Pain in the side.

I don`t know if it has anything to do with my hypermobility, and ehlers danlos, but since about 3.30 yesterday afternoon I have been in agony!
I started having twinges in my left side, round about the area which would coincide with the bottom of my rib cage. The twinges got more and more frequent, and more and more painful, during the evening and by mid evening I was in agony with sharp stabbing pains every few seconds which made me wince and jump. The area was also very sore and tender to the touch and I could not even bare to have the material of my clothing next to the area so painful was it. The whole of my left side, from breast down to hip, radiating slightly round to the front and back was very very tender, though nothing was showing on my skin, no redness, no rash, no apparent swelling, yet I only needed to touch it and I jumped with pain. I tried to concentrate on the television, though I could not get myself comfortable, and by ten o`clock the tears were streaming down my face even though I attempted to stop them, the pain was just so fierce I could not bare it! When my husband realised how much I was suffering he brought me painkillers and a wheat bag, hoping the heat would help. I was wary about putting the wheat bag near to the tender area and I very carefully placed it as close as I was able, it took about an hour and thankfully the pains began to subside a little, soothed by the heat, or by the pain killing medication, perhaps both I don`t know, I was just glad the pain was a bit better! Eventually I decided I had to try and go to bed, reluctantly as I could not see how I would be able to sleep if the level of pain kept the same and I had to ask my husband to warm up the wheat bag once again. I laid it on the mattress and flattened it out, then carefully lowered myself gingerly on top of it. It took a while but eventually I managed to get a little more comfortable and I did drop off to sleep, though waking a few times in the night with the stabbing pains. I woke early this morning because of the pain and carefully got dressed and I have thought it best to rest today as moving around seems to aggravate it.
I have no idea of the cause but wonder if it has anything to do with my hypermobility and ehlers danlos, as I can move in a certain way and my ribs seem to dig in and hurt me. I have had something similar to this before, but not to this extent, not so long lasting and painful. Hopefully it will right itself, I don`t fancy yet another trip to the doctor!

Is it great being hypermobile? No really.

Over the years I have had problems with so many of my joints, I score top marks on the Beighton Scale, it seems that most of my joints are loose.
My ankle is so painful at the moment, it came on yesterday suddenly for no reason whatsoever, one minute it was okay, the next I could hardly put my weight on my left foot. The ankle has been clicking for some time, and I have had many times when pain has started in the ankle for no reason over the course of many years, but this time the pain radiates up the lower calf and I get a shooting pain when I put weight on it. I have put my magnetic support on which normally works in a few days so I am hoping it will take the pain away, though as yet it has done no good at all. I am barely able to hobble and am slightly worried that this pain is not the same as I usually get. I have noticed that in the last few months the pain, when it comes, lasts for longer. At one time I could put the strapping on and it would subside within 3 or 4 days, but it has been playing up a little for a fortnight now and keeps getting worse each time it returns. My GP said he cannot give me any different anti inflammatories or pain killers so he seems to have given up and I don`t quite know what to do, or where to go for help. I do find that if I have pains in one or two joints it makes me walk slightly differently to compensate for the pain site and then I subsequently get pain in a different place because I am moving my body in a slightly different way or position.
I used to think it was great being hypermobile when I was younger and my party piece was to do the splits, high kick or wrap my legs around my neck. I now hate being hypermobile as I would not be in the physical pain I am suffering now if I weren`t.

Sleeping, or not.

I have not been sleeping well lately, things on my mind but also I have not been able to get myself comfortable. Lie on one side, hip displaces slightly, pain. Turn over, shoulders ache then hip begins to hurt. I can`t win. I lie in the dark trying to still my mind, make my mind blank but then I have to turn over because my knee hurts and my back has gone into spasm. He snores loudly beside me and I despair of getting any sleep. I hear his alarm go off at 6am and groan, I can`t remember being asleep yet and it is almost time to get up.

Pain.

I asked my doctor yesterday if I could be refered to a rheumatologist. He told me it would not be of any benefit, they would only give me the same anti inflammatories and pain killers I already have on repeat prescription from him,and would not be able to offer me anything else. I asked about steroid injections and he looked horrified, telling me they have lots of side effects and I have enough problems as it is, without anything else! He said steroid injections are more for rheumatoid arthritis than the osteoarthritis I have. He showed me his own hands and told me he has osteoarthritis himself for which he does not take anything as he does not want the side effects! Thats all very well if you just have the pain in the hands I thought, but when you have back pain, both lower and upper, knee pain, your shoulder hurts and your ankle is painful and clicks aswell as the joints of the knuckles and fingers you need a bit of help! I find standing in one spot for more than a few minutes agonising and my hips and back scream with pain when walking, so much so that I need a mobility scooter. I would love to avoid taking medication, and I tried for a long time to do without, but I have reached the stage where the pain is too much and I cannot function without pain relief. I am 57 now, so maybe a rheumatologist would not have a lot to offer, but I think perhaps my GP has not taken my hypermobility into account, maybe he has I don`t know. To be told there is nothing else he can do is difficult to come to terms with, and to know I have to live with this pain, as even taking the medication I still have pain, though perhaps the edge is taken off, is very hard to bear.

EDS IS A PAIN, LITERALLY.

My right hip is absolute agony right now, so much so that I don`t know where to put myself. Everytime I move, even if it is a small movement, it is much much worse and walking, well walking at the moment is almost impossible. The pain killers have not done a thing, though I took a couple two hours ago, I have had my anti inflammatories and I am now wondering what to do as nothing is helping. I don`t even know what I have done to it, but then again my hip can sublax just by my turning over in bed, so really I don`t need to do a lot! Hopefully with some rest it will right itself, I know I can`t put up with it like this for much longer.

IBS and EDS

It has come to light that IBS seems to be connected to EDS, having had stomach problems for a long time now I can well attest to that view. Food intolerance and stress contributing to the problems in my opinion. It is restrictive and debilitating and on many occasions I have been forced to cancel a social visit because of the problems caused. Pain caused by IBS can be terrible, and other side effects which I will leave to your imagination! Sometimes the only way to get over a flare up of IBS is to stop eating, and I am often just on water for a couple of days in the hope that it will sort things out. It gets me down and can often last for days, not an easy thing to cope with.

BURSITIS

For a few days I had bursitis behind my knee, very painful, but with rest it has eased a lot. I have had it before, all part of the ehlers danlos hypermobility experience I think, never a dull moment! I was visiting my cousins at the weekend, and we were all pulling our thumbs down to the wrist, one point for each wrist on the beighton scale. Then my cousin Susan said she could wrap her legs around her neck when she was younger, and we began to compare notes,  as I used to be able to do that too. They could remember me doing the splits, though when I was invited to perform this particular trick I declined because at the age of 56 that is now beyond me! Clive asked how I knew I could do these things, and why on earth did I try them in the first place?! Frankly I don`t have an answer to that, I suppose just because I could! I have always been a fidget and can never keep still, but perhaps it was a bit extreme to wrap my legs around my shoulders! Maybe it was in gym class at school, I honestly can`t remember. I know I discovered I could do splits in gym class at the age of 5, I certainly did not know I had the ability before then! I do now wish that I had not gone to such extremes, though how much it would have helped, and whether my joints would still be in the same state they are nowadays is anybodies guess. I often see people in their 70`s and 80`s walking briskly past me, when I am struggling to walk and leaning heavily on my stick, and think to myself why is life so unfair? Not that I wish any harm to those people, I just wish I could walk as quickly and without pain.