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Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2018 6:44 pm
by filardimarg-9
Back in October last year I started having really bad pain in my muscles, like I had pulled muscles mainly in my arms & legs, I used to play bowls but had to stop because of the pain, I went to the Dr's in January, she sent me for blood tests, they showed I was very low in Vitamin D3, I had 10 weeks course of vit d3 capsules then had another blood test, I went for the results last night, seems my vit d levels are good now, but I have still got the pains & the tiredness, I asked why I still got the pains, he said everything was fine now, I just had to learn to live with the pain also to take paracetamol, but they do nothing for the pain, so why take them.
Sorry for the rant but I just needed to talk.

Marg.

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2018 7:18 pm
by Lilith
Oh good heavens.

I'm sorry to rant too but this is the NHS for you! (Many apologies to decent NHS personnel out there, but !!!)

Marg, I'm so sorry to hear this!

Yes, seems to be their cure-all. The jolly old paracetemol. Or 'meditation''. Or 'breathing exercises' - whatever those might be.

I won't go on about my own experiences with doctors - but I detest doctors! They think they're gods and that it's a big treat for you to speak to them. I once heard a nurse sneer about patients enjoying the 'glamour' of hospital. What glamour? With very few exceptions, that's a place where nobody wants to be!

(Sorry, did once know a brilliant doctor, but she's retired now, alas.)

This is so humiliating for you, and atm you're getting nowhere ...

Again I'm so sorry and you really do have my sympathies, can see why you need to talk. I wish I could give you some concrete advice ...

Love and hugs and fusses to Bella x

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2018 7:42 pm
by Ruth B
Don't worry about ranting, there are times when we all need to get something off our chests, and you never know someone here might have some ideas.

My first thought was are you on any other medication, Statins are known to produce muscle pains as a side effect and it almost seems they are handed out like sweeties, other tablets might be similar so a good read of any of the paperwork might be worthwhile. A chat with a pharmacist might also be worth it if you know a good one, some do think they are just one down from god, but as with any medical professional, a good one is worth their weight in gold.

As far as vitamin D goes, the best source is sunlight, get out there and enjoy yourself as much as you are able.

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2018 11:14 pm
by Kay
I got so I could hardly move my arms when put on statins - never again

a magnesium supplement can help a lot with aches and pains - a lot of us are short of it - it often helps with restless leg syndrome too

I don't think the NHS generally, and GPs in particular, pay enough attention to vitamin and mineral deficiencies, but at least supplements can be bought readily enough without a prescription

I've also found Devil's Claw works well as an anti-inflammatory, and has good trial results to back it up

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 8:15 am
by bobbys girl
You were tested for vit D?! My doctor told me ' oh we don't test for vit D deficiency, we assume everyone around here is vit D deficient.' :x He never once said to take any. :roll:

I would agree about magnesium - many of us are deficient in that too. You need to take vit D3 with vit K2 to make sure that you absorb calcium properly and that it gets into your bones not your blood.

The reason you won't get any help from your doctor is that they don't know themselves - they don't study nutrition! You can't patent nature, good food or good vit and min supplements, big pharma doesn't make any money from these, tests aren't done therefore doctors don't know. Most big name, supermarket supplements contain synthetic vits and mins and are rubbish. Do your homework!

One of the things I picked up from the online documentary I have been watching was about pet food, especially the dry stuff. Forget any idea of baked biscuits full of balanced nutrition. What I saw was rendered 'leftovers' (what Micky Flanagan calls 'eyeballs and axxxxxxxs') cooked, at extremely high temperatures, down to a beige mush. Then colour, starch of some kind and a shovel full of additives before being extruded like tooth paste and dried/baked, mmm very nutritious! You can just see wild cats doing that!

Back to the vit and min thing - I had a 'full bloods' done to get to the root of my joint pains - nothing, nada. All they were concerned about was a raised cholesterol level - we NEED cholesterol! So recently we had a hair analysis done. Wow what an eye opener! A lot of questions now have answers and I am in a position to do something about them.

