Really works well on my muscle spasms. Tried and true. But the p.m.Dr.said he would rather try something different. I don't know? I always say if it ain't broke..don't fix it! But he's the boss!
Jim

...but yeah...I have like severe uncontollable movements from chest and abdomen..as if my body is trying to do sit ups...even if I'm walking or sitting..whatever.

Difficult to explain, but I can be anywhere..doing anything and it's like my body wants to fold up onto itself.

I would love to know what that is. My doc said it was my anxiety..but I don't think so. It happens when I'm alone..with people...happy ...or struggling.
Circumstances don't seem to matter.

Thanks for this post. I'd love to learn something I can do to relieve or at least lessen the occurance of this involuntary and quite obvious movements.

Thanks!

Muscle spasms are one of my biggest problems and I have them in the middle of my back around to stomach and ribs. I take 1/2 of a Flexeril at night or I can't sleep from the throbbing. Also use a heating pad and try to stay hydrated too.

Silly me running a chainsaw today cuttin down trees and then splitting the wood too. DUH

I often use heat on my neck and it provides relief.
I'll try using it around my thoracic area too. I am probably lucky in that I don't have pain all the time in the thoracic spine - just occassional pain that doesn't last very long and fairly frequent tightening, mostly on the left side.

It is moving into certain positions, especially twisting or bending sideways that causes these extreme, stop you in your tracks, cramping spasms.

I notice that you fell from a tree.
I also fell from a tree, many years ago, when I was 7.
I do wonder if that could be something to do with all my spine problems now. I also fell from about 8-10 feet and was unconcious for a short time.

Have you had surgery?

I just had chest pain with severe muscle spasms last week. I could barely breathe. Wound up in the hospital overnight because they feared MI. They started in my back around T12 and radiated on both sides. I have never had such pain. MI was ruled out. MD said it was a ruptured disc. I am not fully recovered. Everytime I try to get up and start moving around the spasms hit again. I become nauseated.Anyone who has never had this doesn't know how severely this hurts.

Welcome to Spine Health (I see this was your first post)

This is a great place for information and support from others going through spinal problems.

I'm sorry to hear that you have a ruptured disc which has caused so much pain. It sounds like it has improved. What do the doctors propose to do? Perhaps they are going to wait to see if it heals itself.

Were you aware of what caused the disc to rupture?
I don't really have an idea of when I damaged my thoracic spine, but as I have a lot of degeneration throughout my spine, it may just be genetic. I have also been told that as I was double jointed as a child, that could have contributed to my spine problems.

Look after yourself, and I hope that you continue to improve and heal.

All the same issues that you are having with the thoracic spine I too am having. I feel like I'm going to break into sometimes, and the spasms around my ribs are miserable. I take soma, but it is not very effective. I still have severe lumbar/SI pain, so I feel very overwhelmed trying to manage the pain. I did not know that I had thoracic problems until I was about 6 months postop PLIF. After complaining for a year and a half, I had a new MRI last month, and my surgeon told me that I had many DDD along the thoracic spine. three discs are very bad. He did not recommend surgery because it is just so invasive and he believes that the results are questionable. For me, I agree but think that it is important for my doctors to now help me manage the pain appropriately.

Thoracic pathology is difficult and a bit scary. I'm sorry that you are struggling with it yourself, but it sounds like the symptoms that we are both having are fairly typical for the area involved. I do know that osteoporosis is many times the cause of the thoracic pathology, and my bone density has decreased by 15% over the last 3 years, which is statiscally significant for DDD.

Take care, Jelly. Happy holidays!

Lisa

I don't know what my bone density is, but I have been put on calcium and Vitamin D supplements because my levels were very low.

Let's hope that we both manage to just tick along without things getting any worse.

Have a great Christmas!

Hi,

I have finally gotten an MRI done on my thoracic after going through five cervical surgeries, front and back. I continued to have upper midback pain and my neck guy kept saying it was referred pain from my C6/7. NOT! I went to my GP and insisted on an MRI and went to a thoracic surgeon yesterday to find out I have three bulging discs at T5/6/7. It's weird how you have to scream to get a new diagnosis when you've had lumbar and cervical and the surgeons want to just stay on those.

My stomach muscles will just lock down and cramp on me. I have to stand up and bend backwards to get it to stop and then sometimes, it will start right back. Pretty rough when you're riding in a car. My ribs have been so sore too! I feel like it's hard to breathe. I DO NOT WANT TO EVER SNEEZE again!!! Sneezing kills me and so far, I haven't got the pain backed off very much. The new surgeon is sending me for PT and gave me some cream to try topically. No one said what was it in. It was a mixed cream in a tiny jar. They said I could get a full deal if it helped me. So far today, It's not helped any.

Lumbar hurts, neck hurts, but thoracic makes you hurt more all over and feel like crap or the flu.

I had flexiril but have ran out, then got Robaxin and have run out of that too. I only have some Zanaflex for muscle spasms and it's one of those that if you don't take it regularly, it can cause more spasms for some reason.

Candle99

Boy do i feel at home here! Finally some people that have the same problem as me. My spasms are severe,my spine bends backwards,i look like i'm doing a bridge but unfortunately not on purpose,my muscle tighten up so badly that i can't breath,my therapist had to stretch and massage my stomach muscles because the spasms were so bad that my diaphragm was stuck in place to my ribs causing it hard for me to breath.I also get the tightening in my mid section and stomach that i'm bending forwards doing a sit up.I'm taking baclofen but when the spasms start it doesn't make them stop. I don't seem to have a particular trigger, the last time i went for a massage the spasms started and every time he went near my spine they would get worse. Hard to relax when being touched triggers the spasms. My doctor has no idea whats causing them either.

I have a long-standing thoracic spine injury and suffer from terrible spasms around my bra strap area and they seize me up right around my chest so that I can barely breathe or stand up straight. They are so frightening! At least now I don't feel so alone . . . . I've had so much pain this week - my muscles are just so tight and can't relax - it feels like my back is going to snap. Had this pain since I was 27 and I am now 50 and am so fed up of it all

i am 21 years old and had a L5/S1 fusion sept 13, 2011. stopped my leg pain foot tingling and numbness. i have degenerative disc disease, spinal stenosis, and retrolisthesis. now i am experiencing, excruciating thoracic pain. mine feels the same way some of your guys feels. chest pain rib pain shoulder pain and severe migraines..i am too young for this not only is it affecting me physicically but mentally its depressing me because i have a 1 year old and it takes everything i have just to make it through the day takn care of her..i had a mri on my thoracic spine last wednesday will know results monday the 23rd..on another i seen where a lumbar fusion could cause this pain in the upper part said the L4/L5/S1 was connected in some way. im just wondering if surgery has affected my thoracic? i agree with you guys i feel like my back is gonna break into and causes nausea and with a 1 year old it makes it really hard on me

i am 21 years old and had a L5/S1 fusion sept 13, 2011. stopped my leg pain foot tingling and numbness. i have degenerative disc disease, spinal stenosis, and retrolisthesis. now i am experiencing, excruciating thoracic pain. mine feels the same way some of your guys feels. chest pain rib pain shoulder pain and severe migraines..i am too young for this not only is it affecting me physicically but mentally its depressing me because i have a 1 year old and it takes everything i have just to make it through the day takn care of her..i had a mri on my thoracic spine last wednesday will know results monday the 23rd..on another i seen where a lumbar fusion could cause this pain in the upper part said the L4/L5/S1 was connected in some way. im just wondering if surgery has affected my thoracic? i agree with you guys i feel like my back is gonna break into and causes nausea and with a 1 year old it makes it really hard on me