Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with health and pain

The Subway vs. My Back

airguitar2 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:29:12 -0800

Is the subway causing my body to hurt? I've been riding the NYC subway twice a day for the last few months, and I'm noticing an overall body/back ache that I haven't felt before. I've looked around for research on this, but all I can find is a study showing that a test group of subway operators suffer more back and neck pain than a control group. Apparently total-body-vibration is not such a good thing in large doses.

Is the subway causing minute but detectable bodily injury?
Have others noticed this?
What can I do about it, other than walk three hours to work every day?

Thanks, Mefites!

(It's also possible that my teaching job, what with its stress and being on my feet all day, is also contributing.)

carpal tunnel and tendonitis and what to do?

Anonymous — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:16:12 -0800

Arm/wrist problems and no health insurance: what to do? John got (diagnosed) tendonitis last summer. It was a work related injury and he received workers comp for it (including doctors visits and physical therapy). It slowly got better. In December/January John was spending too much time typing and got (diagnosed) carpal tunnel. He was in a country with public health insurance then so was able to see a doctor. He got some sort of injections in his wrists/arms (not cortisone injections), which didn't really seem to help.

Returning to the USA, John stopped having any sort of health insurance (and has a part-time job, which does not offer him health insurance but pays enough that it disqualifies him from Medicare), but went to several free clinics asking what he should do. They told him to take NSAIDs and wear wrist braces all the time. John has been doing this for the last three weeks, but the wrist braces have aggravated the previously-mentioned tendonitis in his elbows.

Right now he has weak and tingling wrists and hands, opening jars and turning on sticky faucets causes pain and tingling. In the winter (when it was really cold), his fingers were going numbish/turning white. After wearing wrist braces for over an hour, his elbows start feeling like they did back when he first got tendonitis (pain near funny bone, pain down forearm).

He doesn't know what to do. He doesn't want to make either of his arm injuries worse, he doesn't want to ruin his arms for life, he does not have savings or enough money to be in a position to negotiate a flat rate with a doctor. Right now he is doing yoga, has just started taking vitamin B-6 (thanks to advice from the internet), isn't typing or using a computer, but is at a loss as to what his other options are (other than living with weak and tingling and weird-feeling arms for the rest of his life).

What should he do? What can he do? What are his options? (Also, this is being typed by his girlfriend Jane, who would also like advice on how she can best be supportive and help John feel better during this.) If it matters, we are in the central New York area.

Bo Knows . . .

Anonymous — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 08:22:19 -0800

Health Mystery Solved. I have been given a diagnosis of avascular necrosis. My general practitioner relayed these results to me after she saw my MRI results. On Friday I meet with an orthopedic surgeon. Please help me prepare. What questions should I be sure to ask? My gp described the damage as 'fairly advanced' or something.
In addition to questions to ask, I would love to hear anecdotal experiences from mefis directly affected by this.

Short of total hip replacement, (THR), what are the cutting edge effective treatments? If THR plays out as the only/necessary option how was your experience?

Since first being told that my pain was unrelated to a muscle strain/tear I feel as good as I have in 18 months. I can't really explain it but, even without the pain management meds I was prescribed, I know walk with a nearly indiscernible limp and actually feel pretty good. I am otherwise healthy and, according to the chart on the wall, I am within 4lbs of my ideal weight.

I am now a 40yo single, straight male with no kids. I have no family in California where I have called home for 22 years. I was medically discharged in 1990 and have been granted coverage at the Veteran's Administration hospital in my community. Without exception, the care I have received there has been kind, thoughtful and genuine.

Help me prepare for my meeting on Friday and for possible outcomes in the near(?) future.

I'll dust off hiplegpain@gmail.com if anyone would like to contact me directly. Thank you.

