Holy cow. For some reason, I aged 20 years today.

[LuckyCharms]

Severe bone pain in just about every part of my body. Sudden onset.

I've been fairly physical lately, but nothing that would cause this.

Severe pain, like morphine craving pain. Can barely walk, can't even bend down to pet the dog.

I have a ton of opiates here, but I'm not going to take any. They constipate me...I'd rather bear the pain.

I can't tell you how bad this fucking sucks. Wait a minute, yes I can tell you! That's why I'm posting it!

[Harker]

1. I hope you get the 20 years back tomorrow.

[LuckyCharms]

2. I hope so...

It's so bad... never had anything quite like this. Scaring the shit out of me to be honest...

[Harker]

7. Mrs. Charms there, ready to drive you if needed?

[LuckyCharms]

9. She is, but I doubt I could get into the car.

[Harker]

13. They can come to you, I hope.

[LuckyCharms]

14. I took an ambulance ONCE

and I was so embarrassed that I'd rather crawl the 3 miles to the hospital.

Neighbors looking out their windows like a bunch of vultures.

[Harker]

17. I'm sure you can concoct an implausible back story to shut up the vultures.

[LuckyCharms]

18. I...I....injured my genitals with a wooden headed axe!

Yeah! That's what happened!

Excuse me sir, what did you do?

OWWWWWW just go onto DU at look for the axe thread , lady!!!!

FUUUUUUUUUUCCCCKKKK!!!

Calm down sir, or I'll have to call security....

[eppur_se_muova]

21. Well, it has plausibility going for it. nt

[LuckyCharms]

22. Jeez Mr. Charms....is it a full moon?

You're the fourth patient today that cut his junk off with a wooden-headed axe.

Have a seat in the waiting room....the doctor will see you in 9 hours.

[biophile]

3. It seems we age in sudden leaps and not gradually

It can be like hitting a wall sometimes. But you might also have an infection or flu of some sort that is knocking you down like that.

[LuckyCharms]

6. It might be spinal related...

Very tender to the touch right above my butt crack. But I don't know why everything else is hurting...

I've been posting like an idiot trying to distract myself.

I'll have to go to the ER if this doesn't resolve.

[eppur_se_muova]

24. Any reason you might have injured your coccyx ? I suffered a pull to my coccygeal ligament picking up a piece of paper.

(It's that little projection of the spine below the pelvis that used to serve the purpose of supporting a tail, even for those of us who don't have one. Now, it's an anchor point for various muscles in the back, hips, and possibly legs. I turned to the side too quickly while I was bending over and my body's own momentum exerted the stress that pulled the ligament.)

I told the doctor I was worried I might have gotten a hairline fracture. She shook her head sadly and informed my she had once fractured her coccyx and said it hurt a Hell of a lot more than what I was going through. Prescribed cure was HUGE doses of acetominophen (Tylenol); at low dosages, it's an analgesic, at higher doses it's a powerful anti-inflammatory. My Rx called for six 1000mg tablets (Rx only) four times a day. Not something to try without doctor's recommendation, but you might try checking your OTC Tylenol for the maximum daily dose, and giving that a shot, if it's consistent with your other conditions/Rx's.

If you already have a donut cushion, see if it helps.

There's actually a medical condition known as https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coccydynia -- lots of info at the Wiki (amazing how much there is to know about a part of our anatomy we're usually scarcely aware exists). Hopefully you won't have to have a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coccygectomy.

[LuckyCharms]

26. The painful touch isn't exactly at my coccyx...

It's a bit to the right.

The past few weeks, I've been getting large-gauge needle steroid injections directly into a skin condition that just happened to break out in the area this particular flare up. But I don't think the pain is from that, because the injections were far enough away from where the pain is.

Jesus...6 grams of Tylenol in one day? Did your doc monitor your liver function????

[eppur_se_muova]

30. Per dose. Four doses per day. Warned not to continue beyond 3-4 days.

The label on the bottle gives a much smaller max dosage (legal CYA) but the doc assured me they sometimes need to do this with a Rx.

