Var. Replies, catch up (long)

[Guest guest]

Um, it was a nasssttty week for me last wk. All I could do to drag myself

out of bed & some days I didn't manage that...Went to the Dr. for a checkup

& Rx renewals, found out my thyroid was all screwed up again (hypo). Also,

my Dr. went carefully thru all my tests, symptoms, etc. and suspects I may

have Cushing's disease. Great. I got home & did some research on the 'net &

it seems to be caused much of the time, in women, by a pituitary tumor.

Grrrr. While this has really blown me away, in an odd way it's reassuring

for there to be one possible cause for all my health crap, that might be

correctable with surgery. If not, oh well. Supposed to start testing soon,

but I gotta stay off some of my meds for a wk. at least.

Re: legs that ache:

Oh yeah! Night is one of the worst times for aching & muscle spasms. Vicodin

in the late afternoon and Flexeril at bedtime has helped somewhat, but I

still get the searing pains out of *nowhere* in the day -- those seem

totally unpredictable. I'd *love* a long soak in the tub, but it's too

painful for my butt and hips. Any suggestions? Air mattress thingie

partially inflated? Sometimes it makes my butt muscles hurt just to sit in

my 'puter chair!

Re: ears:

I have occasional tinnitus. However, many times every day I have numbness in

one or both ears, just inside my ear canal inside my head. Comes & goes,

never lasts long, but it's a *very* weird feeling...like getting a mild

electrical shock that just makes your skin tingle. I haven't told my Dr.

this is just *too weird!* I think I may have some hearing loss. Just

Saturday, my boyfriend silently signaled for me to " turn down my volume "

when talking -- yet again. And I didn't think I was talking loudly at all.

Re: drug companies/patient assistance:

Thank you, thank you, thank you, !!!

Re: pain & massage:

FM pain is such an individual thing. And so are massage therapists. There

are many kinds of massage therapy. I go to a therapist who works with lots

of FM clients. Some weeks she can only touch my skin very lightly & I can

barely endure 30 minutes of gentle massage, mostly from having to lie on the

table which is extremely painful for me. I often take Vicodin as well as

Flexeril up to 1 hr. before my appointment. If I tell her I'm really hurting

partway thru a session, we quit. A MASSAGE THERAPIST SHOULD *ALWAYS* STOP --

AT LEAST TEMPORARILY -- WHEN HER CLIENT TELLS HER TO!!! (sorry for yelling,

but you gotta stick up for yourself!) If she's insensitive enough not to

stop for a breather at least, I'd be looking for a new massage therapist.

Sometimes I'm very tender, but I know that the small amount of discomfort I

feel will be well worth the benefits later. Going straight home after &

using a moist heating pad also helps.

Ann R. in TX