Soft tissue pain

john62

Hello, l'm new to this site although l've been suffering with osteoarthritis for some years. I have severe OA in both hips and on the waiting list for total replacement of both, l also have OA in both knees and last x-ray in June concluded it as mild although it cerainly doesn"t feel mild particularly now in the cold weather. Iam a 69 year old male. My question is, is it normal to have pain in the soft tissues of both legs from top to bottom and in the groin, l suffer quite badly with pain also in and around my ankles. If others experience this type of pain it would be good to hear from you. Many thanks John.

Fran54

Hi@johnuwood

welcome to the site. I too have Osteoarthritis in both hips and my right knee and I am finding this cold weather is affecting both legs from the hips down to my ankles. As well as both legs aching they are also very stiff particularly from the knees down to the ankles ( the front of my shins ache especially) .I do sometimes have aching in my right groin area but wonder if I have overdone it with my physio exercises. I do use a wheat bag to help with my knee pain but I am looking at getting a heat pad which is bigger and will cover more areas like my lower legs. I hope this helps.

Take care🙂

john62

Thank you Fran54, your symptom sound just like mine, l also have pain in my shins and my legs are irritable in the evening. It helps to know that the pain l experience is typical for hip and knee OA. I have been prescribed numerous pain killers that do very little apart from giving me constipation. My GP has just changed me onto Trammadol which works to a degree and has eased the constipation, are you on pain killers?

As far as exercise is concerned l can't do a great deal but l do try to walk, l am looking at the video exercises available here with view to doing those. I haven't done anything with heat, does it help?

Regards 🙂

David4511

Hi ,I too suffer with severe pain in hip knee lower leg ankle and toes. It is really affecting me I have prescribed pain killers and anti inflammatory meds but they don't really help much.

john62

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/comment/715509#Comment_715509

Hi David, l feel your pain, as l said ealier l am on Trammadol, one twice a day, along with these l take two anti inflamatory tablets, they tend to take the edge off but they are no silver bullet. I take my last tablets each day with dinner around 6pm, later in the evening before l go to bed l take two paracetamol, these help relieve the pain in my shins and ankles. Good luck l hope you can find something to give you relief.

Chris_R

Hi @johnuwood

Welcome to the online community so glad you have joined us,i can see from the comments you have already settled in and chatting to others

Here is a link that may help with pain issues

https://www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/managing-symptoms/managing-your-pain/

Please tell us how you get on and all the best Christine

Fran54

Hi@johnuwood

In reply to your post I do take Naproxen and Omeprazole ( to protect the stomach lining ). I have been taking them for over a year now and although they do help with the inflammation and ease the aches I sometimes supplement them with Paracetamol if I have been overactive. To start with I did get slight constipation but seem okay now. As for the wheat bag it does help temporarily but as it is quite small I am looking for something larger like a heated pad ( as mentioned in my last post ). I was given various exercises by different physio people and they help ease the stiffness for a while but it comes back, so I find it easier to do exercises in small chunks.

Do let us know how you get on.🙂

john62

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/comment/715544#Comment_715544

Hi @Fran54 l've started looking at heat pads, there is quite a selection out there and l may get one. I'm having a bad day today and resorting to a hot water bottle and delaying going to bed. I'm hoping my exercise regime will pay dividends over time, l will let you know.

Take care 🙂

john62

https://community.versusarthritis.org/discussion/comment/715535#Comment_715535

Hi @Chris_R thank you, l am starting to understand the site and how to use it. Posts from others are very helpful and it's good to talk to others, it makes you realise you are not on your own.

swimmer60

@johnuwood

Hi! Yes, groin pain is absolutely a sympton of hip arthritis. My pain generally was a lot worse in damp weather. I did find heat helped and also keeping my joints well oiled by lots of stretching, I have arthritis in fingers/toes, and fish oil supplements. Before my hip op I was taking buckets of pain killers: co-dyamol, codeine, paracetemol, naproxen etc but hip was too far gone at the end to have much effect. After hip op am pain free in that area. It is a miracle!

Take care.

john62

Hi swimmer, good to hear your hip op has gone well, hoping to be able to say the same sometime. My life is all about pain killers and doing what exercise l can. Trammadol seems to have an affect some days but not others, l guess thats because we have good days and bad days, l had a very bad day yestetday, l think the cold weather is to blame. Enjoy your hip!

Fran54

Hi@johnuwood

I hope you are having a better day today. I agree that I think the cold weather definitely makes your symptoms worse, especially after this last week. I also find doing lots of little stretches throughout the day helps, for example when waiting for the kettle to boil I do a couple of stretches up onto my toes then back down again and also marching on the spot. It also helps to keep me warm as well.😊

Take care.

john62

Hi Fran, yes it has been a better day today thank you. I did get very cold yesterday because l was out and about shopping a doing stuff for my brother, he lives alone and had chronic COPD. I hope the cold weather isn't affecting you too much, stay warm and look after yourself.

