hI
i'm also new to this sight. I have had fms/mps for 10 yrs. From what I understand the 2 are not exclusive. I know alot of people that have only fms. The big difference between the two syndromes is with fm you have tender points only along with all the other crazy things we have with our fm. Mps you get knots all along the lenghts of your muscles,called trigger points. With mps as far as I know and from what my doc has said,you treat the two the same way. One thing that I've done to relieve some of the pain is to go to a message therapist that will do deep tissue message, it helps break up the knots. Chiaropractic may help a little bit also. Ask your doc about these suggestions. I hope that i've been of some help. Good luck,hope you feel better soon!

I believe I have TMJ. I have had problems with my back for over two years, but for about the past nine months I have been getting this dull, very painful feeling in my left jaw. At first it would come and go as fast as it came. In the beggining it was very painful but I could deal with it because it would only last for an hour or even less. Fo the past month I have been in severe pain from my left jaw, I wake with this pain and go to sleep with this pain. I am on pain meds for my back, but they do nothing for this pain, I have been trying to hold out to keep this out of my medical record so I would be able to get insurance coverage on this especially after going through all I have been through with my back and no coverage. Now I cant wait no longer, the pain is constant and so severe I am becoming depressed and it is so bad I am having social problems as well. I dont want to be around people because I am in pain all the time. The meds I take for my back do little or nothing for my jaw pain. I was taking percocet 7.5/325 but my Dr. sent me to a spine center and they want to do injections but took away my percocet and gave me vicodin 5/500 This is a joke I was on percocet for a year 4-6 daily and now they have me on (3 vicodin 5/500 MAX) daily. I need to find a Dr. That will be open minded to treating my Jaw pain, but I know from experience when you go to see a new Dr. and have complaints of any type of pain it throws up a red flag. This is to bad because of all of us out here suffering that cant get the right management of our pain.

This jaw pain is unlike anything I have ever known, In the beggining it would come and go, but now I live with it all day and night; every night.

Does anyone have any suggestions or some direction for me???

I agree with sallymae345 you should see a dentist or get an mri. Although tmj is common with mps it could be coming from your cervical area also.
I don't have tmj for now, but you never know what tomorrow will bring.
I hope you can get with your pcp to get this checked out and keep us posted.
Good Luck

Yes, I was diagnosed with Fibro, Chronic Pain and Myofacial pain in 1989.
It is a very debilitating disease.
It is very important you find an excellent arthritic doctor ( Rheumologist ) and PM Doc ( Pain Managements) most of the time they are in the same practice and/or same doctor.

I am so sorry to hear you have been diagnosed with this disease. It is a life that certainly changes over the years. I wish I had good results to share with you. I may be a small percentage that has not been able to find relief. However, I can certainly say that over the years, I can list some of the things I have tried..
1. Massage Therapy. definitely the best to relieve pain temporary)
2. Diet ( there are a lot of people that have food allergies that inflame them) I myself, corn, wheat, cotton seed and dairy. Watching the intact for many years seems to help for a while.
3. Swimming. Any exercise that doesn't have any impact to the joints, etc certainly helps.
4. Pain Injections
5. Drink a lot of water. This cleanses the body
6. Sleep well. 1 tspn of Benedryl before bed assists in a good night sleep. Endorphins can not release if you are tossing and turning all night. This puts you into a good sleep ( unless you are one that has the opposite effect and makes you wired) then please do not take the Benedryl
7. Excercise- walking and stretching seem to be the best for FM sufferers.
8. Councelor ..Someone that specializes in Pain. They are out there and it has helped me emotionally very well.
I am sure there are others out there that have many moer suggestions.. Unfortunately, my battle with this debilitating disease is winning.

I will be trying another PM RHEU DOC this month.

I also have had 3 unsuccessful back surgeries that haven't helped the situation.

Daily consistent pain has led to many tears, sleepless nights and boughts of depression. Thank God my family has been extremely supportive. It is very important that your family know as much about
Because Fibro is so "hidden" it is hard for others to understand what you go through. Commonly it is frowned upon by Orthopedic doctors as it is not seen to the human eye and is such a difficult disease to diagnose.

What I have learned over the years is
"Fibro is incurrable but permitable" from my doctors.

Bless you and the road you will be traveling. Keep a positive attitude and don't forget to get the best sleep ever. That will help so much.

All the best. you have found an awesome place for support. There are a lot of us on this site that know exactly what you are going through!

God Bless,
Vicky

Please take

Thanks for your very informative post. You have really been through a lot. I'm afraid my nightmare has just begun. It is hard everyday to deal with the pain, I feel as if everything in my body has fallen apart within the last couple years. At least now I know why I have been feeling so bad. It helps to know there is a name for my pain and it just not being in my head. My family has a hard time understanding that I can't do things like I used to. They don't complain but I can tell it really bothers them that I can't go go go like I used to. I saw my PCP last week and I asked him well I have all these labels, now what is the treatment? He put his head down and said we will have to find the right combo of meds. to help but that I will live the rest of my life in chronic pain.. Not what I wanted to hear of course but I could tell it was very upsetting for him to even tell me this. I'm glad I have a very understanding PCP. I think he felt somewhat guilty for not finding these conditions sooner.
Anyway I wanted to thank you for all the info. that you posted.
Thanks!
Barb

For anyone who has myofascial pain syndrome, aka chronioc myofascial pain, there is a message board specific to this subject at Daily Strength. There is a lot of good information there.
http://www.dailystrength.org/c/Myofascial-Pain-Syndrome/support-group

I also have CMP which developed after 3 cervical spine surgeries. It is a condition that is difficult to manage but with the right treatment I have seen a lot of improvemen tin the last year (>50%):
- Meds to manage the pain
- Daily exercises and stretching as prescribed by PT
- Botox injections into trigger points
- Active release massage therapy
- Healthy lifestyle: 8 hrs sleep every night, healthy diet, etc.
- positive mental attitude.

I have an excellent pain management MD and PT who guide me through the process, but it takes a lot of work and committment to getting better. Exercise, ART and injections all make things feel worse at first, but result in improvement in the long run so you have to hang in there. Good luck

What you have sounds like what I have - trigeminal neuralgia (please Google it). It is the most painful condition in the medical books, and our traditional pain medicine can't touch it. It is not the same as TMJ. Many useless root canals have been done as a result of this condition. (I was scheduled for one). See a Neurologist about it, and good luck.

Rusty