Does anyone else here have chronic myofascial pain?

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I have horrible chronic myofascial pain in my neck, shoulder and head. I originally had a whiplash injury about 4 years ago and it continued to worsen over time. I think my tension and social anxiety may have contributed to this condition and I wonder if anyone else has been affected similarly.

Any other aspies afflicted with chronic myofascial pain?

I suffer from migraines. These have been more centered around my neck and back lately, but I don't suffer from chronic pain. I can't imagine how terrible that would be. I have very recurrent pains, but mine's gotten better over the last year or two.

Sorry to hear that Unkown_Quantity I too get migraines,they are caused by the myofascial pain. I never got any headaches until very recently and migraines can be so very debilitating. Have you found anything to help you alleviate the migraines?

Yes, I have had various myofascial issues in my neck since I flew over the handlebars of a bike and slid down a hill on my face. I developed lower back and chest myofascial problems from other injuries, and years of leaning sideways to use a computer mouse ultimately affected my shoulders.

I found a good deal of relief from the self-care therapies outlined in >> The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook <<.

I also get neurovascular headaches, including migraine, ocular migraine and cluster headache. Trigger point therapy seems to be effective for my ocular migraines, not so sure about the others.

Low magnesium levels can be a factor in migraine, and I have a hunch that they can also contribute to the tendency to develop myofascial problems.

what does that mean?
not sure if this is included but am think it might be because of the fascial bit? [if meaning face?] have had trigeminal neuralgia since the start of the new millenium,it is to do with the trigeminal nerves in the face,although it only affects one side,it's sometimes classed as being life threatening,in the sense that the pain is known as being one of the worst types and has left people with it attempting suicide,a high dose of morphine wouldn't even help but anti epileptic drugs do,am still get TN attacks,but they aren't too bad,and don't last as long.
it's very rare in young people,but as root canal treatment gets more common,its likely that it's this that is one of the biggest causes of it in younger people,it is a known cause,thats what doctors think caused it in am,but a few years back they refused to believe this.

Myofascial pain refers to the fascia (sheaths) that surround muscle fibers. In a healthy muscle, the bundles of muscle cells slide smoothly in the sheaths. But sometimes, the muscle can get 'knotted' and does not slide smoothly. It creates problems, including swelling and pain.

The pain not only occurs locally, but can also be 'referred' to nearby areas.

This type of problem can be anywhere on the body there is muscle - it sounds like the word face, but that is somewhat confusing. Tension headaches are not so much about nervous tension as muscular tension - the muscles clench and it can affect the nerves in the neck, which causes a pain in the head (of course, emotional stress can make this worse, but sometimes it is purely physical from an injury). Some cases of TMJ jaw problems are actually myofascial, and can improve with proper massage of the affected muscles. Some sinus pain, or eye problems can respond to massage of the cheeks or nose.

Trigeminal neuralgia is up there in terms of pain, but understanding it is like looking at a strange beast. Sometimes they give 'nerve blocks' or injections to block (or activate) nerves other than the trigeminal, and it may help with that type of pain. This is because the nervous system is more complicated than direct pipelines between each area of the body and the brain. Some areas share circuits, or too much activity on one circuit can overflow and activate a nearby circuit.

I do. Mine is usually TMJ-related but stress really increases it.

Monty, my CMP was caused by a mountain biking accident, I also went over the handlebars. I do use the Claire Davies books and his suggested massage techniques. I just had radio frequency ablation to the nerves of c3,c4,c5,c6. It seems to have helped that part of my pain. My Dr at the pain clinic thinks the trigger points could not be resolved because of the underlying nerve problem. Hopefully that will be different now.

I am getting a stellate ganglion block on Thursday and 30-40 trigger point injections right after. This had better work, I am in so much pain lately. 150mgs of Oxycontin and muscle relaxants on top of that every day.

Have you found any other treatments that have worked? Have you heard of Gokavi transverse technique?
www.gokaviacupuncture.com It is a very unique form of acupuncture specifically for CMP. I tried it and immediately had improved range of motion but because of the underlying condition my trigger points came back in just a short time.
There are only a few practitioners in the US (California, Texas) but there are many in Canada. If you email the Dr at the website above she will actually call you personally. She is incredibly kind and generous with her time and knowledge.

If you have any other suggestions I would like to have that discussion with you. How much does it effect your daily life?