Janlyn

@johnuwood your pain sounds very similar to mine and I'm hopefully having a total hip replacement on my left side in a couple of weeks time. I have found the pain to be linked to how much exercise/movement I do, if I don't do too much it isn't as bad, but then my mobility decreases so I think it's all about getting the balance right. I do use heat/cold on a daily basis, mainly when I get up in the morning. Usually I start with ice packs and then maybe a bath or hot water bottle.

Exercise, even mild exercise, does help. Stretching, even just stretching my leg out before I stand up helps. When standing swinging my left gently backwards and forwards also helps.

I hope you're not waiting too long for your replacement, take care.

john62

@Janlyn it sounds as though you are managing your pain quite well, you don't mention pain killers, do you take any? Good luck with your op.

Janlyn

@johnuwood Thank you. I take paracetamol 4 times daily and codeine at night if I need it but as I get closer to my op date I'm trying to rest more and I find that helps with the pain, but does leave me very immobile. It's a fine balance, I think pacing is important, no matter what I'm doing a little activity then sitting down, but not for too long. Hot water bottles to get moving. Icepacks to try to reduce inflammation. Ibuprofen gel, red tiger balm, Deep Heat and Deep Freeze have seemed helpful.

At least now I feel now the op is my only choice - I fought it for maybe too long, thinking exercise would help. It's not too long since I was running 5k three times a week and always managed 12-13,000 steps a day, now I'm hobbling and managing around 3,000 steps a day.

I was having similar pains to those you describe on a daily basis and really struggling to sleep but since I've drastically reduced my walking/steps it has definitely improved. My consultant said that he thought my painkillers wouldn't be working. My own X-ray last December showed mild to moderate but by August had increased dramatically. I do think my gait is so bad as I'm protecting myself from feeling too much of the pain.

Take care, and I really hope you don't have too long to wait for your replacement, Janet

john62

@Janlyn l also have very disturbed sleep that leaves me tired most of the time, although Saturday night l had the best nights sleep for months. For some reason before l went to bed the pains throughout my legs etc seemed to be far less and no irritable leg syndrome, l just knew l was going to sleep well. I don't understand why, l didn't do or take anything different, l guess it comes down to the good day bad day thing, my constant companion was back Sunday.

Take care. John 🙂

Janlyn

@john62 It’s the irritable leg syndrome I find hard to deal with and definitely can’t sleep through. And you’re right, it’s a good day/bad day thing, although it’s definitely there if I overdo anything.

just one thing I think might be helping me is that I’ve been on iron tablets for low haemoglobin for the last few weeks and definitely the restless legs have been better so possibly a correlation? Maybe worth checking whether there’s another reason for you, I think the temptation can be to blame the arthritis for everything.

Take care, Janet

john62

I think you are right, we tend to think anything is linked to Arthritis but l guess it's not. Time to speak to the Dr's about irritable legs.

Take care. John

swimmer60

@john62 @Janlyn

I've had dreadful resrless legs, especially bad after the op and much worse if I'm tired. Apparently Robaxin or Flexeril can be prescribed and can help. However, my GPs seemed clueless and unhelpful and I am now taking a magnesium supplement and it is definitely helping. It's meant to help cramps as well..

john62

@swimmer60

I have tried mgnesium with little or no affect although it was some time ago. Funnily enough the cramps l used to have seem to have stopped now. Our bodies are very complex machines and defy logic at times. It's good to hear magnesium is helping you. Do you swim?

Janlyn

@swimmer60 So sorry you had dreadful restless legs after your op when you must have had enough to contend with. I did try magnesium baths but didn't notice any real improvement, so maybe if it starts again I'll try a supplement. I definitely feel in my case it has improved with me walking/exercising less, so maybe that correlates with your finding it is much worse when you are tired. I hope it continues to improve as you get stronger after your op.

@john62 I definitely think time to speak to your doctor, and maybe give some thought to whether it could be tiredness/over exercising? I've definitely found pacing everything I do helps too. If I walk too much, sit down too much I suffer - it's the little and often that seems to help.

swimmer60

swimmer60

@john62

Yes, I am a keen swimmer and went on Sunday. I use the disabled shower which I like as it has a little table/shelf where I can put my shower stuff, still can't bend over to pick stuff up, that doesn't happen till 12 weeks. Also don't really want people staring at my scar!

Keep dropping stuff when I'm out- gloves, receipts etc and having to ask strangers to pick them up! Though as I still take one crutch, often people help without being asked. So annoying this bending rule, I really can't take the awful grabber out with me!

john62

@swimmer60

I also keep dropping things both inside and out, at a painful push l can pick things up but l have to say, l have found people very helpful when this happens. I haven't got a grabber, time to get one l think.

swimmer60

@john62

Have a look on Amazon, I'd advise getting a telescopic one. The one i was supplied with doesn't fold up and is clumsy.