Muscle Twitching

[Looby69]

Hi @Deano I hope you've had a good Christmas. Just thought I would check in and see how you're doing?

 

[Deano]

@LadyPenguin Thanks for your reply. It seems that twitching is quite common in a lot of us then. How long has your twitching been going on for? Where do you have it and has it got worse/better or stayed the same over time?

 

[Deano]

@Looby69 Thanks for asking about me that's very kind of you. I've had a nice Crimbo thanks, hope you have aswell?

The muscle twitching doesn't seem to be as often as it was before. I have been trying not to use the arm that the twitching is happening the most in. I have noticed though that I have a lot of pain in my wrist and pinky side of my hand at the moment when I am bending it to the sides. My right arm does seem to wear out and hurt/ache more than my left arm especially when using it or doing anything strenuous.

How are your aches/pains and twitches at the moment??

 

[Looby69]

A good Christmas too thanks, albeit quiet.
Great that your twitching has abated. My symptoms remain the same. I've been referred back to a neurologist for possible muscle biopsy and the nerve test. All a but worrying.
I've had clean bloods done in March/April and a clear MRI of head, neck and spine in May. Was diagnosed with Fibro by rheumatologist in June. My most recent issue is frozen shoulder which is causing me all sorts of problems, including muscle weakness and hand cramps. I try not to worry but with so may symptoms and day to day challenges, it's tough. Still got the full body twitches too. Will see what the next neurologist has to say, its on the NHS this time though so it could be a while before I see anyone.
I did see the chiropractor last week for my frozen shoulder, he said he was confident he could fix it but it was going to be painful and it was going to take time

 

[Deano]

I think the nerve test is the golden test to rule out the serious conditions. I do wonder if I have nerve damage in my shoulder as the problems on my right side do stem from there and that arm aches when stretching/twisting and doing the simplest of things. I think it's a good thing the twitches are all over and not confined just to one area.

I think I might ask the GP if I can have a referral to a neurologist to finally work out what's going on. I have upped my magnesium intake and am taking vitamin D supplement too so maybe this has helped with regards to the twitching.

I have an MRI in a couple of weeks also as I have a lump in my neck. GP seems to think it is an enlarged salivary gland but ENT seem to think it is cartalidge in my neck so who knows?

Hope you get things sorted.

 

[AVI]

Hi Deano! Nice to know that I'm not the only "twitcher"...my body twitches as well. My arms twitch (left and right), my head at times twitches to the right, and sometimes my legs even twitch (or jerk). I started keeping track of my twitches on my cell phone, noting the body part, date and time, so I can discuss it with my doctor. Sometimes, my fingers will even twitch if my finger(s) is hovering over a key or button on my laptop and will involuntarily hit the key(s)--so frustrating.

 

[fitzy]

I've had muscles twitches in calves everyday for 12 years. It's all day every second. I get regular twitches in my calves (I call them pops or fireworks). I also have the bag of worms feelings in my calves 24/7. My legs are sore 24/7 as well. I get random twitches all over my body sometimes for minutes and sometimes for days. Those random twitches seem to get worse with lack of sleep. I had a left shoulder twitch for the past 2 days that is finally slowing down and more intermittent now. For years they told me it is BFS but recently they are thinking it isn't BFS and finally diagnosed me with Fibromyalgia due to my pain I also been having past several years. I have psoriatic arthritis so they thought for years it was only that. BFS seems like their go to and they don't seem too concerned unless you have other symptoms. I think this is a bad policy because it is a reactive approach instead of proactive.

 

[JayCS]

BFS seems like their go to and they don't seem too concerned unless you have other symptoms. I think this is a bad policy because it is a reactive approach instead of proactive.

Hi again. We're not familiar with BFS, so just demystifying it as "benign fasciculation syndrome."
Seems it describes pretty much what you are saying and the diagnosis means ignoring it & putting it down to anxiety and being hypochondriac, is that what you mean by 'reactive'? That of course is where fibro has also come from.
When they can't find anything, are loss for explanations and help they are scared to admit it,
I think partly because of too high expectations we put in medicine...
Being proactive of course is always the best way, if we can, which many of us unfortunately often don't have the energy for...

 

[sunkacola]

I've had muscles twitches in calves everyday for 12 years. It's all day every second. I get regular twitches in my calves (I call them pops or fireworks). I also have the bag of worms feelings in my calves 24/7. My legs are sore 24/7 as well. I get random twitches all over my body sometimes for minutes and sometimes for days. Those random twitches seem to get worse with lack of sleep. I had a left shoulder twitch for the past 2 days that is finally slowing down and more intermittent now. For years they told me it is BFS but recently they are thinking it isn't BFS and finally diagnosed me with Fibromyalgia due to my pain I also been having past several years. I have psoriatic arthritis so they thought for years it was only that. BFS seems like their go to and they don't seem too concerned unless you have other symptoms. I think this is a bad policy because it is a reactive approach instead of proactive.

