for quite some time.

Post anytime, it helps to know that you're not alone.

There are certain items you should stay away from when recovering such as caffeine, foods high in phosphate, high heat(hot tubs, high temperatures, etc.), stimulants(fat burners, energy drinks). The doctors recommend a low fat, high carb, moderate protein diet for rhabdo patients. There is little research, but the few cases there are stated the same findings.

cpk isn't the only level thats bad its the myoglobin. Myoglobin is skeletal muscle tissue, when yoru myglobin excedes 68 It becomes toxic to your liver and kidneys because they can't break down the myglobin. The doctors told me its the myoglobin that is causing the extreme pain. CPK is an enzyme used to break down muscle so when you have a flair up it becomes a muscle wasting condition for a small length of time from what I understood.

Thanks for the advice and support! Your comments are very much appreciated...
I'm just glad I found this site after hours of searching for information to help put my mind at ease. My doctor has advised rest, but judging from her reaction to my symptoms I am not convinced she has come across this before.
Some of the symptoms I have been experiencing over the past 10 days are:
Abnormal muscle twitching
Sharp pains to right hand side of stomach just underneath rib cage. ( sore at times and uncomfortable )
Headaches
fatigue and a spaced out feeling..
Thought I would share these just for the benefit of anyone else experiencing similar symptoms.

Rhabdo... Sorry to hear about the bodybuilding mate. It sucks! Nothing worse than all that hard work going to waste. I'm trying to not let it bother me for now...I was planning on leaving the gym for at least a month as I'm really worried about ending up back in hospital again. I have been a gym regular for years aswell weight liftingh and as far as I'm concerned I did nothing different to what I usually do, so I am still at a loss as to why this happened. My carb intake could maybe have been a bit higher but it had been at that level for a for few months so...??
My doctor did advise me to cut out all alcohol, medication and high fat foods untill I am fully recovered.No starchy carbohydrates was advised aswell. The alcohol isnt a problem as I rarely drink anyway.
I am now coming to the end in my second week of recovery but I'm still not convinced about going back to work. I actually think I could manage it but the last thing I want to do is more harm to my body. I guess this is what I'm afraid of and just wondering how soon others went back to work and whether they were fine or not?
Are you advising take a month off from the gym and work minimum from experience?

Sorry for going on, but there really isnt anybody else apart from you guys here to talk to about it. Ha! Guess thats the point of the site though.
Thanks again for the advice!

Everyone is different, and although we share ALOT of the same side affects, you'll have to return to work when you feel you can. I went back after 2 weeks, but I only work in the mornings, but even so it wiped me out so as soon as I got home, I'd shower and lay on the couch until bedtime. Eventually I wasn't as exhausted and finally I was able to start walking for light exercise but that didn't happen for 6 months. I felt cleaning a house each day was probably enough exercise but I finally reached a point where I needed to try and get more stamina and that's when I began walking.

I was like you, searching and searching for info and was thrilled to find this site.

My doctor didn't tell me to stop medications, although he did tell me to watch my alcohol intake. I take B12 (1,000 mcg) and started taking CoQ10 after my 2nd bout with rhabdo because a couple people on this site said they thought it helped and I think it did. My doctor recommended a high-protein diet.....so again, no one really knows since it seems many of our doctors have given us conflicting advice.

What you describe you're experiencing is bothersome but not atypical. Most of us have complained about the same side affects you are having. When I found this site and learned that people were having the same odd feelings I was having, I was so relieved! So this site is a great source of comfort.

Post anytime, we are all here for each other. You can email me directly neecee5775@yahoo.com if you have anything specific you'd like to ask about or to just vent. I have a couple friends thru this site who I vent with on a regular basis! It helps!!

Everyone is different, and although we share ALOT of the same side affects, you'll have to return to work when you feel you can. I went back after 2 weeks, but I only work in the mornings, but even so it wiped me out so as soon as I got home, I'd shower and lay on the couch until bedtime. Eventually I wasn't as exhausted and finally I was able to start walking for light exercise but that didn't happen for 6 months. I felt cleaning a house each day was probably enough exercise but I finally reached a point where I needed to try and get more stamina and that's when I began walking.

I was like you, searching and searching for info and was thrilled to find this site.

My doctor didn't tell me to stop medications, although he did tell me to watch my alcohol intake. I take B12 (1,000 mcg) and started taking CoQ10 after my 2nd bout with rhabdo because a couple people on this site said they thought it helped and I think it did. My doctor recommended a high-protein diet.....so again, no one really knows since it seems many of our doctors have given us conflicting advice.

What you describe you're experiencing is bothersome but not atypical. Most of us have complained about the same side affects you are having. When I found this site and learned that people were having the same odd feelings I was having, I was so relieved! So this site is a great source of comfort.

Post anytime, we are all here for each other. You can email me directly neecee5775@yahoo.com if you have anything specific you'd like to ask about or to just vent. I have a couple friends thru this site who I vent with on a regular basis! It helps!!

I took 2 days off from work because thats all I could afford, I would have taken more time off if I could have fincially. hurting aroudn the ribcage may be your kidneys..does your back hurt too? Spaced out feeling definitely, and I still have that along with the head aches. Rich were you on a statin by chance? No starchy carbs? that might be because of the phosphate... I would take a minimum of a month off from exercising, but work is up to you. If you can afford to take the time off do it. The less you do the better right now, especially with how servere your levels were. I write on here pretty often as of late as it does help. With all the different symptoms I had it is great to know that I'm not crazy. Not being able to exercise is a struggle for myself moreso then anything...Its what I've been doing forever but my health is more important.

Thanks for the advice neecee5775. I appreciate that it will prob vary from person to person regarding recovery an symptoms. I'm glad you are on the mend now though and on the road to full recovery!

Rhabdo...My back doesnt hurt no...just the front stomach around the rib cage. I went to see the doctor toaday and she asked the same. I have been told its more than likely my liver and if it gets worse and more frequent to go back to hospital. I wasnt on statin no, I'm not even sure what this is? As for the training..well I feel your pain! Its really annoying when you think about all the hard work you put into it and what a big part of your life it plays. Your health is more important though I agree. I'm grateful I didnt have to go through Dyalysis as I was extremely close to kidney failure. My doctor has advised to have another week off at least so I will see how the next few days go.

You're welcome, Rich. Finding this site helped me so much to learn I was sharing symptoms with others who were unfortunate enough to have suffered thru rhabdo. Keep in touch, let's keep sharing our stories and supporting one another.