I just found out my foot pain is being caused by bunions. Now what?

picapica — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:55:00 -0800

I just found out my foot pain is being caused by bunions. Now what? I know already that surgery should be a last-ditch option. What I need to know now are all of the things veteran bunion-survivors know: where to find tennis shoes/ dressy shoes/ sandals that look good and don't hurt, whether I can continue doing high-impact exercise like running and tennis without causing more damage, etc. What do you wish you had known if you had learned about your bunions at 23 years old?

Should I go to podiatrist?

Sloop John B — Tue, 19 May 2009 10:43:44 -0800

My feet are in pain. What kind of doctor should I go to? I've heard that podiatry is sort of a dubious branch of medicine. So my feet are in bad shape. I've been walking in big, sturdy boots (Timberlands) for nearly a year without proper arch support. The arches of my feet have been hurting for a while, especially my left. The left foot has been getting worse lately, and is starting to feel a bit numb behind the knuckle of the big toe (not the joint on the toe, but where the toe meets the foot). Also, my left knee has problems and has been acting up lately.

I bought a nice arch support yesterday, so hopefully that'll help. But I really feel like I should go to a doctor and get this checked out. I know that "numb toes" is an indication of diabetes, but for various reasons I think this is probably more of a skeletal/muscular issue.

I've heard that podiatry is like chiropractry, where some people will swear by it but others feel it's kind of dubious. What kind of doctor should I go to?

4 am Abdominal Pain: How Serious?

ThyroidBob — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 15:15:33 -0800

YouAreNotMyDoctorFilter: Last night I was rudely awakened in the very early morning by an intense abdominal pain. I managed to make it to my computer, only to freak myself out about all the possibilities it could be. How serious does this seem, and is it reasonable to just keep a watchful eye on it? Me: Male, college-aged, reasonably healthy.

Last night, 4:10 am: Sleeping great.

4:15 am: I woke up with what I can only figure to describe as a stabbing pain. It started a inch or so below and to my right of my sternum, and felt like it spread towards the right side of my ribcage. It also seemed to hurt in about the same location on my backside as well. It was intense enough that anything hurt (moving, not moving, sitting up, lying down, walking around, etc.) to the point of provoking audible groans. It was almost like mega-heartburn, just not really that close to my stomach or esophagus (if my med school education from Wikipedia and House, M.D. hasn't failed me). I would have described myself as "in agony".

4:30 am: The pain very gradually began to decrease, but I was still far from having a blast. I was seriously contemplating when and how I would make my way to the nearest ER.

4:45 am: The pain had subsided to "significant discomfort", and my tiredness overtook the pain, and I was able to fall back asleep.

This morning: There still was some residual discomfort/soreness. This has lasted throughout the day.

Long story short, I don't really have the time to go to the doctor if it's not necessary, given the rapidly approaching end of the semester. I'm hoping the hive mind can provide some insight and/or advice on how seriously I need to take this incident, and if sucking it up is a Really Bad Idea or not. Also, I'm looking for some guidance on when/how I should pursue it further with medical professionals. The pages I found earlier via searching basically said "go to a doctor NOW if you have any abdominal pain", which seems to me to be a bit of an over-reaction.

Insert "pain in the neck" joke here.

littlerobothead — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 00:30:31 -0800

Did I pinch a nerve? If so, who best to go to? Over Thanksgiving we stayed with my wife's folks in a lavish, over-dressed bed. I got rid of as many pillows as I could, but still ended up yanking a mean knot into my neck. I figured it was no problem and would work itself out; instead, it's weeks later, the pain is intense at night and radiates into my hands and head, and shows no signs of ceasing. Did I pinch a nerve, or worse?

My wife says I should have a message, and putting an extreme amount of pressure on my shoulder does seem to help somehow; but maybe I need acupuncture, or to see a plain old doctor. Help me focus my "wellness efforts", as my HMO might say! Thanks...

Daily headaches & migraines - how can I be free of them??

katala — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 15:24:02 -0800

Dear MeFites, please help me find a way to live without these constant headaches. I have had chronic daily headaches, and at least 2-3 migraines a month, for the past ten years. I have tried everything I can think of short of surgery but nothing besides taking painkillers seems to help (and those only a little these days). My background - I'm female, 30 years old, I'm on the pill (Yasmin) and anti-depressants (Xydep - 100 mg) and a few vitamin supplements.

