I have bilateral hand pain. A burning sensations starts around 3 or 4 p.m. everyday almost like clockwork until I get my 5 hours of sleep via Ambien CR 12.5 mg.

I asked every specialist (there's been many) I've seen in the last 4 years what could contribute to this correlation between pain and time of day and never even got an intelligent guess.

You can set a clock to my pain also, starts at 5 pm and the whole idea of busy during the day, working, etc, doesn't hold for me, I am home all day every day, doing almost nothing to keep my feet happy. Provided I am not up lots, they are good from 7am until 5 pm everyday. Clock work. The pain lasts from 5pm until 7am. I sleep 2 hours, up for water soak, vicious cycle all night, even with meds.

We will never have an explanation, it is what it is, does not matter what if anything goes on during the day, even sitting on my butt all day, pain will start like clockwork.

It may not be practical for you, but I wonder what would happen if you slept during the day and got up around 5 pm.

Doc

My pain is always worse at night also. My neurologist did give me an explanation but if courses can't remember it! I do remember it had something to do with the way the synapses in the brain send signals to the nerves at night.

I know for me part of it is everyone is sleeping and I'm left focusing on my pain with nothing to do. I had IVIG yesterday with 20mgs of solumedrol and never went to sleep until 5am.

MrsD posted a link to the Cohen site early in this post I thought it gave a great explanation. Well it sounded good anyway. lol