I feel uneasy about hijacking CC to talk about this but I hope admin allows this for a while. It would seem there is a need. So many familiar stories!

Perhaps if there is enough interest we could set up a link or ring fence type thingy (very technical Susan!) and continue this elswhere? I must admit it's nice to find others in the same boat!

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 9:28 am
by MarySkater
Some forums have an "off topic" section, where you can discuss unrelated issues with an audience who share some of your interests.

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 3:35 pm
by Lilith
Well this is, really, I know I natter on about the weather and make silly jokes and post music videos ... I think Admin's pretty lenient ... thanks Admin :D

How's it going, Marg?

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 5:25 pm
by bobbys girl
And long may you do so! :D Sometimes we need kitty support, sometimes info. But real pals do like a natter and you never know where that leads!

Been in the garden today, doing jobs that should have been done last month. Had some bark delivered and had to do a quick head count before the driver left - his lorry was covered in kitties - nosy little gits!

I'm feeling it now - EVERY joint hurts, soaky bath in Epsom salts will do the trick, I hope! Ow, ow, ow! :cry:

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 6:30 pm
by filardimarg-9
WOW !! Thank you all so much for your replies..............
I had a full bloods, the Dr checked for everything, everything is working well, I am on statins but I had to come off them for a while to see if it was them that were causing the muscle pains, but no, not them, the only other drug I am on is warfarin as I have had 2 DVT's in the past, so consultant said to stay on warfarin for life. These pains move around, started off in my right arm, then to my legs, ankles, back & now in my left arm, it makes life very difficult, between the tiredness & pains it is difficult to go for a walk, we used to play bowls but I have had to stop that too, I really enjoyed it. I am a carer for my husband as he suffers with bad Depression & anxiety but it is more like him caring for me just now. Life's a Bitch just now !!

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 8:10 pm
by bobbys girl
So the consultant wants you on rat poison for life?! Once they get you on these meds they don't want you off them! :x I have a magnesium and glucosamine gel I use on my joints when they are playing up. It is quite soothing. You might try that. I got it online at Healthspan.

I sympathise, I am a carer for my 90 year old mum and as my OH's back and hip problems get worse, I am doing the jobs he used to do (mind you I did them - decorating, lawn mowing etc, before I met him!) He can't walk far without pain, so we don't walk anymore. Honestly, between his hip and back and my neck and shoulders, we wouldn't make a whole one. :D

Just watching Noel Fitzpatrick operating on a dog with cancer. Not that long ago cancer in dogs was very rare now it is increasingly common and on the rise in cats. Humans get cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes. We are doing something wrong. It's not a lack of medicine that's doing it! Clean, simple food, clean water, less petrochemicals in our homes, less stress and more good friends and laughs - sounds like a plan to me. Over to you, Lil! :lol:

Something else I heard recently - laughter 'activates' white blood cells (among other things) so it really IS the best medicine.

The cat mint is growing again and Bob and the kittens have been taking turns at it. Bob is chilled out and the kittens are hyper - think I'll try some of that cat mint!!!

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 8:35 pm
by Lilith
Lol Bobby's girl - there was a writer and occultist (by which I mean a worker with the powers for good) named Dion Fortune in the 1930s, who said that laughter is a psychic antiseptic. Her best book imo is the 'Sea Priestess' and don't be put off by the new-age-y title, it's very down to earth and humorous too. A good read.

Thanks for the kind words by the way and hope the bath helped ... Marg, how I wish I could help. You CAN buy cannabis oil (NOT the illegal stuff that gives you a high) from Holland and Barrett and online, and I've heard that many people have used it for pain relief. Haven't tried it myself though. Sorry to hear about your husband, that's hell on wheels too (there myself; not a good scene.) Regards to him.

Do hope that something comes up on here or that you find some relief from that damned pain ... they'll dish out all sorts of muck like statins or SSRIs, but pain, oh groan and bear it ... grrrr! :twisted: You can bet they'd be the first to reach for the Tramadol or whatever if it was them ... double grrrrrrrr :evil: :evil:

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2018 9:17 pm
by bobbys girl
Marg - CBD oil is available from Celtic Winds. The Holland and Barrett stuff is a weaker mix but still expensive. It's the THC that is the psychotropic stuff. OH gets some relief from CBD oil.