I've never had children, I work at a computer most of the day (although I do try to maintain good posture and stretch regularly). I've had a cat scan and my eyes checked but there's no apparent problems there.

My diet is generally very good and I drink lots of water. I don't exercise much as anything more than brisk walking gives me an exercise headache - I do wonder if lack of exercise has something to do with these headaches?

I wake up every morning with a low-grade headache which 90% of the time turns into a bad headache by mid-morning, and sometimes a migraine.

I would really welcome any and all suggestions for what long-term solutions have actually worked for you to give you a headache & migraine free existence (or as close to as possible, ie - one bad headache a month).

Thank you very very much in advance.

Possible strained armpit muscle--looking for advice on care/diagnosis/prognosis and other options

weakcore — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 23:56:52 -0800

I'm a 26 yr old male and suspect I have strained my right teres major muscle. Is it worth seeing a general practitioner/family doctor first (I suspect they will just toss me painkillers and tell me about R.I.C.E.)? If not a GP, what are ways I can find somebody in sports medicine or physical therapy (do they have hundred dollar new patient processing fees, etc too?) apart from references from acquaintances? Also, any relevant suggestions on what else I can do are also greatly appreciated. I am relatively inexperienced with dealing with doctors/doctor's offices but am interested in how I can become a more informed patient. I feel swelling in rear of my right armpit like there's a crumpled wad of paper wedged in that area and there is soreness not unlike soreness experienced in the days following a rigorous workout, only 50% greater in magnitude. I think I sustained it while attempting to do dips on non-immobilized push-cart w/out proper warming up, etc. while bored at work in a misguided effort to start rectifying a muscle imbalance (tight chest muscles, overly weak back muscles) and not having had regularly lifted weights in a considerable amount of time, though this was at least a couple of days before I was aware of the pain & I did not have an "oh crap, I think I pulled something" moment typically associated with strains.

Onset of pain was approx 5 days ago & I suspect I have been making it progressively worse in attempting to stretch it (the thought did not yet occur to me this pain was a muscle strain until only the recent few days) with attempting to practice yoga every other day (3 classes since then). While I did feel resistance and pain at the beginning of class, after warming up, the discomfort only was very mild/barely noticeable during downward dog/sun salutations.

Initially I was able to reach up and to the right and only experience mild discomfort; now, motion is restricted such that I feel pain when attempting to raise my elbow more than 45 degrees. Additionally, this is my primary mousing arm and and I have also been experiencing RSI-like symptoms for the past two years. I have been coping via [attempting to] reduce/reducing my computer use, making efforts to improve my posture, yoga, and meditation (still a n00b at the meditating) since my insurance currently does not cover specialist visits due to a pre-existing waiting period).

Groin/Hip Strain/Sprain

Anonymous — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 22:11:13 -0800

YANMD: Self-diagnosed high-groin sprain. Chronic for more than six weeks, further aggravated when I tripped in the airport today. It seems that the negative stress of catching myself completely tweaked it. 39yo Caucasian male When in a seated position I can’t lift my foot off the ground. The pain extends into front, even outside of my hip. I can extend the lower leg. The pain seems to go down my leg, especially the inside. With my feet in front of me it is painful if I try to bring my knees together or apart. Lifting my leg with my hand and moving it is not as painful but neither is it pain-free.

I am not in a po$ition to see a physician and after similarly exacerbating this lingering injury last week it felt significantly better after a third day of rest. I’m not sure what a physician could do for me. But, this feels worse than last week.

Although I ride my bike as a sole means of transportation <40 miles a week I don't believe it is a 'sports' injury.

Would heat or ice help?
To what degree might I be danger of permanent damage?
What type of exam would could best diagnose the problem?

Email at hiplegpain@gmail.com

Thank you.

