Every night when I lay down to sleep my back feels like something is twisting my spine and hurts so bad for about half an hour. Does not matter how I lay whether flat on my back, either side or on my stomach. I thought it was the bed but it does it no matter where I lay. Does anyone else have this? And is there anything I can do to help it?

The other new thing my body likes to do to me is my knees and ankles lock up. Both sides. When I wake up and stretch they pop like crazy hurt a little and after I walk around (well, you know hobble) a bit it stops. I don't know if it is the cold weather or what.

My right leg has always been the culprit with my MS pain. It's the first to act up if I get sick, or the weather changes, or for just about any other reason it can think of!

My knees pop when I stand up.....but I just attribute that to getting older. I'm not sure if that's an MS thing or not. But I do have achy joints, especially in my leg and my right hand.

First thing in the morning....or if I get up after sleeping for a while....I have to sort of get my bearings and stand still for just a minute or my legs don't want to work right. After I stretch a minute they're fine.

lol, Legzz, *nothing's* normal with MS.

or rather, I should say, *everything* is normal, and none of us have the same stuff going on.

I wake up many days, and HOBBLE for a while, like an 80 yr old lady.

I have developed a habit of doing a morning wriggle, to unkink my back and hips... it's a funny kind of hula-dance thing going on.

my friend calls it my duck-waddle.

I think it's due to my generalized weakness... meaning, I don't move enough in my sleep, because I'm a bit weak, and that causes things to "SET" wrong.

to ameliorate the problem, I've added a two inch slab of firm foam to the top of my mattress... that helps a bit... also, sleeping in form-fitting clothes (like longjohns, or tank-top and panties when it's hot) and that helps me move better during sleep, as does slippery sheets.

another thing... I've noticed that with the weakness, I tend to lift things wrong, and bend wrong, to compensate for the bad side... and this leads to overstressing my back sometimes... even if the thing weighs only a few pounds... it can tweak things out of place.

a chiropractor visit may be in order... I get a LOT of relief that way.

right now, my left shoulder is bugging me... I lay down to sleep, and it's hard to get comfortable.

hugs, to Legzz, and hope you get some answers and relief.

Have to agree with Cayo, nothing is normal with this cruddy disease.

Of course, in some cases you can have fun with it. I always joke about picking up radio stations with my legs when I start getting electrical zaps down them. Someone made a good suggestion about L'Hermittes Sign... put on some metal music and headbang to it

Regarding your legs... it may be the colder weather and your body adjusting, or maybe you need another blanket on your legs while in bed? Sometimes you need to play around until you find your happy medium.

A lot of people have back problems with MS, and often it is due to sitting or walking awkwardly during the day.

My suggestion would be to go to a physiotherapist (who knows about MS), and have him assess the problem. I have a PT guy, who I refer to as "my angel", because he has been fixing me up for the last 25 yrs. Sometimes it is the MS directly, so he massages and uses TENS AROUND the sore area, and sometimes it is other problems, like tendonitis, tummy strengthening exercises required, back alignment, etc.

My whole body locks up over night, especially in the winter. I wake up and walk around like Frankenstien for the first 30 min or so. If I stretch while standing, I go into tremors. I just move very slowly and stretch (while sitting!!!).

My thumbs lock and pop every time I try to bend them. I have no idea what that is about, and have asked on the forums before. Doesn't seem there are too many people with this problem though.

Cherie

Agree with the others about this being a wacky disease.

My bod is a great predictor of weather changes these days. I know it's humid out if I get muscle spasms. I know it's cold out when my muscles tighten.

I have problems with my knees due to other reasons. One damaged in a car accident, the other in dropping a motorcycle trying to learn to ride. So I'm never quite sure which to blame for the stiffness and popping I get there.

I do know that in winter I put on a light extra blanket under my covers to help with the spascity (sp?). Light so I can kick it off in my sleep if I get too hot.

Hope you feel better soon.

It's the spasms...try stretching before bedtime...and in the morning.
I bought a yoga strap. It helps me stretch the hammies and calves. I need to go back into PT to get stretches for my torso...so tight...