Doc put him on strong pain killers 18 months ago and keeps trying to reduce them. OH says he wouldn't want them at all if they could tell him what is wrong (and hopefully put it right) But that's too much to ask.

Lilith - the bath was great, but now I've been sitting a while, I think I've set. :shock: Still I appear to make an excellent kitty bed.

Damn silly ads are on at the moment - that Febreze (yucky muck) must be powerful stuff, Fred has just sneezed and I am coughing! :shock: :lol:

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 7:47 am
by Ruth B
At least when the doctors are able to dish out tablets they do seem to listen a bit more to you, it's far worse when they haven't got a clue what to do. My Mum suffers chronic back pain, for some reason the vertebrae are breaking and they don't know why, bone density scans come back as good for a woman in her 70s. The real problem comes in that she has severe reactions to some opiates, she can manage Tramadol, but they don't seem strong enough now, and when they have tried her on the stronger ones it not only hospitalises her, but they start talking about do not resuscitate orders and emergency contact numbers. The doctors now seem almost to go into denial as they don't know what to do, she is also on Apixaban for DVT so that takes out Aspirin and Ibuprofen, after that there isn't a lot left. On the advise of the Nursing home I got her a TENS machine, which might work if they ever get around to using it. If I could find a good acupuncturist I would see if I could get her booked for a session of that, but while I know there are plenty in Wolves I would know where to look for accreditation, or recommendations.

Sorry I'm ranting now, but it is so annoying to be so helpless when your own Mother is in so much pain and no one seems to think it serious enough to do something about.

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 8:37 am
by bobbys girl
That's awful Ruth! Your poor mum. I'm lucky my mum is in good health (for 90!) But I know what you mean about talking to doctors on their behalf. :x :x

I once had a row on the phone with one doc. He wanted mum to take amoxicillin (something we are BOTH allergic to) but because it didn't cause anaphylaxis it was a 'risk worth taking - you don't want her to get sepsis!' SEPSIS? She had mild a chest infection. If we had been face to face I'd have probably hit him! My lovely Pharmacist friend had a quiet word with him and came up with something that did the trick without the weird side effects.

Everyone should have a Pharmacist friend - they often know much more than the doctor. Do you know anyone like that?

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 12:15 pm
by Lilith
http://www.simply-cbd.co.uk/shop/

Heard of this just now too.

Yup, doctors DON'T always know and, what's more dangerous, they'll try to cover themselves by 'passing the parcel' ie the patient on to whatever drug or treatment that's in current vogue. Thalidomide and ECT have come into this category ...

And the average patient is supposed to sit there nodding its head, yes doctor, no doctor ...you know best, doctor ...

These days I question and argue every inch of the way ...

I really am a pain in the posterior, he he he :twisted: :lol:

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 1:03 pm
by Ruth B
In a way i'm glad it's me dealing with things and not my sister, she is a qualified Biomedic and is currently working at Liverpool University doing research into drug interactions, she has even had her name on a medical paper. She probably knows more about drugs than most doctors do.

I, unfortunately, am the type willing to take a risk or two with medication, if the interaction between drug A and drug B isn't instant and taking the two together can give relief today, is it really worth putting up with the pain today, just in case something might happen in the future. As I'm asthmatic I shouldn't take Ibuprofen however I also suffer migraines and nothing deals with a migraine like Ibuprofen. I'm not careless with it, but I do think some doctors are so concerned with what might happen tomorrow they forget about what is happening today.

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 5:49 pm
by bobbys girl
Hi Ruth, have you tried Migraleve (pink)? I discovered it some years ago. My GP says they are not migraines but zigg-zaggy lines, nausea and an aversion to light sound like it to me! The nice thing about them is something called Buclizine which settles your tum and gives the paracetamol and codeine time to work. It means if I wake in the middle of the night with a headache or my shoulders playing up, I can take one of those and get back to sleep without having to have something to eat with the tablets. They work a treat for some people and not at all for others - hope they work for you!

