Recent Diagnosis
I have been dealing with severe shoulder pain in my left shoulder for 20 years. My first episode 20 years ago was so intense I would lay in a fetal position and cry. I ended up having a cortisone shot and it helped. The pain never went away and would vary from dull to intense over many years. Dr.'s would say it is bursitis or tendinitis.
About 5 years after that my hips, knees, back and neck started to ache. I was told the same diagnosis. Over the next 10 years things slowly became worse and I was told there was probably something else going on.
Last year the pain in my shoulder was pretty bad and it was also in my right shoulder. I had a MRI and was told there was nothing wrong with my shoulder. I was given a second cortisone shot which did no good. They took an X-ray of my neck and said I might have something going on with my neck.
I had a stressful year with many deaths in my family. Things started to get out of control. I was having pain everywhere. I had trouble concentrating and with memory. Anxiety increased as well. Then my arms and hands started to throb and go numb and my hands and feet were very swollen.
I decided to see a chiropractor for help thinking it's my neck and back. It seemed to only help a little. I had steroid shots in my neck and things got worse. I was getting very frustrated at this point. I asked for a MRI of my neck and was told there is nothing wrong with my neck also.
By this time I'm at my wits end. I was referred to physical medicine. After examination he told me I had fibromyalgia and thought I also had Lupus. He referred me to a rheumatologist. After blood work and examination I was told I had MCTD. I am kind of in shock, but glad to have a diagnosis after all these years. He started me on Plaquenil twice a day and 200mg of Lyrica. He also added sulfasalazine to take with the Plaquenil. I also take Tramadol for pain, but it doesn't help that much. Some symptoms have gotten better and some not. I also have pain and a bump on my right heel. I had it X-rayed and saw a podiatrist 2 days ago. He then tells me my muscles are seperating from my bones. He taped up my foot, told me to avoid stairs, drink muscle milk and vitimin D supplements. I could have serious injury to my foot if I'm not careful.
I'm feeling really down at this point. This is all new to me and I don't know much about this disease. If anyone has any information they would like to share on the disease, medication recommendations for pain and MCTD or any other information that would be helpful I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you for your time and thank you for listening to me ramble.
Paula
About 5 years after that my hips, knees, back and neck started to ache. I was told the same diagnosis. Over the next 10 years things slowly became worse and I was told there was probably something else going on.
Last year the pain in my shoulder was pretty bad and it was also in my right shoulder. I had a MRI and was told there was nothing wrong with my shoulder. I was given a second cortisone shot which did no good. They took an X-ray of my neck and said I might have something going on with my neck.
I had a stressful year with many deaths in my family. Things started to get out of control. I was having pain everywhere. I had trouble concentrating and with memory. Anxiety increased as well. Then my arms and hands started to throb and go numb and my hands and feet were very swollen.
I decided to see a chiropractor for help thinking it's my neck and back. It seemed to only help a little. I had steroid shots in my neck and things got worse. I was getting very frustrated at this point. I asked for a MRI of my neck and was told there is nothing wrong with my neck also.
By this time I'm at my wits end. I was referred to physical medicine. After examination he told me I had fibromyalgia and thought I also had Lupus. He referred me to a rheumatologist. After blood work and examination I was told I had MCTD. I am kind of in shock, but glad to have a diagnosis after all these years. He started me on Plaquenil twice a day and 200mg of Lyrica. He also added sulfasalazine to take with the Plaquenil. I also take Tramadol for pain, but it doesn't help that much. Some symptoms have gotten better and some not. I also have pain and a bump on my right heel. I had it X-rayed and saw a podiatrist 2 days ago. He then tells me my muscles are seperating from my bones. He taped up my foot, told me to avoid stairs, drink muscle milk and vitimin D supplements. I could have serious injury to my foot if I'm not careful.
I'm feeling really down at this point. This is all new to me and I don't know much about this disease. If anyone has any information they would like to share on the disease, medication recommendations for pain and MCTD or any other information that would be helpful I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you for your time and thank you for listening to me ramble.
Paula
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