Can anyone tell me what this is?

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I'm having some weird symptoms and I'm hoping someone can shed some light on it. I've been having widespread pain, but it feels like the pain is under my skin, not in my muscles. Like I'm bruised all over, especially my torso- back, sides, stomach, shoulders. I am having some LE in my arm as well, so I'm wondering if it could be due to fluid buildup. It's very painful and it hurts if anyone touches me. Does this sound at all familiar to anyone? I can't find any answers by searching and I don't even know what to call it.

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  • Beesie
    Beesie Member Posts: 12,240
    edited September 2019

    Do you have a rash anywhere on your body? Even just a small one?

  • Whatjusthappened
    Whatjusthappened Member Posts: 283
    edited September 2019

    No, not that I can tell. I went and looked in a mirror and didn't see anything

  • Beesie
    Beesie Member Posts: 12,240
    edited September 2019

    What you describe sounds a bit like shingles. My skin was sensitive all over my body. At first I had just a small rash, about a 1" by 1" square, around the small of my back.

    But if no rash, then that's not it.

  • Mymomsgirl
    Mymomsgirl Member Posts: 174
    edited September 2019

    It could be fluid but it could also be your muscles tightening from radiation. I felt tight and just sore about 3 months post rads. My doctor sent me to a PT and my range of motion was crap. PT said that radiation shrinks the muscles and can work for a year and most women report issues 4-6 months after radiation, mine was 3. I think it is definitely worth a call to your doctor.

  • HeartShapedBox
    HeartShapedBox Member Posts: 172
    edited September 2019

    This sounds like myofascial pain. Fascia is a tough, thin membrane that is under the skin. It covers and connects every muscle like a big wet sheet of saran wrap, and an injury (or surgery) in one area can "tug" on that sheet of tissue and make it hurt even on another part of the body, and the pain can feel just like a bad bruise because it's not really the muscle, it's that tissue that sits on TOP of the muscle. A skilled massage therapist can assess this (not a spa type "feel good" massage therapist), and acupuncture is also hugely helpful. Slow, gentle stretching and yoga can also help.

  • Whatjusthappened
    Whatjusthappened Member Posts: 283
    edited September 2019

    Thanks Beesie, I'll keep an eye out to see if a rash pops up. I've seen posts from women who've developed shingles after starting an AI, so that occurred to me too. The areas that are most painful certainly fit the pattern for where shingles develops.

    Mymomsgirl, was the tightness you felt all over or just around the radiation side? I do have a lot of soreness and stiffness in that shoulder from the radiation (also changes in my lung), but this feels different than that.




  • gb2115
    gb2115 Member Posts: 1,894
    edited September 2019

    I have had similar symptoms for years and years....I call them skin pain patches. Lasts for a couple of days then disappears. Hasn't happened in awhile. Always wondered what causes that.

  • Mymomsgirl
    Mymomsgirl Member Posts: 174
    edited September 2019

    It was centered in my should and armpit area a radiated down to the bottom of my ribs, into my neck and into my breast bone area and the top part of my chest on the opposite side.

  • Whatjusthappened
    Whatjusthappened Member Posts: 283
    edited September 2019

    gb2115, the pain has dissepated again. It does sound similar to the "skin pain patches" you describe, as this is not the first time this has happened. It might be one of those things we never figure out, but if you do let me know!

    HeartShapedBox, thanks for the info about myofascial pain. It could possibly be that- there was a feeling of feeling "stuffed" too tightly when my skin was hurting which is why I was thinking possible fluid build-up. But what you describe is plausible too.

    Mymomsgirl, my pain was pretty much all over and did not seem to be stemming from the radiation site, so who knows what role radiation plays in it all. I wish I knew beforehand what RT was going to do to me. I probably wouldn't have done it. Of course, this could also be anastrozole side effects, Prolia side effects, or something from surgery. I guess as long as it doesn't hurt all the time I can deal with it.

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