Frequent injuries

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 05:28:56 -0800

Is it normal that I get injured so easily? Every time I tried something just a little bit physically demanding for the last half year or so, I seem to injure myself. I hurt my wrist after an afternoon of rowing, I hurt my knees after playing DDR half an hour every day for a week. I hurt my shoulder after playing bass half an hour once or twice a day for a week. I hurt my other shoulder after playing Wii Sports for less than an hour one day. I find it difficult to describe the severity, but in all cases I really thought it was bad. When I hurt my shoulder it was so bad that I could not lie comfortably in bed, I could not turn around and needed help getting up. I could not turn my head around at all. The wrist pain was only tolerable once fixated. The knees were not quite as bad, but it still hurt quite a bit.

I think I did the right things: I did the easy levels on the videogames, I was really not pushing anything, I have a great supportive strap for my bass and I never practiced for more than half an hour at a time (because I was busy, not because I was worried about injuries). The rowing thing was longer, but there were two rowers in the boat and we took breaks and turns. It was relaxed rowing, not for speed. I can understand a muscle ache after each of these activities, but I wonder if it is normal or common to get such severe pain so often.

The pain always comes up quickly, but not immediately. It is not that I feel something snap or crack and immediately stop playing, the pain starts a few hours afterwards.

The pain does usually go away rather quickly. It is usually very painful for a few days, after that it becomes a muscle ache kind of pain and then it goes away completely.

I don't have any other health problems, but after giving birth (five years ago) I had quite severe pelvic pain that also went away completely within a few months. Recently, I notice that the pain sometimes is back. It is not severe at all, but it is there, while I was completely pain free for years. I don't know if that's relevant.

It is strange to me to suddenly be so fragile. I wonder if this could be a symptom for something, or if it is likely just bad luck.

I don't want to go to a doctor now, unless there really is reason for concern.

How can we get our eight-year-old son diagnosed and feeling better?

neilkod — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:55:30 -0800

How can we get our eight-year-old son diagnosed and feeling better? (long) Pre-apologies for rambling. Key facts: 1) I'm in perfect health 2) My wife has MS and has been on meds for 4 years and 3) We live in Salt Lake City and face extreme hot and cold temps. We're planning a move from SLC to a more neutral climate.

My eight-year-old son has had a miserable quality of life for the last four years. Through a long diagnostic process including two biopsies, he was diagnosed with Chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis. We've tried MANY treatments for the CRMO pain, none have really worked. Short doses of steroids took the edge off but they're not a long-term solution.

In addition to the lesions on his bones(due to CRMO), he has developed MANY other symptoms, including:
- Constant, constant fatigue
- sensitivity to hot/cold temperatures
- frequent skin lesions
- hip/pelvic pain
- random pain in extremities
- painful urination
- burning sensation in boy parts/bladder
- eye fatigue/pain (vision is manageable but his EP is considered slow)

He's had bone scans that have shown issues in his lower extremities. He shows an elevated SED rate and has high inflammatory markers in blood tests.

One of the first symptoms he showed was dragging his foot when he walks. He also falls down a lot.

Repeated MRI images show multiple white spots(lesions) on his brain. The MRI is repeated every 6 months, the spots have been fairly consistent in size, number, and placement.

He's not exactly sleeping well, and that's also contributing to his poor quality-of-life. He often leaves school early due to pain or unmanageable fatigue. His teachers notice and have been very supportive. He's also developed personality and anxiety issues due to not feeling well and the constant doctors visits and tests. His ability to cope with his symptoms have improved over the last year.

He is under the care of a top-notch Rheumatologist, a respected pediatric neurologist, a team of doctors at the UCSF pediatric neurology institute, and associated other specialists, such as highly specialized optometrists who deal with neurologic issues, as well as a dermatologist.

All of these physicians acknowledge the symptoms and issues, but we can't seem to improve our son's life. Eyedrops here, skin cream there, but there is nothing that explains or ties together all of his symptoms. Its always "take this test or MRI and we'll see in 6 months." The neurologists don't think he pediatric MS but have suggested he try MS meds in the past.

