The pain relieving expert is asked: My whole body hurts. Pain in the limbs. Everywhere. In the arms, shoulders, legs and uh… back and head. Any thoughts on that?
“Pain in the limbs is very non-specific. Every pain is not the same, is it? From a medical point of view, only joint and muscle pain in the limbs fall into the realm of specific pain. That makes it difficult. Finding a name for it, for one thing. And further, an approach to reduce the condition. I mean, it could be basically anything, right? But what is usually always true for this type of pain is its unpleasant pulling character, which often develops insidiously.”
Ok. But what is the cause? And it’s been bothering me for months now. I just want to get rid of it.
“As there can be various causes, it is beneficial to have a look at which accompanying symptoms arrive together with the pain. Shall we?
What is the case with you? -Fever or raised temperature? -Headache, cold, tiredness and fatigue -Sleep disorders and chronic fatigue -Reddened, swollen and stiff joints, e.g. rheumatism”.
Now that you mention it, I haven’t slept well for a while. And I find it hard to get out of bed in the morning. And then first one or two coffees…
“Well, imagine that all the joints (in the form of balls) in the body are floating under the surface of a lake. As long as no ball appears, you are free of pain. This is true even if 5 balls are floating just below the surface. So 5 x potential pains are coming up. All these balls (neck, shoulder, elbow, wrist, back…) are connected with ropes. Understandable so far?”
Uh… , yes. All understandable.
“Now all it takes is a nudge and the 5 balls or even one ball appears. And the pain is there. There is always a basic tension in the body. Depending on the lifestyle, this can always be at the limit or largely normal. Now another thing is added to the situation that increases the basic tension and a pain appears. For example, as you described, too little rest during sleep. Copy that to a cold, sniffles…. Not to mention if there are already other medically diagnosed conditions.”
Yes, but how come the whole body hurts?
“The balls are connected. If one ball emerges, the other balls are pulled after it. Do you remember? Connected with ropes. This also explains why women often have pains all over their body during their period. Increasing the basic tension. After the period, the tension decreases again and the balls sink back below the surface.”
I see. Makes sense. And what can I do to basically reduce the tension?
“What do you say we talk again next week on the same topic?”
I think that’s good, even if it’s unsatisfactory. Well, see you next week.
