Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR) is an inflammatory disorder that causes muscle pain and stiffness. Symptoms of PMR usually begin quickly. Most people who develop PMR are older than 65. It rarely affects people under 50. The eight early warning signs of PMR will strike and worsen within 2 weeks time. They include the following:
1. Depression: Dealing with
consistent pain on both sides of your body will often end up causing mood
swings and even severe depression if PMR affects your quality of life.
2. Fatigue: Many patients with PMR often complain
of achy muscles, fever, headache as well as a general feeling of melancholy in
the early stages of the condition.
3. Fever: A mild or low-grade fever is typical
as an early PMR symptom. The fever will often spike at a mild to high
temperature between 98- to 100-degrees Fahrenheit
4. Lack of Appetite: Typically, it’s a
sudden loss of appetite that will cause the sudden weight loss in PMR patients.
The pain, sudden immobility, and depression will often be the prime cause of
loss of appetite and enjoyment from food.
5. Limited Range of Motion: With stiffness and
pain will often come limited range in motion to the affected areas of the
shoulders primarily followed by restricted motion in the neck, arms, and hips
on both sides of the body.
6.
Pain: Achy pain in the
shoulders is typically the leading sign of PMR, followed closely by pain in the
areas of the neck, upper arms, buttocks, hips, and thighs, and even the wrists
and knees in some cases.
7. Stiffness: In the same affected areas as
mentioned under “Pain” will be worse in the mornings when you wake up or
following long periods of inactivity. Stiffness may be worse one side of the
body at first, but as the condition progresses, rigidity will spread to the
other side as well.
8. Weight Loss: A sudden instance of
unintended weight loss—meaning you have not been cutting calories or attempting
to lose weight through exercise—will often happen in the earliest stages of a
PMR diagnosis.
“Behind every chronic illness is just a person
trying to find their way in the world. We want to find love and be loved and be
happy just like you. We want to be successful and do something that matters.
We’re just dealing with unwanted limitations in our hero’s journey.” (Glenn Schweitzer)[i]
[i] Sources used:
·
“Polymyalgia Rheumatica” by Mayo Clinic Staff
·
“The 8 Signs and Symptoms of Polymyalgia Rheumatica”
by: Emily Lockhart
This topic was suggested
by my wife, Bobbi.
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