His sensitivities to extreme hot/cold temps, a sometimes-drooping left eye, and the spots on the brain MRI lead us to believe that this issue might have a neurological foundation - the neurologists have tried everything short of interferon medication to treat him. Without a firm diagnosis or explanation, we are not too hot on the idea of giving him interferon due to the side-affects.

Otherwise, my son is bright and motivated-he wants to get out and play, but pays the price in pain and fatigue shortly thereafter. He loves school, loves to read, and simply is frustrated and not understanding with his condition. He has a younger brother in perfect health, he often questions why he shows so many symptoms that his little brother doesn't. Additionally, its been difficult for us to keep our understanding (and sometimes cool) while watching our son be miserable and in pain.

What are we not doing? What could we be doing better? We haven't left too many stones unturned - we've taken him to UCSF to be evaluated; we're contacting other out-of-state facilities as well. He's about to enter the third grade and we don't want him to have a repeat of second grade, where he missed a lot of school due to not feeling well. Are there any types of specialists or conditions that we're not looking into? What do we need to demand more of from our doctors? He's been affected for far too long without any real explanations or effective treatment.

When the cure is worse....

ohdeanna — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 06:31:22 -0800

How to wean off of tramadol? I have been taking 400mg/day for 3 months for serious neck/ spine problems and I think I've developed a tolerance and I think it's messing with my health in other ways. I can tell that abruptly stopping is going to be hideous and possibly dangerous b/c even when I step down 50mg I feel as though my BP is through the roof.

I am definitely go to see a doctor about this- but I would be grateful if anyone could share what worked/ didn't work for them...

This really really sucks.

Am I the only one with these strange body quirks?

jasminerain — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 17:14:25 -0800

I'd had two quirks for as long as I can remember: my neck is extremely sensitive to touch, and I get an aching pain in my joints (knees, wrist, finger joints) when it's cold/damp. Does anyone else get the same thing? My neck is sensitive to things touching it on/near the throat. I can touch the area myself, but it bothers me a lot when someone else tries to touch it. For example, I can only wear a turtleneck for about 20 seconds before having to tear it off. Tight-collared shirts bother me quite a bit, and having a necklace with a short chain start to bother me. It feels kind of uncomfortable at first, but it gradually builds to the point where I have to take whatever it is off (with a turtleneck, it feels like I'm being strangled slowly). I've been like this as long as I can remember.

(I know there's been a similar question about a sensitive neck before, but in my case, it didn't appear suddenly, so it's probably not caused by a change in my health or life.)

The other quirk is that my joints will ache once in a while, but more often when it's raining or cold. It usually goes away if I cover the area with a blanket. I talked to a doctor about this when I was about 16, and she ran a blood test that came up negative for everything (including arthritis).

I'm 22 and female. I'm not really worried about health since they've been around so long, but I'm rather curious about why it happens, and whether it happens to anyone else.

Thanks!

Appendages O' pain

cashman — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 13:16:25 -0800

How to treat possibly broken fingers and toes? Not going to a doctor. Please avoid suggesting that.

I'm pretty sure I broke or tore something in my pinky. It's been weeks now, but it got all swollen right after, and turned black & blue. The swelling has mainly gone down (I iced the crap out of it), but is focused in the knuckle area, on the inside (touching my ring finger). I can move it all around with almost no pain. But if I try to, say, grasp a handful of change, OUCH!OUCH!OUCH!OUCH!.

I was buddy taping it at first, and that just seems to have little to no effect. I wonder if it isn't a break, but some kind of torn ligament. Should I still be icing it? Or putting heat on it (and how am I supposed to get heat on my pinky knuckle)?

Separately, I have pretty much the same questions about the "ring toe". Same deal except little swelling, but there was the black and blueness. Taping seems to make this one worse too.