[LuckyCharms]

32. 24 grams a day????????

YIKES!!!

[eppur_se_muova]

33. I'm pretty sure the caloric value was non-neglible. nt

[LuckyCharms]

35. Maximum dose suggested is 4,000 mg/day.

And you're right, some of that is CYA, but holy crap, that's 6 times the recommended maximum dose.

I'm really curious....did they monitor your liver functions while you were taking this?

[eppur_se_muova]

36. I don't recall that they did. OTOH, I had no other health issues, and was (reasonably) young and healthy. nt

[Marthe48]

40. Have you ever had a compression fracture?

They happen suddenly and are very painful. My neighbor had one in her 80s, in the early 2000s and she said it was worse than childbirth. I can't remember the treatment she got, but it took her some time to get better. Around 2012, my husband's elderly uncle had some trouble with his vertebrae, and got some kind of gooey liquid injected that stabilized the problem area. He got the treatment as out-patient, and did pretty well. He was in his 80s as well.
Whatever is causing your pain, hope you can get it diagnosed and fixed.


I wish you well.

[LuckyCharms]

41. Thanks Marthe...no compression fracture that I know of.

But just about every lumbar and thoracic disc is blown out.

I've done a lot of heavy work in the past decade that was made for a younger man, but not me.

I'm paying the piper now for it.

It ALWAYS resolves, eventually. But this one feels different. It's my back, hips, knees, arms.

[Marthe48]

43. Maybe a nerve is pinched

Sounds horrible :/

[PatSeg]

23. Yeah, no one warned me

how quickly some of these ailments will overtake us when we get older. I often feel betrayed by own body.

[elleng]

4. SO SORRY!

[calimary]

5. Oh No!!!

I hope you can take it REALLY easy this week. Sounds like you can use it!

[debm55]

8. Hope you are feeling better LuckyCharms.

[AZJonnie]

10. You didn't just STOP taking opioids today after having taken them the past couple of days?

Because if so, that would be the cause

If I have to take opioids I just pop a stool softener with the first one. Works a treat to avoid the constipation. I just mean, if pain gets too bad, that's an option. Also, even if there's some APAP in the opioid formulation, it's not typically a problem to also add some NSAIDs (like aspirin, naproxen, or ibuprofen) and they work noticeably better in combination, for me at least.

Sorry you're hurting today buddy, get better soon!

[LuckyCharms]

12. Thanks Jonnie...

I try not to take opiates at home. Last time Ii had opiates was via IV a few months ago in the hospital for an unrelated issue.

I can't take NSAIDS...kidney disease.

The opiates that I have are the ones with Tylenol in them.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

11. My dear LuckyCharms!

I know how difficult it can be to do something to fix this new foreign pain. But when it's this bad, someone needs to have a good look at you.

Pain is a message from your body. Heed it.

[LoisB]

15. Personally, I would head straight to E.R. or call 911 to come get me. Pain is a message.

[chouchou]

16. Get-your-ass-to-the-hospital. Please!

[LuckyCharms]

20. Thinking seriously about it...

[PatSeg]

25. Sounds like your best option

what you're experiencing doesn't sound normal and calling an ambulance is perfectly reasonable under the circumstances.

[Diamond_Dog]

19. Horrible! I'm so sorry! Pain sucks!

[Hope22]

27. Is it possible that you are dehydrated?

I hope you are feeling better soon! 💗🙏🏼💐

[LuckyCharms]

31. Thank you. No...I drink 2 liters of water a day, plus 2 huge mugs of decaf.

[mnhtnbb]

28. Pain is a message Lucky.

Please get yourself to the ER, or at least Urgent Care if you have one still open.

I had an episode of low back muscle spasms last December that was so severe I could hardly stand up. Had to get the walker from past joint replacements out to be able to walk to the car. My son took me to Urgent Care. Got a shot and within an hour I could walk without the walker. They also gave me muscle relaxants and suggested pain patches.

