Ouch, But it’s Just a Knock!

By Helen Watts

Whilst thinking about a subject to focus on for this issue I absentmindedly caught my leg on a low unit in my bedroom and it hurt so much and it kept on hurting until I rubbed it.  This is not the first time I’ve felt a reaction like this to such a minor knock that it got me thinking whether fibro makes us more sensitive to other pain or we somehow feel it more than a non sufferer so I turned to the Facebook groups and asked if any of the members there felt the same. 

‘MTS’ “I'm not sure it's all down to fibro. My son and grandson have this as well as myself. They don't have fibro. My grandson has autism his senses are heightened.

My son has sensory issues like this and also can't touch certain fabrics and also can't put certain textures in his mouth.  A slight knock has him scream in pain but a bad one he jst shakes it off. I have this off and on slight knock is like a hammers smashed my toes /fingers etc, but not sure if due to fibro or my FND.  Neurologist couldn't answer this either.

However my fibro definitely makes light touch during a flare painful. Like my shoulders arms legs, my little grandson can’t lean on me or take my hand”.

‘HA’ “Yes it does I'm always bumping into things and the pains so unreal it's like a limb has been cut off. When I'm brave enough to look there is hardly a mark”.

‘KB’ “I am very sensitive to pain. I had my eyebrows micro bladed, and she couldn’t believe how much it hurt me. I used tons of numbing cream and let’s just say won’t be doing it again!”.

‘GG’  “I have constant muscular pain and developed severe arthritis at the same time as Fibromyalgia being diagnosed. Currently I have a torn cartridge and swollen glands. The slightest touch and I scream. I believe being fatigued all the time and having a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia and CFS is neurological, putting the nervous system into high alert and overreactive. I never suffered like this prior to my diagnosis”.

‘AC’  “I do think since having fibro everything else pain wise is more intense I don’t know  if it because fibro flares whenever I’m unwell so it’s two things causing pain at once or just that pain is felt more intensely“.

‘RB’  “I can hit my arm and it will be twice as painfully and it will hurt a lot longer then normal.  I came off my push bike 6 months ago and still have a painful bruise on my leg. I also found that pain can transfer so if I hit my left leg I can feel it in my right instead it's very strange”.

‘JL’  “It seems to take pain longer to go away since I have had fibromyalgia and longer to recover from painful injuries“.

‘MS’ “Yes! When I knock any part of me then it is very painful. Even when I get Acupucture. It takes longer for the pain to go away“.

‘EP’  “Absolutely yes. Things that shouldn't hurt that bad are eyewateringly painful. I cut my index finger across the pad. The pain was unbearable.  It was September and it's still painful now if pressure is put on it such as using a knife etc. If I bump into something slightly I bruise and the pain and skin soreness last for weeks“.

‘HH’ “Yes 100% the pain on accidentally bumping myself against anything is heightened, far more intense (to the point where I wonder just at what point will it stop going?!) and it lasts for an extremely - if not ridiculously - long period of time.  The pain is so bad that it causes me to scream whereas non-fibro people would just rub it and move on. If I catch myself on something hot and get the tiniest of burns, say on a finger, the sensation of pain feels as though I need an ambulance whereas in reality it only requires holding under the cold water tap! However, even the cold water feels more like rocks landing on the sore skin, so if the skin isn't broken i prefer Lavender essential oil”.

‘CH’  “Absolutely, any knock or even just someone gently touching or holding you makes your body feel like it’s being sawn in two. I find myself struggling on for weeks until I finally give in to speak to a doctor and then after test after test guess what! It’s down to fibromyalgia”.

‘EB’ “Iv also OA and ME as well as Fibro. slightest knock hurts and I bruise easily .  I’m in pain 24/7 and nothing seems to help”.

‘SMF’ “Absolutely, the slightest bump will hurt more than it should.  They did some tests in America with Fibro & non Fibro people.  The fibro people continued to feel pain long after the non Fibro people said the pain had stopped”.

‘SW’ “Definitely.  A poke of a finger hurts ridiculously,  something that probably wouldn't have hurt as much before fibro”.

‘JS’  “I am always knocking myself and the pain is terrible I can’t be trusted with a knife. I always slice the top of my fingers,my hands jerk and I get the shakes”.

‘AKS’  “Yes, period pain as an example. I think because our bodies are so sensitive any other pain heightens whatever you're feeling”.

‘AM’  “Most definitely 100% it’s painful for someone to even help me by holding my arm. I think knocking my self of something accidentally the pain is more excruciating with fibromyalgia rather than not, it also lasts a lot longer than what it would if I was “normal”.