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 12:21 am
by Mayday21
Hi Marg pain’s a dreadful thing. Was diagnosed 08/17 with polymyalgia rheumatica PMR basically pain all over due to inflammation. Did post last year after 4 doses of high prendisone that I was doing acupuncture 3xweek from 1.5 to 2.5 hrs for 6 wks. It didn’t help. I take fish oil, magnesium & turmeric & convinced my dr to reduce drastically the prendisone mg. When in pain I take 1- 2mg am & 2-3mg pm. Also a natrapath on the radio mentioned drinking beetroot, celery & carrot juice: i don’t have a juicer but buy from supermarket a brand she recommended. And we have no shortage of Vit D & the state where I am is the melanoma capital of the world. Hope your feeling better. And agree with comments re posting things outside of cat stuff as although we’re in cyber land we do form supporting friendships. Vivian

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 8:28 am
by Ruth B
Just had a look at the Migraleve website and it looks like it is just co-codamol with an added antihistamine in the pink ones, co-codamol (paracetamol and codeine) have never worked well for me, i was advised early on to take ibuprofen, when the aura started and then half an hour to an hour later take paracetamol if the pain isn't being controlled, for me the aura is worse than the pain so the ibuprofen is all I normally end up taking as long as I accept that the next few hours will be spent lying down in a dark room. The aura has a tendency to make me go blind (I can't see well to start with anyway) so it's not like there is much i could do even if I wanted to.

Fortunately I don't get them often, once every 6 - 10 weeks and they last for 4-8 hours, I'm fragile for a day or so afterwards and stress will trigger a second one, as one boss found out when I had a half day off when I had one once, went back the next day, and because he had a go at me about something I ended up going home early a second day. He did learn and after that when i came back after a migraine he would leave me to get on with what i could.

Migraines are scary and it annoys me when people brush them aside as 'just a headache', anyone who has them knows it is far more than just a headache, and it does sound like yours, Bobby's Girl, are what are now referred to as 'silent' or 'optical' migraines, all the symptoms of an aura but without much pain, mine are somewhere between that type and the 'classic migraine with aura'.

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 4:50 pm
by bobbys girl
Ooooh believe me, I get the pain!! :shock: :shock: :shock: But I have found that if I catch it in time with the Migraleve it reduces it quite a lot. It is Paracetamol 500mg, Codeine 8mg and Buclizine 6.25mg. As you say it is an antihistamine but also an antiemetic. It's funny, I can't be doing with Ibuprofen - wrecks my stomach, blerch!

Vivian - we invested in an Omega juicer last year, pricey but worth it, gets every last drop of juice out. We do celery, carrot and a little bit of ginger - boy that wakes you up!

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 7:24 pm
by Lilith
I never had a migraine until I got prescribed co-drydamol for period pain ... they were murder.

Used all the prescription stuff, useless, but had a lot of success with essential oils -

https://www.aromaweb.com/articles/aroma ... daches.asp

I can't remember now if it was a combination of peppermint and basil or peppermint and chamomile - long time ago, and of course different combinations work differently for different people, but I'd mix it in equal quantities and massage it into my temples; I only saw an aura occasionally but on one occasion I used the oils during the aura (urrgh they are scary) and they completely prevented the pain from coming on.

Grew out of the migraines and the periods ... who'd be a woman, eh? :twisted:

Re: Not cat related but need to talk.

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2018 11:29 pm
by Mayday21
Hi I too when I was very much younger suffered horrendous migraines .. paralysis rhs, everything went like a Picasso painting & would thow up... my 1st one was when I was 6...we were holidaying in Oz from PNG & it was cold so mum taught me plain knitting. Dad came into where I was knitting & watching TV - a luxury as no TV in PNG. I couldn’t talk due to paralysis & pins needles. Was rushed to a neuro specialist the next day had scan. He said to my folks ...”migraine sufferer can’t eat chocolate...” I still don’t eat chocolate & had my last bad attack in my middle 30s. They’re crippling things. Vivian