Get yourself some help!

[niyad]

29. My dear LC, holding you in light, with lots of very gentle virtual hugs.

Please do not be embarrassed to use an ambulance if necessary. You are dear to us, and we want you properly cared for. Don't make me come up there!!!

[JMCKUSICK]

34. I'm really sorry to hear that LuckyCharms,

I really hope it's nothing serious. God Speed

[LuckyCharms]

38. My spine is in bad shape John...

I'm getting about 3 CT scans a year on my hips and back the past few years.

But it calms down sometimes, so I'm hoping this is just a flare up.

[soldierant]

49. Arthritis does flare up and in unpredictable ways.

The Clinic that serves the Olympic Training Center says apply ice, never heat. When it's whole body, that's a neat trick.

I get the best results with a TENS but that's also a neat trick with whole-body. The unit I have can only supply at most four pads at a time. You have to use an even number, and they don't need to be near each other - as long as both or all are securelt touching the body, they will conduct.

But seeing a doctor is really the best idea. There are so many things we don't know about our bodies because we never needed to. When we don't know what we're sealing with, we are probably doing it wrong, whatever we are doing.

[JMCKUSICK]

52. I'm with you, good luck

[Easterncedar]

37. Any change in medication?

No statins, right?

[LuckyCharms]

39. I've been taking a statin for decades. No change in dosage.

[Easterncedar]

42. Not that then

Generally, it’s less likely you will get stuck in the ER waiting room if you arrive by ambulance. Walk-ins tend to go to the back of the line.

I hope you feel better as fast as this came on, but also urge you to have this checked out. Meanwhile, an ice pack on the base of your spine might help calm things down. (I am no expert, just an old person with some experience caring for even older persons. Please see someone and get better advice!)

[pat_k]

44. Probably not the issue, but before I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis...

Last edited Mon Oct 6, 2025, 10:56 PM - Edit history (1)

.. I went through almost a year where I had various pains/limited mobility. Hip flexor one week. A couple weeks later, rotator cuff. The next week, a knee. Then wrist pain.

I was a pretty active person and just wrote off as "I pulled something." Or "I'm getting older, I should be more careful."

Then it was less and less time between episodes of this or that. Then multiple joints at once, and then, it seemed like overnight, I was rolling myself to the bathroom on my office chair because walking was too painful and the aching in my wrists was unbearable. I couldn't sleep. I remember just crying at times in the middle of the night. I couldn't even open my own door or reach a kitchen cabinet.

Fortunately, I was rapidly referred to an excellent Rheumatologist. I had all the Rheumatoid indicators*, which usually translates to severe disease. I was put on Enbel (weekly injection) 15 mg Methotrexate weekly, and 400 mg Hydroxychloroquine daily. The pain resolved completely in a few weeks. I've generally been in remission now for about 15 years, albeit, with a few flare ups and medication changes. And when I do have a flare up and the pain is back, I can't believe how bad it is. It's strange. We are very good at forgetting pain until we re-experience it.

* Anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA), Anti-mutated citrullinated vimentin (anti-MCV), C-reactive protein (CRP), Rheumatoid Factor (RF), high Erythrocyte sed rate... and I think other indicators I don't recall.

[electric_blue68]

45. Woah, LC! Maybe you should get an ambulance...

Since you're being affected in alot of areas.

GOOD Luck!

[ms.pamela]

50. Pain

Dear Mr. Lucky Charms, could you possibly have been bitten by a tick? Some decades ago, I got a tick bite when I was visiting Half-Moon Bay, California. Weeks later I experienced extreme pain all over my body so much so I could barely walk. I went to the doctor, and he tested my blood. The blood test revealed high levels of inflammation. When I suggested that I could have Lyme disease he said it didn't exist in Washington state. The pain was so awful I truly wanted to die. My daughter who was in nursing school at the time and had some Celebrex around from a previous kidney stone treatment gave me one of her left-over pills. The pain went away but I did have Lyme disease and had to take an antibiotic for four weeks.

