Chronic Pain Support Group

Hello! After reading a little bit, I think I may have myofascial pain syndrome in my trapezius muscle...

I experience a burning pain in my trapezius that gets worse when I sit... and when I am stressed out. It feels pretty good in the morning...but by night time, it hurts pretty dang bad, some nights I can't fall asleep bc it hurts so bad.

Does anyone with MPS have similar symptoms? I have not gotten any docs to tell me what is wrong with me yet... its almost been 10 months of this pain crap.

My pain doc recommended I try Gabapentin/Neurontin... but I am very concerned for the weight gain... has anyone out there tried this/currently take it for symptoms similar to mine and if so, does it work? And have you experienced weight gain?

I am also considering taking Baclofen (I currently take Zanaflex... but I hear Baclofen works better) before I try the Gabapentin to see if this will help any... but I am concerned that it may cause insomnia...bc I already have trouble sleeping...

If anyone has any advice to offer me that would be WONDERFUL!!! THANK YOU TO EVERYONE!!

One of the things I have is myofacial syndrome. I don't experience any problems with the trapezius area. But, from doing a lot of reading. Yes, it makes sense that this area can hurt and be MFS.

I tried Neurontin. I didn't experience any weight gain from it. It just simply didn't do anything to help me.

Whether it's weight gain, fatigue, insomnia, etc. you will find that you try whatever you can, just to have some relief.

It will take some time to find the right med combo that works for you. Just hang in there with it. (It was several years for me.)

Also, do you take anything to help you sleep? Have you tried anything?

I do have and take things to help with sleep, thank you for asking! :o)

I take two things-- Zanaflex helps w muscle spasms and also helps make me sleepy... but when the pain is really bad and I cant fall asleep, I have Ambien to take, and this usually knocks me out. I try not to use the Ambien though...I know you can get dependent on it, so I only use it when I really need it (if I have a big day the next day that I need to get good sleep for)

I am still working on finding the right med combo that works...I have definitely found a lot of meds that DONT work! lol.... the SEs have been wonderful, let me tell you. (please note the sarcasm)... I have grown to love and hate meds... it is scary what they can do to you...

You said the Neurontin didnt help you, have you tried Lyrica? Im sure you have, but just thought Id ask.. it is supposed to be more potent than Neurontin....

Yeah, I tried Lyrica. That only lasted two days though, as I became extremely ill with it. They immediately took me off it.

I also take the Neurontin 100mg three times a day. My Neuro added Lyrica twice a day. The synthroid took away the fibro pain so did not need the lyrica addition. It only took a week to add 8 lbs. I had a complete fit. But when I quit taking it the weight came off. The neurontin does help my nerve pain though but I really don't want to take any higher doses. My doc says the side effects for women over 50 are not pleasant. I don't even want to know what that means.

kjv1956

Hi kjv! Were you meaning to imply that the Lyrica made you gain 8 lbs in 1 week, or was it the neurontin? Just curious, thanks! :o)

i gained weight on gabapantin.

but too be fair , i also gained weight on almost any nsaid that i was put on and that is a side effect that for some reason i always get if at all possible with any med.

NOT fair! meds are a double edged sword.... they will help you with one thing but create all sorts of new problems as a result... great, just great. I feel for you newrsd.... did the Gabapentin (at least) help with your pain at all?

I have mps, it affects my entire back and morning is the worst for me. I take Gabapentin, Tramadol and Mobic. I'm doing a lot better than I used to be, but still not as good as I used to be. I tried Lyrica, it didn't work for me (and it's really expensive) and I gained about 20lbs...though I lost it when I quit. I did originally gain some weight with the Gabapentin, but it made me hungry all the time and I gained weight because of that. Lyrica, I seemed to gain without eating any differently. I didn't gain a lot with the Gabapentin and I no longer even notice that I'm hungrier.

Savella is another that could possibly help you. It helped me a ton, to the point that was all I was on. However, it (in me) caused Tachycardia and severe sweating. Otherwise, this would have been my solution.

Today I had my Gabapentin and Tramadol upped...fingers crossed. Good luck to all of you in finding something that works! At one point I was on hydrocodone and barely sleeping because the pain was so horrible I couldn't function.

I currently take Tizanidine as a muscle relaxer. I take Amitriptyline for sleep. I've tried a ton of meds. - Doc has a call in for Trazadone, and I'll be going off the Tizanidine. Hope the new combo (Magnesium, Amitriptyline, Hydrocodone/Vidodin, and Trazadone) work! The pain and lack of sleep has become more than I can tolerate.

My wish for all of us is- May it not take longtime to find the right individual combo of meds, and have a good treatment plan.