Polymyalgia and work

Same here. Bursitis in both hips diagnosed then referred to rheumatologist who diagnosed PM on Friday last. Agree that it seems to be a symptom onset for some. On reflection think this has been brewing for years with pain and stiffness on and off. Hope all is improving with you. 2 days of pred have made a huge difference

Agreed that it could be brewing for years - I had bursitis in both hips for ages prior to PMR - and  my husband seems to think I had the symptoms of PMR for at least six months before it really hit me that I couldn't move like I should without pain - it seemed to creep up on me.  I just thought I was sore and tired from over training.

My husband was getting twice yearly injections last year for lower back pain and hip pain and now I wonder if maybe this was a warning sign.,

Perhaps it wasn't instantly obvious to me  because he was plagued with back problems, off and on, for well over 25 years. They were mostly minor. and his father had very similar issues, eventually solved with back surgery.

It was just last year when the lower back and hip  pain became intense for my husband . So Erik Es the injections helped but only for a couple of months at a time. 

Sorry, my typing was a mess. I meant to write, " sometimes the injections helped "

A classical sign of PMR - steroid shots given for something make the patient realise that other aches and pains have improved too and a diagnosis of pMR is made.

Something called myofascial pain syndrome is also often found alongside PMR, it is caused by the same cytokines that cause PMR pain and stiffness but instead of being systemic they tend to be localised in trigger points in muscles (areas of inflamed and hard muscle fibres), usually in pairs on either side of the spine, in the shoulder muscles, about rib level and in the lower back. They can lead to more generally tight and spasmed muscles and to referred pain when they irritate a nerve that runs close by. Sometimes the higher starting doses of pred will eventually ease it (it took several months for me) but they are better managed separately with more targetted treatment - and doing so, sometimes with steroid shots into the trigger points, allows the PMR itself to be managed with a lower dose of pred. Oral pred does give a smoother management of PMR although it can also be managed using depot-Medrol injections.

I don't know what you have available in France - but here in German-speaking middle Europe they use a technique called needling (quaddeln here) which is also found in a slightly different version called intramuscular stimulation. The techniques are thought to stimulated the nerves in the muscle and that leads to relaxation of the hard fibres. Less invasive ways of eradicating them include manual mobilisation with fingers and thumbs - some therapist even use their elbows! Sports massage therapists are usually excellent, good massage therapists can also do it. Some people find Bowen therapy helps.

We are in the U,S. While I don't wish to veer into a focus on  political discussions, I think stress makes one's body vulnerable and this election year has been both horrid and embarrassing to many of us here. It seems lIke a bad dream.

i will totally understand if this post is removed and sincere apologies if I've offended anyone. I don't yet know all the rules.  

 

It's been a strange year in more than one country and looks like more coming, at least in Europe.  In Canada with a majority government we are settled for at least three more years.  I agree about the stress, and one of the things I've been learning during this journey is active stress avoidance.  So I don't really watch television news, and am selective about the radio.  But one can absorb an awful lot from social media, especially FB, and I do find myself having to tune out sometimes.  Once upon a time I'd go to every meeting and rally and lecture on important (to me at any rate) issues.  Can't do it any longer.  Maybe I will again sometime in the future, or maybe not....

....you have Australia's sympathy. We too are in shock at what has happened in the US. We wait to see what the fall out is for us too at the bottom of the world (and heap!)

Thanks everyone. 

Never mind your side of the pond! I am British but live in Italy - Bexit has the potential to completely change our status! Austria at least has soundly rejected a swing too far to the right - but if there is an election in Italy after Sunday then Grillo and his 5* movement will show what incompetency is! No end of their elected representatives have already crossed the floor of the house to another party (they do have plenty to choose from here!) and they can't even agree amongst themselves! 

It isn't alwways the politics as such - it is the fact that they have no world experience. And apparently very short memories. We live in interesting times...

Yes, very interesting times. I don't understand why people with little  world experience are being put in major positions. I do wonder if the Internet 

Facebook,etc have kept people from learning about the past and gaining a historical perspective. . 

 My parents are no longer here but I often wonder what they'd say. On one hand, I wish I could get their wise perspective but on the other I'm glad they avoided the stress. 

As you note, the lack of world experience is a major issue. I've urged my husband to avoid obsessing over politics and focus on what can he can  control  now.

I haven't been a scold, only occasional and gentle reminders. I know  when I've crossed the line...not that it always stops me from blurting something out-  but if I can step back a moment I can resist.

Something similar is coming home to roost in my house - I did tell him... I have very little sympathy with him 

Yes, it certainliy does seem like a bad dream and many of us are wondering what is going to  happen.  America is already great, but for how long?  Newspapers and media boosted someone into  a position not qualified for.  Hoping our PMR can weather the storm.

I'm optimistic by nature so I do believe things will get better but it might take considerable time.. I have friends from many parts of the political spectrum and we avoided the terrible verbal and written attacks we saw elsewhere.

People are complex. One friend who voted differently than I did has many ethnicities in her family, is not racist, and is a caring and compassionate person.

I believe that ultimately most of us will either unite together or fail together. I also believe that  people's expectations will either  be met or they won't and there isn't enough give in the average persons budget to allow promises to go unanswered.

Recent research has shown that the average person here could not come up with $400 in a sudden emergency. Those people will be very angry if promises are broken. 

So so we take it one day at a time. .  

Strange isn't it - in this day and age that isn't very much but it si much the same in the UK I think. All our lives we've taken the same attitude as we experienced as children: if you can't afford to pay for it you can't have it! Only once did we risk all - on a mortgage in the early 1990s when interest rates in the UK were around the 15% range and we were fortunate the rate fell slowly but steadily. Seems a lifetime or five ago doesn't it? I thought people had learnt with the last financial crisis - but it seems they haven't as in the UK at least they are spending madly on credit again. It all has to be paid for eventually.

Weren't we told in the past: promises are made to be broken? And broken they will be I fear.

Yes, the pendulum swings and history repeats itself sometimes. There is division and blame passed around here but ultimately we ALL suffer, no matter our political beliefs, if the health care system worsens or aging parents must rely on their children to help out financially or there is the risk of a Great Depression, we all feel the effects..

I do believe in the goodness  of people and we have had 2 very different presidents. I believe the pendulum will swing again - or I'll be surprised by things turning out better than expected. I hope I am surprised.  

 I believe we need to work together. Funds are being cut already for services to special needs children, efc. We all pay a price for that here even if it seems as though it falls only on the families with disabled children.. We all pay a price for an inferior health care system or insufficient help for the elderly.

I think these realities will become clearer to voters over time. I do have hope.