How do you treat these injuries on an ongoing basis - icing? heat? Taping? I know it will take 8+ weeks to fully heal, if not longer - I'm just wondering how to best treat it while it heals. Buy a splint from a drug store? What?

Can't afford x-ray/doc's visit. I also read prior questions and didn't find sufficient information. Please help. Thanks!

Drug interactions while taking Mobic (meloxicam)?

verytres — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 21:52:06 -0800

Due to a recent injury, my ortho has prescribed 15mg daily doses Mobic. I seem to have escaped any sort of stomach/g.i. issues that can be associated with this drug, but I seem to have a cold looming on the horizon... Assuming no stomach, kidney, liver, heart, blood pressure issues what sort of over the counter flu meds can I take while on NSAIDS ? What if I get just an average, everyday headache?

Yes, I know YANAD, but my ortho's out of town for the week. And yes, I'll call my local Walmart pharmacy in the morning, for what its worth. No, I don't plan on popping 6 Advil a day for any extended period of time.

But I do wonder what folks on these meds do for the occassional, unrelated, aches and pains of life.

Help me escape the cycle of pain!

ganzhimself — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 17:53:36 -0800

Help me find some relief. Injured my back years ago in a bicycle accident and the chronic pain is getting old. Long explanation inside. It was back in the fall of 2002, I was a freshman and Northern Michigan University in Marquette, Michigan. I had just finished up physical therapy for a torn ACL I suffered my senior year in football, and the physical therapist said that exercise was the best way for my knee to feel better. So, I got myself a nice Trek from a cycle shop...

Anyway, one day I was cruising down one of the many steep hills in Marquette when the chain failed, and I flew head first over the handle bars. I absorbed most of the impact with my right arm and shoulder. For days afterwards I had excruciatingly painful spasms in the muscles over my right shoulder blade. The on campus doctor gave me some Flexeril and sent me on my way. That helped me sleep, but really, didn't do much else to ease my pain during the day.

When I came home for Thanksgiving I saw my orthopedic surgeon and he said that it felt like some muscles or tendons had partially tore, and healed themselves up, but there was a lot of scare tissue in there. He likened it to a hard piece of gristle in a piece of meat. He suggested I do some stretching exercises and some light weight training. I did the exercises for a few months and I felt much better. The pain came back about a year later and the exercises help, but the pain hasn't ever gone away since.

I saw a chiropractor (yeah, I know) after I hurt my back in nasty fall on some ice, and he said that my right shoulder was much lower than my left, and showed me by drawing a line on the wall where my left shoulder was and where my right shoulder was. It didn't make any difference as to what the chrio did, the shoulder never got better, but that's not really why I went there in the first place, as my lower back was extremely out of whack.

Now I'm sitting here and my shoulder blade muscles are still very tender. Stretching helps a bit, but my shoulder has developed a nasty popping sound and clicking feeling when I make circles (can't think of a better explanation) with my arms stretched horizontally. I've had a few professional massages, and the masseuse says it feels like there are a lot of knots in those muscles, but she couldn't ever get them worked out and they were very painful when she pressed on them. What can I do to relieve the pain and make it more tolerable in the long run... I'm 23 and I feel like I'm 63.

Blow your nose, blow out your pitching arm...

rileyray3000 — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 15:10:56 -0800

Sometimes when I sneeze, my whole upper body hurts. Specifically my shoulders and, to a lesser degree, my elbows. It almost feels like I'm being punched. What gives? Granted, this doesn't happen ALL the time. But, man, when it does, it's a hard, dull pain that's like when your leg falls asleep times 10. The injurious sneezes don't seem harder than the non-painful ones.

Though that's guesswork on my part. I don't have a sneeze radar gun or anything.

This has been happening since I was in my late teens and doesn't seem like it's going away anytime soon. So should I worry or not?

Is this a syndrome? A sign of something worse? Or just the price you pay for having a nose and a flexible ligature?

