TOS and RSD: please weigh in with your sx
 

Hi all:

I think I am developing RSD... or is it something else?

I am constantly battling sweats vs. chills. Yes, I am on HRT and this is something different from hot flashes. All night long I go between sweats and chills. Occasionally it's during the day too but ALWAYS at night. This weekend, I had chills in a very warm house with a blanket, BF and a teeny lap dog keeping me warm. Then I began to get a burning sensation on my right leg - like a bad sunburn that went from the skin into the muscle... later in the day it spread to include my leg (hip to ankle) and my belly. It's 24 hours later now and the burning is still there, but just a bit weaker. I've had this burning issue before, even before my surgeries. Mostly in an ankle or hip joint, but it would last only an hour or two.

Oh God, I hope this is not shingles :( !!!

There is no skin discoloration, no shiney patches of skin. The affected limb may be a tiny bit cooler than the other limb... that's hard to tell by touch when you have TOS. :rolleyes:

Are there any other sx I should pay attention to? Should I alert my GP? What helps aleviate the burning (non med)? I've been researching RSD and reading threads on the RSD Forum here at NT. Would really value the TOSsers opinion on this...

HELP, HELP, HELP!!!
Anne

Anne, if I were you, I'd be wishing for shingles rather than RSD :)

Mose ppl w/rsd experience that sunburn feeling on a constant basis in the areas where the rsd is. The feeling doesn't "jump around" but it a constant presense in those areas. The sweating...some ppl feel it thru their entire body, and some ppl sweat only in the areas where the rsd is localized. For example: on the radio a gentleman only sweated on the left side of his face while eating hot chicken wings. He had rsd. And yes, the left side of his face was also alwasy red like a sunburn.

My rsd hands are red like a sunburn. They are slightly swollen, but get MORE swollen the more they hurt. I used to think they got numb at times, but then I realized that's not it at all. The numbness is because the pain medication takes away some of the sensitivity, making it feel more numb than sensitive.

The sensitivity isn't pain when you touch the skin NORMALLY...it's sensitivity to a more LIGHT touch. Such as wehn you touch it with a cotton ball, or lightly touch it with a fabric. If you simply lay your hand on top of an rsd limb, chances are it won't be so bad...but if you were to lightly brush it with a feather, it would make an rsd patient fly out of his/her chair and scream in pain.

My rsd hands are EXTREMELY hot. If I were to touch you with them, you'd literally jump, thinking I was touching you with a towel or something that just came out of the dryer.

Sometimes (well, MOST of the time) I get a "tingle" like you get with the rsd also. That "tingle" along with the burn hurts like heck. Remember, any slight touch hurts, so a tingle is a slight touch, so it makes it very very hard to tolerate.

I think that's about it. I truly hope it's not rsd. I truly do.

Hugs
LisaM

images shingles vs rsd

http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...=Search+Images

http://images.google.com/images?svnu...ps&btnG=Search

false alarm *whew*
 

I talked to a podiatrist friend of mine about RSD. He said "I fit the profile - someone who obsesses on medical issues." My gosh! Bad brain, BAD, BAD!! He explained loss of bone density in the affected area is what they are trained to look for. We talked about it for a while... and I'm satisfied that it's not RSD.

Guess it's just a pulled muscle? Definately no discoloration or radical temp changes. And while it's still there, I can feel it easing off.

Thanks Jo and Lisa!
Anne

LOL! How can you NOT obsess over medical issues when you have whacked out diseases like we have? LOL! Ever since I got rsd I think ever little twinge is a spread!

Loss of bone density comes after you've had rsd for a while. It doesn't happen IMMEDIATELY. Normally when you are dx'd with rsd, a "baseline" bone density test is done, so they can see "where you are now" so later they can check the progression of the disease over time.

Although...I haven't had one...and I should get one. Hmmm...thanks for sticking that notion in my head. Wonder if that hurts. Hmmm....

Thanks sweetie and I'm glad you feel better!

Hugs
LisaM