[iemanja]

46. Have you tried ibuprofen?

It’s pretty effective. I hope you feel better soon.

[Mira]

47. My day like that was June 16/25

My journey was painful and immediate from one moment to the next, as you describe, and the problem was that parts of my back were broken, and the diagnosis took time. I then had injections of glue in the broken area. Did not help much. Then a massive steroid injection into the lower part of the spine. Finally ended up with lumbar surgery to open regions of the spine that did not allow my nerves to travel freely.
That surgery was 3 weeks ago. I am pain-free today, and off all meds. My 84-year-old surgeon, who operated to classical music, I heard it as I went under, promised an 80 percent success. It was 100 percent.
I had no summer this year, but I am mending, and my life has been returned to me.

Bottom line: get immediate attention, get immediate diagnosis, get in line, be a squeaky wheel, the waiting times for the procedures can be weeks.

We may not have the same problems, but the pain sounds identical. I also could not set down a dog dish for weeks.
I hired a neighbor who is young and unemployed to come in a few hours every day to do the things I could not. I tapped into a bit of money I saved for emergencies, put it in an envelope, and still have a bit left.

I wish you great help, immediately, and if I wrote too much, I am sorry; it was a bit cathartic.

[BaronChocula]

48. Hang in there Brother

I hope this passes soon.

[Bayard]

51. Welcome to the club, (not)

Is it worse in some areas, like, is there a center it radiates out from? When you say bone pain, are you talking about your joints? Sudden onset is pretty weird. Could it be an allergic reaction, or did you get stung by some nasty? Either of those can do some pretty weird things to a body.

I have a great orthopedic surgeon that patches me up and keeps me going over the past 11 years. Can you ask your GP to recommend one where you can get in quickly? Some things that have helped me previously are icing, a massage gun, a portable TENS unit, and my prescription for diclofenac.

Please keep us posted. Hope you're feeling chipper again very soon.

[Easterncedar]

53. Hey, LC, I hope you are feeling better. Let us know, ok?

[LuckyCharms]

56. I'm up and around today. Joint pain is slightly better...

back pain is the same.

My legs are starting to look like a body builder's because I use my legs entirely, to take the strain off my back. I feel like I'm doing repetitive squats all day.

I was in a panic last night because of the non-back joint pain. That never happened to me before. That pain was showing me no mercy last night.

I didn't take any pain pills. I took a Xanax and a pot gummy and they knocked me out for a good sleep.

Fingers crosses for a better day today, I hope. If that joint pain flares up again today, I'll go to the ER.

Thanks for your kind words.

[Harker]

58. Good.

[Emile]

54. I use Equate 8 Hour Arthritis Pain Relief

Acetaminophen Extended Release Tablets 650mg. My doctor recommended this when he took me off my prescription arthritis medication.

[Donkees]

55. Re: "Sudden Onset" - but this weekend you did say you occasionally couldn't walk without screaming...

and hurt your back even worse replacing a large microwave, in addition to the list of things you mentioned doing recent days, including replacing your computer. After all of that just blowing your nose can land you in the hospital, ''sudden onset''.

"Take half, Lucky. Half a shovel'' still the best advice.

[LuckyCharms]

57. Well, the back pain wasn't sudden onset, but everything else was...

and that's what scared me. It just came on out of the blue...knees, ankles, elbows, pelvis, etc. That pain immobilized me.

Back pain is chronic, so I expect it and it doesn't panic me.

But last night? Oh boy...it was the strangest thing ever. I'm still not sure what happened.

Doing a bit better today, I hope. We'll see.

You brought a smile to my face when you mentioned "take half a shovel".

[Donkees]

59. Maybe it is related to ''facet joint'' irritation ...

''The joints in the spine are called “facets.” Each vertebra in the spine has two sets.''