Two doctors down, don't want another. Why do my legs hurt?

jesirose — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 07:51:11 -0800

I keep having seemingly random pain in my legs/arms. Yes, I already went to the doctor. He said he couldn't think of anything that could cause it. I told him it's been happening for about eighteen months and he said to just see if it stops on its own. I trust this doctor and only a few months before I had bloodwork done and he said they didn't see anything that would indicate a problem. However, it's getting kind of hard to ignore this, and I'm not sure he will do anything if I tell him it's still happening (I doubt a problem that's gone on for over a year will just randomly stop).

Another doctor told me that when it happens in my chest, it means my muscles are pulling away from the bones (wtf?) but he doesn't know why, and suggested antacids.

If I go to another doctor, I don't want to waste my money to have them tell me it's nothing or they don't know.

Basically, at least once a day now I will get a sharp pain and it will sort of fade in and out for about a minute, then it's gone. It happens mostly in my legs, sometimes my arms, and occasionally other areas (chest, stomach). It's not at a joint, but I guess the muscles. It's usually just noticeable, but sometimes it makes me gasp or sit up, etc. It normally happens when I'm sitting down, but sometimes when I'm walking. (Getting up and moving doesn't make it go away)

Over the past few months I've been exercising more and losing weight (20lbs down now), and I thought that might help, but it hasn't. My legs are often pretty sore, but I am still pretty overweight, so I think that explains soreness, but not 'random' pains.

Is this really something that can't be explained? If so, any suggestions on how I can ease the pain?

I know people are going to say "See yet another doctor", but I'm really wanting to know if anyone else has experienced this, etc.

Mean green

Anonymous — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 11:32:43 -0800

I think that marijuana may be giving me headaches, but I'm really not sure. My health history: I never get headaches. I never take any type of medication (Tylenol, Advil, etc.), and I am a vegetarian. I also smoke a lot of marijuana.

I've been using, daily, for maybe 4 or 5 months, and it has never interfered with my life negatively, and in fact has been more of a boon than anything, especially in the creative work that I do (we're talking maybe one joint or less per day).

However...

I started getting headaches about two weeks ago, and they have been prolonged, lasting two, three and four days at a time. Now, I feel like I have intermittent headaches throughout the day, with some lasting for the duration of the day. I tried to connect the headaches to something--change in diet, stress, environment--but was unable to detect anything in particular that had changed. Everything has been steady, for months. Sometimes they disappear for a day, only to return the next.

I have no reason to suspect that my marijuana use is causing these headaches--which are more dull, foggy aches rather than full-blown throbbing migranes--but I have to ask myself, is it a factor?

Everyone I know who uses marijuana at the same frequency as me has said that they have never experienced this kind of side-effect.

So, could it be the marijuana? Anecdotal answers are fine, and so are more scientific answers. Also, natural headache remedies would be welcome, too :)

I'll add one other bit here: about one week ago I found out that I have a small cavity, though my teeth are giving me hardly any pain or discomfort at all, and I hardly notice it. I'm having the cavity filled next week. I suppose it could be that, but something seems to indicate otherwise.

Dog with mysterious pain -- what should I expect?

treepour — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 08:46:43 -0800

Dog in sudden, mysterious pain. Going to see the vet as soon as possible, but want to be as prepared as I can be. On our morning walk yesterday, I noticed that my 15-pound dog was walking a bit -- not much, just a bit -- slower than usual. Later that afternoon, while the dog slept in his bed, he suddenly yelped, as if something had seriously hurt him -- the kind of yelp he gives, e.g., if someone accidentally steps on his paw or tail. Unusually, I was able to touch him without getting a reaction from him (he's quite territorial, and usually reacts with fear or aggression whenever someone attempts to pet him while he's in his bed). Last night, the same thing happened, only the yelps were more intense, and it happened about 3 or 4 times during the course of the night. For a few hours, my partner slept with him on the sofa (I'm terribly allergic), and the dog didn't yelp during this time.

