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bksmvh

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Sorry this is going to be so long but I want to be thorough for anyone who takes the time to ready this:

Since the middle of Nov I have had a strange feeling in my left leg. It started with pain in my lower back on the left side and I started to notice that my leg felt weak and the muscle hurt me (started with calf/quad). I also have twitching in various areas of my arms and legs, feet, back etc. Since then both leg muscles have started to hurt and my arms at times. I also get neck pain and lower and upper back pain. I have had a fluctuating ANA for the last 14 years and my rheumatologist thinks I may have fibromyalgia. The neurologist that I am seeing said that there is something causing an overactivity of my nerves but isn't sure what it is.
Last week I started to notice that my left quad muscle is smaller than my right. I went to get a massage and the therapist said that the right is stronger and more solid than my left. He didn’t feel any loss of muscle fiber when I asked him about atrophy and told him I was worried about that. He said maybe since i was having so much pain and discomfort on my left side I was just favoring my right so much more. Which I am but still can this cause atrophy. Later that night I noticed I had some more saggy skin on the inner thigh of my left leg and a dimple on my right leg knee area.

Right now the rheumatologist is waiting for my next appt with the neurologist before she confirms fibro or that this is relater to auto immune issues I have. My appt is next week.

I can understand the muscle pain being relater to fibro but can atrophy? Also it was a while from when I had the initial pain in my left leg to when it spread to other extremities…is that normal to start in one area?

Again, thank you everyone for your input…This has been so concerning to me and giving me so much anxiety for quite a while.
 
I'm far from a doctor, but I would say that starting with one pain or a few pains and then getting worse or suffering more pains is pretty typical of Fibro. It is for me anyway. I started with just painful and swollen knees, and now I have bad knees, hips, lower back, shoulders/upper back, elbows and wrists.

As for the left leg being smaller than the right one, I could not say that it was atrophy for sure. You will be over compensating on your good leg when the bad one is causing pain, which will reduce the muscle tone over time and making the good one stronger. It is possible though. I have possible Complex Regional Pain Syndrome following an accident to my foot, and I am aware that atrophy is something I need to avoid as best as possible in my leg below the knee. I am aware that the circumference of my right calf is smaller than the right one by a small amount. But if the muscle is tense, then in one leg, then the circumference will be slightly different anyway. Basically, it is difficult to tell by just what you have said whether it is because there is more muscle tissue in the good leg from over compensation, or if the left leg is actually wasting away.

Until a doctor can really tell you and give you advice, I would suggest keeping it in mind that it is a possibility though. But atrophy is not the end of the world and is reversable to some extent. You may be refered to physiotherapy to help with it if it is. (And even if it isn't it might be something worth suggesting to your doctor so they can tell you if they think it is worth trying some of their treatment alongside what you already got.)

It is basically a case of keeping the strength up in your leg as best as you can. Physio can help with that. Exersices can be very helpful here. If you have a ball or a beanbag, you can begin by sitting down and just putting your foot on it and rotating the ankle around on it, so you are making small circles with your foot and keeping contact on the ball/beanbag. Doing this on a regular basis, whenever you can, and just doing as big or as small circles as your pain will allow, will help to build the strength again in your calf muscle.

Physio may even decide to help you to reduce the compensation on your good leg. It will feel like learning to walk again. Constantly remembering to walk from the heel through to the toe, learning to know your pain levels and try to work through the pain and learning when too much pain is too much and you need to rest. But the main thing is to not do so much that it leaves you unable to do it again the next day, rest often, but not for too long (leaving it days before exercising again), and learning to listen to your body.

Hope this helps a bit. I'm pretty sure I have CRPS in my foot and despite me trying my best to keep it moving and prevent it getting severe, I know the circulation is reduced a lot in my leg. Doctors told me that this is basically because my brain is trying to shut down that part of my body because of the pain and is literally trying to kill off my leg below the knee. Kinda like how some animals in nature are able to detatch certain body parts when they are caught by a bigger animal or are in severe pain. (The difference is that they can usually grow theirs back! Lol!) Some people with extreme CRPS find that their brains are actually unable to recognise their own affected body part. When given flashcards of bady parts, when shown a card with their affected body part they automatically say the opposite body part (eg: a right hand is a left hand) because their brain cannot recognise it anymore. Very strange, but very interesting.
 
Thank you warrior for the response. I have been worried about a neuromuscular issue thats why I am so concerned about the pain starting on one side and the atrophy issue. It sounds like you are in a lot of pain, I hope you can recover and feel better soon. Thanks again
 
Try not to stress out over it, since that will not make you feel any better. Unfortunately my pain is not something I can recover from, but thankyou for the kind words. :)
 
Fibro can and does start where ever the hell it's likes. I don't even remember where my pain started . For me it was tiredness so bad I felt someone had pulled the plug out.
Leg pain I've had a lot. Have you had x Rays. Maybe you have a slight disk prob or a trapped nerve .mine went. Or should I say goes from the bottom of my right hip down my bum and around to the front of my leg.its soooo painful.remember fibro makes any pain more painful then it should be.
So a little pain in the leg is a big pain to us.
As for muscle loss ,I'd think it's because you are using the other leg more.and you have just lost some tone in the leg.also when we know there something wrong with us we tend to study our body closer the ever before .we feel everything we see things we didn't see before. And maybe your leg has always been alittle weaker but until you got ill you never really notices.trust me you will look and find all sorts of thing lol.
As pp said try not to worry as what ever is going on will become clear in time.xxxx
 
Read about the meds your on, there's a warning somewhere about atrophy, if your on Lyrica, or cymbalta.
If you don't have the paperwork, all your pharmacist.
 
Thank you forgetmenot, you're right I didn't check everything until I started looking but the atrophy is definitely apparent to me. I also notice I am using my right leg to lean on and even sleeping on that side as my left is more painful. I am confused what to think. Unfortunately, I have a hard time being patient. I know you have the right advise for me just hard for me to follow sometimes when anxiety gets the best of me.
Moe, I am not on any of those medications. My rheumatologist mentioned them to me as possibilities down the road if all neurological issues are ruled out by neurologist. I just finished taking an anti seizure medication I used to take for migraines, I take a blood pressure pill and plaqunil.
 
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