Facet Joint Syndrome may experience the following symptoms:

Referred pain. When pain is “referred,” it means it appears in a different part of the body than the actual source of the pain. Facet joint pain may be referred to the buttocks, hips, thighs or knees. It can also be felt in the abdomen and/or pelvis.

Radiating pain. Sometimes patients experience a sharp, shooting pain (sciatica) that may radiate into the buttock, thigh, leg and/or foot. Muscle weakness and fatigue may also occur in the affected leg.

Tenderness to the touch. The pain may intensify when light pressure is applied to the skin over the irritated facet.

Effect of posture and activity. Patients may find that their pain is higher in the morning, following heavy exercise, after sitting still for long periods of time and/or while rotating or bending the spine backward. Conversely, bending forward may relieve the pain. Extended periods of sitting still, like while driving a car, may further increase the pain.

https://www.uchealth.org/diseases-conditions/facet-joint-syndrome/

PS - I even took your father's advice about half a shovel

[pat_k]

62. Glad there's some improvement today. You may want to...

...get a referral to a Rheumatologist for screening. Although gradual onset is common, there are cases of "explosive" onset in "non-traditional" larger joints that can come on fast and resolve fast.

AI summary of various Rheumatoid presentations and mimics.

While classic rheumatoid arthritis (RA) typically has a gradual onset, sudden or acute onset is possible, especially in older adults. Other conditions, including reactive arthritis and palindromic rheumatism, can also cause sudden joint pain and are often mistaken for RA.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Although RA usually develops slowly over several weeks to months, an explosive polyarticular onset, with pain and swelling in multiple joints over 24 to 48 hours, is possible.

Acute-onset RA: Some cases, especially in older adults, can appear suddenly and intensely, often affecting larger, more proximal joints like the knees and shoulders.

Widespread symptoms: Along with joint pain and swelling, sudden-onset RA can also cause flu-like symptoms such as fatigue, fever, and a general feeling of being unwell.

Palindromic rheumatism (PR)

This rare form of inflammatory arthritis is characterized by sudden, recurrent attacks of painful swelling in one or more joints.

Rapid onset and resolution: Attacks begin and end quickly, lasting anywhere from a few hours to several days.

Between attacks: Joints appear and feel normal, with no lasting damage.

Progression to RA: While PR is distinct from RA, it's considered an autoimmune-related disease, and up to 50% of people with PR may later develop RA.

Reactive arthritis

This is an autoimmune response that can cause sudden-onset inflammatory arthritis after a bacterial infection.

Triggering infections: Common triggers include gastrointestinal infections (like food poisoning), sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and urinary tract infections (UTIs).

Typical joints: Pain and stiffness most often affect the knees, ankles, feet, and heels.

Additional symptoms: Eye inflammation (conjunctivitis) and urinary problems are also common.

Seronegative spondyloarthropathies

This group of conditions can be difficult to differentiate from RA, particularly if they appear suddenly.

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA): This can cause joint pain and stiffness that mimics RA. Distinctive symptoms that might differentiate PsA include sausage-like swelling of fingers or toes (dactylitis), nail changes, and lower back pain.

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS): Though primarily affecting the spine, AS can also cause pain and stiffness in the pelvis.

Other mimics

Several other conditions can present with sudden, widespread joint pain that may be mistaken for RA:

Viral arthritis: Viruses like parvovirus B19 or Chikungunya can cause acute, multi-joint pain. Symptoms usually resolve once the infection clears.

Lyme disease: This tick-borne illness can cause widespread joint pain and other symptoms similar to RA. Unlike RA, the pain can shift from joint to joint, and it is usually responsive to antibiotics.

Whipple's disease: This rare bacterial infection can cause arthritis that mimics RA, especially in seronegative patients.

[LuckyCharms]

63. Thanks so much for this information.

[Clouds Passing]

60. I know your pain, LC. I feel like that most of the time. I grin and bear it or take tylenol sometimes.

[electric_blue68]

61. Checking in on ya. Hopefully pain will lessen over the day. Don't do Too much!