Have you tried a TENS machine for your legs? I know it is counterintuitive, to send tiny electric shocks into a part of your body that is twitching. but it works for me, so I always suggest that a person might want to give it a try. Mine is not as severe as what you describe, so I am not saying it would work for you but if you haven't tried it, maybe think about it.

 

[JayCS]

I know it is counterintuitive, to send tiny electric shocks into a part of your body that is twitching.

Hmm, maybe it doesn't just distract the nerves from pain, but also from the twitching, sort of neutralizing it, so I think it has a certain logic to try it. Also you can read up e.g. on backcoretherapy "what-does-a-tens-unit-do-for-muscles" that studies have shown that it can relieve spasms. However muscle twitches are also one of the main side effects of the TENS unit and shows that it is turned up too much, so it's important to start very low. If that still isn't low enough then a similar but more gentle gadget, a microcurrrent unit is an alternative.
I just know however from trying electrotherapy and EMS that neither is at all good for my epileptic 'twitches'.

 

[sunkacola]

It is always wise no matter what a person is trying, to start out small: low dosage of meds, low setting on TENS and so on. The TENS only makes muscles twitch if you turn it up too high, and of course what is too high varies among people. And, while I generally do not turn it up that high, I find that the slight twitching that occurs with the unit on my legs does help to reduce the twitching in my legs when I get them; once I take the unit off, my legs don't twitch any more. Helps with restless legs as well, but I do not actually have Restless Leg Syndrome, so I don't know if it would help for extreme cases like that.

 

[dolphindora]

I suffer with FM and like you never had it before and my thumb started twitching and took on a life of its own it hurt a bit and lasted throughout the night.
I spoke to doctor who ordered blood tests and my iron came back really low level 5. I’ve been out on iron tablets but no one has spoken with me about why it has got so low as I do eat an iron rich diet. I have read that for a woman this is iron deficiency anaemia..I put my breathlessness, tiredness and dizziness down to Fibro as they’ve symptoms I’ve always had it’s so hard to differentiate between Fibro and other things. I’ve also recently started the HRT combination patch..oh and almost forgot also just been diagnosed with dry eye..throughout all this I’m going to bed and saying 5 things I’m grateful about for that day. Battling illness day by day is so time consuming and exhausting just so glad I’ve got my beautiful dog who gets me out walking in a beautiful park abundant with nature swans different ducks and birds in the lake it really does help!

 

[dolphindora]

Oh it is wretched. I get that deep aching and so painful whereby it feels like it is coming from the bones and it gets really intense and it’s so damn painful..what a struggle just to get through the day.. sorry to hear all that I really empathise with how you’re feeling!

 

[Looby69]

I suffer with FM and like you never had it before and my thumb started twitching and took on a life of its own it hurt a bit and lasted throughout the night.
I spoke to doctor who ordered blood tests and my iron came back really low level 5. I’ve been out on iron tablets but no one has spoken with me about why it has got so low as I do eat an iron rich diet. I have read that for a woman this is iron deficiency anaemia..I put my breathlessness, tiredness and dizziness down to Fibro as they’ve symptoms I’ve always had it’s so hard to differentiate between Fibro and other things. I’ve also recently started the HRT combination patch..oh and almost forgot also just been diagnosed with dry eye..throughout all this I’m going to bed and saying 5 things I’m grateful about for that day. Battling illness day by day is so time consuming and exhausting just so glad I’ve got my beautiful dog who gets me out walking in a beautiful park abundant with nature swans different ducks and birds in the lake it really does help!

@dolphindora, I too started my menopause around the same time as my fibro symptoms started, I was also diagnosed with borderline underactive thyroid. I started on HRT and am on 50mg of Levothyroxine for my thyroid. I too suffer from the dry eye and dry mouth and intense muscle twitching. Some days the thumb that I use on my phone to type tremors really badly. I too walk every day, with gratitude and I look for joy in everything around me I notice nature, which I love, I listen for the birds (difficult with tinnitus) and love the smells of the different seasons. Through the help of this forum I am gradually learning to pace myself, take time for me without guilt when I'm not great and it is really starting to help me. I think to an extent I'm actually enjoying the "new" pace and way of doing things, rather than everything needing to be done right now. I have had pain now since November 2020 in different severity so pace and exercise are key for me. This forum is also a godsend to tune into when I'm feeling overwhelmed, alone and isolated.

 

[NY Farmwife]

Whatever the final diagnosis, this is something that might benefit from a little self-care. Try tennis ball pressure on the known trigger points for your area. It hurts. But it can often stop something that is fairly localized and of relatively short duration. It's worth a try.