Otherwise, the dog seems perfectly normal -- hasn't lost an appetite, doesn't have any lumps, unusual discharge from any part his body, is urinating and defecating normally, isn't vomiting, etc.

Anyone else had a similar experience and/or some idea of what I might possibly expect to talk about with the vet and/or advice on talking with the vet? Also, if anyone can recommend a reasonable vet in San Francisco who might be willing to make arrangements for a payment plan in case an expensive procedure is required, I'd be greatly appreciative (I'm planning on calling the SPCA for this, but additional recommendations certainly wouldn't hurt).

OUCH Why do these pain meds hurt my stomach 31 hours later??

sneakin — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 10:14:25 -0800

Ouch! Why does this medication hurt my stomach a day after I've taken it for the last time? Please explain before I have an ulcer or an alien growing inside me or something... So, I was perscribed 500 mg pills of Naproxen. The second time I took it, I got a horrible stomachache that woke me up in the middle of the night. I thought it was unrelated to the Naproxen because I had already taken it once with no ill effect. So, I took it a third time (brilliant, I know). That was yesterday (January 17 at 7:30 a.m.), about 18 hours ago. I am still experiencing really awful stomach pains, alternating with intense hunger pangs, which makes no sense since I have been eating. By the way-- every time I have taken it, I have done so with food.

The question: is this related to the Naproxen? If so, why is it still bothering me 31 hours later. Anyone else experience this?

Help my ass stop hurting!

Anonymous — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 09:07:30 -0800

A new question about ass pain: I've just finished a week-and-a-half course of anti-biotics after some dental surgery. One of the side effects, I assume because of the eradication of digestive bacteria, is that the amount of shit I've been putting out has tripled. I used to be a twice-a-day man, now it's three times and the volume is huge. In the last several days, I've developed what seems like a throbbing swollen vein in my ass, maybe an inch to the left side from the asshole. Oh, sweet Jesus, it hurts. It hurts when I sit, it hurts less when I stand, but it hurts. But there's no blood, and no external tissue, and all the the info I've seen indicates that internal hemorrhoids shouldn't cause any pain. The real question is that since I'm due to drive several thousand miles in a few days, what can I do about it before then? (And no, I don't have any insurance or money, so realize that unless I think that it's gonna be horrible, permanent harm, I'm going to try to avoid seeing one).

Health / Sports Injury Filter: How can my girlfriend reduce/remove her hip pain?

Anonymous — Sun, 23 Jul 2006 20:29:18 -0800

My girlfriend did ballet from early childhood up until the middle of high school. She was very much into it, doing everything she could to improve. Through doing so, she severely injured both of her hips (I believe it was due to "turn outs"). She still suffers from hip pain today, 1 semester away from her graduating college. What can she do to remove/reduce pain in her hips? I ask this question for two reasons:
1) I want her to not have pain any more.
2) I want her to be able to be more active in our love life.

Her hip pain flares up quite often, especially during long car rides (as driver or passenger), whenever she works out (elliptical machine mostly), and during intimacy.

She has of course seen her doctor several times over the past few years about this. The doctor generally sends her to physical therapy.

Physical therapy helps relieve the pain, but it is not doing anything to heal her - that is, it does not reduce flare ups.

She has tried ibuprofen prior to working out, taken extended breaks from working out to remove stress on the hips, etc.

Nothing seems to help. She expresses interest all the time in wanting to be able to be more active in our physical relationship and also wants to lose weight (even though I find her very attractive and tell her so daily). The hip pain prevents her from doing both. It is just so hard for her to go work out whenever her hips hurt, which is a lot.

Please help me find ways to help her!

Is it possible that taking 10mg of Ritalin a day could cause my tendons/ligaments to tighten up and be sore?

kaytrem — Thu, 29 Jun 2006 18:23:47 -0800

Is it possible that taking 10mg of Ritalin a day could cause my tendons/ligaments to tighten up and be sore? I am noticing a correlation between starting taking it again and tendon pain in my wrists and ankles (achilles) and the top of my foot