Joint Aches and Stiffness

[MBombardier]

Hey all~

Question for you. I have had really bad joint aches and stiffness since mid-January. I thought I was going to have to live with this for the rest of my life, which was really hard after freedom from any pain for two months after going off gluten and before other intolerances showed up. Saturday night I was body-slammed by intense fatigue, and have slept around 22 hours of the last 48 (something I NEVER do) and spent most of the rest of my time lying down as it was tiring to even sit.

Today, I woke up in almost no pain at all, and the fatigue is pretty much gone. I remembered this morning that this happened once before, maybe a couple of years ago, even before MC symptoms started. I remember thinking then that I was going to have to live with the pain and stiffness for the rest of my life, then suddenly one day it was gone.

Has anyone else experienced this? Any ideas on what may have caused it?

[Joefnh]

Hi Marliss, One of the biggest revelations with MC and the diet was how much food can play a part in having joint and muscle pain. As I have become more aware of foods that I react to without any D, I have found that for instance Tilapia causes me a lot of joint aches and pains but no D. So certainly there may be an intolerance lurking in there for you.

Also fighting off a bug of some sort has done this to me several times over the years. For me the aches and pains with occasional unexplained D were the early indicators that something was slowly developing. I actually had a Dx of FMS due to the aches and pains.

--Joe

[tex]

Marliss,

Have you altered your diet in a way that could explain the improvement since mid-January? If not, Lyme's disease comes to mind as a possibility.

That said, I've been in the position you describe, but that was back before i finished working out my treatment plan, years ago.

Since you are probably IgA deficient, it could also be due to a number of other pathogens or immune system issues.

Tex

[Mags]

Marliss-

For me, it can be an allergen I am reacting to in my environment. Even putting off changing the filters in the air conditioning and heating can cause problems. Mold and/or mildew can cause me to react like this as well. Has anything in your house changed recently? Have you turned off the furnace, for instance?

Mags

[MBombardier]

All good ideas, thank you.

Joe, I am hoping my "winning the poo" diary will tell me if that is the case. I am wondering about my supplements, too. I am sure that none of them have soy now, but who knows what else I may be reacting to. I was so fatigued yesterday that I didn't take anything but my blood pressure medicine, so I'm wondering...

Tex, your thoughts about the IgA make a lot of sense. Thankfully, there are few ticks up here, and no chiggers! We can sit on the grass, believe it or not, without getting up all spotty. It's not like the Midwest where on the farm you have to inspect yourself front and back and in between every night for ticks.

Mags, I have ceiling heat in my house, and so no filters to be changed. Also, it is paradoxically dry--without the aquifer and the rain this would be a desert--so no mold, or mildew, or dust mites. You should move here. But I will be thinking about things in my environment that could be causing it.

Thanks again, all--I am thankful for and enjoying the relief, and when (if) it happens again, hopefully I will be better prepared to know why and to take steps to alleviate it.

[Joefnh]

Marliss keep in mind not all foods that we react to will cause D. They may just cause aches and pains. I am starting to find that out as I really attack this diet. So the Winning The Poo diary may not catch those foods... one idea when you add or have a food into your diet add a column in your diary about how you feel i.e. aches pains fatigue...

--Joe