‘KK’ “Yes I would say 100%!. If I even get a knock to my skin it hurts so much”.

‘HS’  “With fibro we feel pain quicker than those that don't have fibro but we're able to tolerate the pain longer. I also have kinetic phobia (fear of movement because of pain) and allodynia (super sensitive to feeling pain when I shouldn't)”.

‘CA’  “Yes, and I feel we don't heal as quickly as other people“.

‘HF’  “Yes definitely and takes a lot longer to heal. Inadequate deep sleep is a major factor with Fm as our body heal when in a deep sleep which often doesn't happen with people with Fm. I lost all my teeth due to being unable to tolerate the pain when seeing a dentist“.

‘HS’  “Yes definitely, I had a breast screen this week; the pain was unbelievable. Thank goodness it was quick“.

‘RAK’  “Definitely. Couldn’t figure out why my latest piercing in my ear hurt so much when it was done and after. I found out 8 months after that they felt strongly that I had fibro. So that explained that after I read up about it that is!!”.

‘SS’  “Oh yes, think I take longer for bruises etc to heal too“.

‘VHT’  “Yes for sure, I fell last week and felt like I’d been kicked all over my body, Not like I’ve ever been kicked all over my body, but I bet most who suffer fibromyalgia feels the same way”.

‘WL’  “I’m my case yes , just touching my own skin, is like stabbing myself with a pin cushion,  it’s really hard on my relationship with my husband as he wants to give me hugs to make me feel better, but that hug causes excruciating pain. When I shower the water feels like I’m being hit with thousands of needles, using a flannel on my face feels like I’m using sand paper. Even the towel hurts”.

‘CP’  “Yes definitely but I also bruise for a long time. Certain areas hurt more than others, I fell a couple of months ago and still have pain where I had bruises. Legs and arms seem to be the worst”.

‘SH’  “Yes definitely, every thing hurts, even wiping my face with a face cloth hurts, my skin feel like it's sore , but there's not a sore mark on me“.

‘HP’  “Yes definitely I stubbed my toe and the pain went on for days. I had a flu injection and that caused pain in my arm for about a week“.

‘NA’  “Yes I feel every little knock and bang,and bruise so much easier than others“.

‘HH’  “100%! My skin is so much more sensitive that everything hurts more“.

‘CK’  “Yes.. yes... I fell and hurt my hand and wrist and it still aches like mad even after 6 weeks, bruising takes so much longer to heal”.

‘DWWC’  “Yes definitely slight bang and the spot hurts for weeks brusies last for weeks“.

‘AJ’  “I don’t find it so, no. My pain is inherent and not related to external things like bumps and scratches. My dentist says I have a high pain threshold and I get covered in huge scratches when I work in my fruit cage without batting an eyelid. There are, however, particular spots like the inside of my elbows, where if you press in that place it hurts more than you’d expect“.

‘KL’  “Yes definitely. I had an injection into my coccyx. Apparently it's not supposed to hurt...lady before me said it was fine. I was literally screaming while they were doing it then had a 3 week reaction afterwards. And the dental hygienist I wont even contemplate going to nowadays. My skin always hurts“.

‘VS’  “I find that it depends on the day, if I'm having a flare up or bad pain day, even the simplest things could hurt, like my partner resting their hand on my leg. Or if I walk into something the pain is heightened than if I am having a good pain day. Before my symptoms started I had a very high pain tolerance, and now I feel the things I could tolerate a decade ago I am unable to tolerate as easily, for example, tattoos, peircings, a trip or fall. I'm currently 33 so I don't think age has anything to do with it”.

‘PAW’  “So for me it's not all the time, everyday. I can feel physically sick with pain if I knock myself or someone accidentally bumps in to me. I don't know what makes it happen, not even like a bad day generally, just a super sensitive day“.

‘OS’  “It changes for me...knocks to elbows, knees and ankles are AGONY and make me feel as if I'm about to throw up...but I feel like my pain tolerance is higher in other respects. Burning myself in the kitchen, stubbing a toe, scratches and grazes are things I don't even notice until I see the marks etc. Its so strange”.

‘RB’  “I have a high pain threshold usually but certain things are agony on some days/during a flare”.

‘SB’  “I am an odd one. I will bump somewhere and not feel a thing but I’ll get intense pain somewhere else a few hours later. Certain places like my right arm feels very little pain at all if cut or grazed or bumped but other places like my back or right knee are the worst for feeling pain that has no reason to be there“.

You’ll see by these comments that over sensitivity to any sort of cut, bruise or bump is a real issue for fibro sufferers.  Are these comments ringing true with you?  If so why not come along to the groups and chat.