Hello. I'm hoping someone would be kind and read through my wall of text and give their opinion, whether It's TMS I'm experiencing because I'm having a hard time accepting It on a gut level. There are sadly no TMS doctors / therapists in my country. Thank you!
So my story with chronic pain began 6 years ago. I was 19 at the time, finishing high school, when my wrists started hurting. I guess I was stressing alot about exams and moving away from home, which I see now Is probably what helped trigger it. But I had been using a computer ALOT through the years, so It made sense that my wrists were saying stop. X-rays and MRI's came back clean except for a ganglion cyst in both wrists. I had the one in my left hand surgically removed to see if it made a difference, which It did not. I tried chiropracty and PT, stretching routines, exercises to no avail.
After 1.5 years I moved back home to my parents after doing badly in college due to social anxiety which I've struggled with my whole life. After six months back home, not really knowing what to do with myself, how to move forward, seeing a therapist that didnt really make a difference, I started experiencing tailbone pain when sitting. It would become more and more painful the longer I sat and then explode when I stood up. A couple of weeks after, my right SI joint (lower back), joined in. I experienced a sharp pain when standing up after sitting og turning in bed at night. When I walked I felt a dull aching pain. The joint occasionally gave a painful crack, if I twisted my hip a certain way by accident. I had X-rays and MRI's done which didn't really show anything out of the ordinary. Tried PT and chiropracty.
6 months later after no obvious injury, my right knee became painful and swelled up. I can't bend it past 90 degrees or straighten it all the way out. Scans again clean. I saw a reumathologist who did a blood test and ultrasound that didnt show anything out of the ordinary. I got 2 cortisone injections in the knee, that didnt do anything for the knee pain/swelling. The pain in my back and tailbone disappeared after the shots though, and have only hurt a bit, very occasionally since. Hmmmm..... He reffered me to physical therapy which I did 2 rounds of, with 2 different PT's which did nothing. Surprise. Also tried acupuncture. My right hip also started getting stiff with a deep pain in the groin area. I roll in/overpronate very exessively in my ankles so I had orthotics made and got some better shoes. It definitiely made it more comfortable to walk, but It didnt really change anything.
A couple months ago, I had another knee MRI done, 3 years after the last one. Now it suddenly showed a torn meniscus despite my symptoms haven't changed. I'm scheduled for arthroscopy/keyhole surgery in a couple of weeks, which I don't really know what to think of.
About a month ago both my ankles started hurting after no obvious injury, there were no swelling or redness. The left is worst. I get a sharp pain in the back of my ankle when I point my foot and put pressure on my heel. I can walk pretty comfortably but It'll hurt occasionally sometimes on the inside, sometimes on the outside and other times in the back, behind the achilles inside the joint. Stairwalking often aggrevates it, but other times I barely feel it. They feel very stiff and painful in the mornings until I have taken a couple of steps and put them through the motions.
So what I'm dealing with right now is wrist pain and weakness, knee pain/swelling, hip pinching, and ankle pain. Pain only during activity, not when I'm just sitting or lying around.
The reason I have trouble accepting TMS all the way, is because I feel like it makes kind of sense that years of walking in poor shoes, with my ankles rolling in resulting in inward rotation of my knees/hips and excessively stressing the joints are responsible for my pain. Also because I haven't read about anyone else in any forum or TMS book who's experienced such persistent swelling as I have in my knee. It's been 3.5 years now. Hasn't gone down once. On the other hand TMS also makes sense, and I fit the profile. I'm a worrisom, anxious, peoplepleasing person. Always tense, stressed out and in my head. Also the fact that I'm starting an internship in 2 months where I have to be on my feet alot. I have been worrying alot about whether I can handle it physically/mentally so obviously my ankles had to start hurt too I guess?
I hope It all made sense. I would love to hear your opinions! Thank you
So my story with chronic pain began 6 years ago. I was 19 at the time, finishing high school, when my wrists started hurting. I guess I was stressing alot about exams and moving away from home, which I see now Is probably what helped trigger it. But I had been using a computer ALOT through the years, so It made sense that my wrists were saying stop. X-rays and MRI's came back clean except for a ganglion cyst in both wrists. I had the one in my left hand surgically removed to see if it made a difference, which It did not. I tried chiropracty and PT, stretching routines, exercises to no avail.
After 1.5 years I moved back home to my parents after doing badly in college due to social anxiety which I've struggled with my whole life. After six months back home, not really knowing what to do with myself, how to move forward, seeing a therapist that didnt really make a difference, I started experiencing tailbone pain when sitting. It would become more and more painful the longer I sat and then explode when I stood up. A couple of weeks after, my right SI joint (lower back), joined in. I experienced a sharp pain when standing up after sitting og turning in bed at night. When I walked I felt a dull aching pain. The joint occasionally gave a painful crack, if I twisted my hip a certain way by accident. I had X-rays and MRI's done which didn't really show anything out of the ordinary. Tried PT and chiropracty.
6 months later after no obvious injury, my right knee became painful and swelled up. I can't bend it past 90 degrees or straighten it all the way out. Scans again clean. I saw a reumathologist who did a blood test and ultrasound that didnt show anything out of the ordinary. I got 2 cortisone injections in the knee, that didnt do anything for the knee pain/swelling. The pain in my back and tailbone disappeared after the shots though, and have only hurt a bit, very occasionally since. Hmmmm..... He reffered me to physical therapy which I did 2 rounds of, with 2 different PT's which did nothing. Surprise. Also tried acupuncture. My right hip also started getting stiff with a deep pain in the groin area. I roll in/overpronate very exessively in my ankles so I had orthotics made and got some better shoes. It definitiely made it more comfortable to walk, but It didnt really change anything.
A couple months ago, I had another knee MRI done, 3 years after the last one. Now it suddenly showed a torn meniscus despite my symptoms haven't changed. I'm scheduled for arthroscopy/keyhole surgery in a couple of weeks, which I don't really know what to think of.
About a month ago both my ankles started hurting after no obvious injury, there were no swelling or redness. The left is worst. I get a sharp pain in the back of my ankle when I point my foot and put pressure on my heel. I can walk pretty comfortably but It'll hurt occasionally sometimes on the inside, sometimes on the outside and other times in the back, behind the achilles inside the joint. Stairwalking often aggrevates it, but other times I barely feel it. They feel very stiff and painful in the mornings until I have taken a couple of steps and put them through the motions.
So what I'm dealing with right now is wrist pain and weakness, knee pain/swelling, hip pinching, and ankle pain. Pain only during activity, not when I'm just sitting or lying around.
The reason I have trouble accepting TMS all the way, is because I feel like it makes kind of sense that years of walking in poor shoes, with my ankles rolling in resulting in inward rotation of my knees/hips and excessively stressing the joints are responsible for my pain. Also because I haven't read about anyone else in any forum or TMS book who's experienced such persistent swelling as I have in my knee. It's been 3.5 years now. Hasn't gone down once. On the other hand TMS also makes sense, and I fit the profile. I'm a worrisom, anxious, peoplepleasing person. Always tense, stressed out and in my head. Also the fact that I'm starting an internship in 2 months where I have to be on my feet alot. I have been worrying alot about whether I can handle it physically/mentally so obviously my ankles had to start hurt too I guess?
I hope It all made sense. I would love to hear your opinions! Thank you
