I went to the rheumy on Monday. Things are pretty good; MTX helping the peripherals. We decided to try ibuprofen 600mg, 3x a day. I think that is going to hurt my stomach, but I'm giving it a go and see if my axial joints will feel better.
Yesterday, I noticed a tender spot on the back of my head at the base by the spine. Today after grocery shopping for an hour, it was more noticeable. After much googling, I think it might be the atlanto-axial joint. Has anyone ele, experienced this. I don't really feel anything unless I touch the area. Could this be AS related?

i think that's a common area for a lot of people on here, as its one of my trouble spots and thus i notice when people mention it. when it hurts without touching it and gives headaches, that's when i try what i can to make it go away. i've found the usual ice, heat, ultrasound, stretching to help it. at its worse, i have to do ultrasound along the neck, can't really do it on the spot, can't do it over the spine. i think for me, its all the muscles spasming "pulling" on that spot, so maybe a triggerpoint kind of forms there or sometimes i think its the "bone spurs" at i think its C3 and C4 (osteophytes) that cause pain and muscle spasms in that area. thus my nightly muscle relaxant and sleeping with my neck perfectly neutral (yay feather pillow!) are important for keeping this pain in the background vs foreground. hope this helps

Yes, same here. AS related...darn pesky disease.

My freaking neck kills me alot. Figured it was AS related

Girl, YOU need to get it checked out regardless...I am having some neck issues major pain maybe where if I had like a chocker on, I need to get it checked out..I really think it's the muscles or tendons but all I know is it is painful.

Please get it checked out, could be AS but you need to make sure.

Bug Hugs you Awesome Mommy!

Lisa

Right at the bottom of your skull, in the middle, just below where that bump is? If so, yes. I haven't had that pain for about 10 years, but had it all the time from age 9 to age 40. Sooooooo tender and sore to the touch. Now that you mentioned it, I had wondered why it went away, but figured it had to do with hormones. But now... hmmmm....

I get it too. It is so tender to the touch and all the muscles/tendons tighten up and really complain about it. I will keep it on my list of things to tell my Rheumy about next month. It's always something.

I don't have it in that spot, but just slightly to the left at the base of my skull, in the occiput. It's awful and I've had it for years. Some days, it's not bad. Other days, it like to drive me mad from the pain. NSAIDS, Asprin, Remicade, Enbrel, nothing touches it ... except my magic salve. The only thing ever to kill that pain, even at its worst. And nobody's ever been able to figure out what's going on.

I feel your pain, hon.

Warm hugs,

Thanks, everyone. I will keep an eye on it. If it gets worse, I'll see the doc sooner, otherwise, I will mention it at my next appointment.

Today I have to get one of my 12 year olds into the doc for what appears to be a case of thumb bursitis and getting worse.

I went to a nucca chiropractor for a while and that is the only joint they adjust. It is a very soft gentle adjustment, you lie on your side and they push under and to the back of your ear. Their belief is that if you align the atlanto-axial joint, everything else will align itself. It was pretty expensive because you start with many x-rays so they know which way you need to be adjusted. They also weigh you at every appointment on this scale that holds your feet independently so they can see if you are balanced. I was once holding 14 more pounds on my left side. After the adjustment they weigh you again and the difference gets down to 1 to 3 pounds each time. it really is interesting.

I have had severe neck probs off and on since 2007. I do some exercises that seem to help my neck. They are called "Mackenzie Method" after a PT named Robin Mackenzie from Australia. The premise is to sit up really tall (ha ha, right?) then pull your chin back/in/down a bit, then slowly drop head back and slightly rotate left right (your nose moves left right only 2 inches) then lift head back up to that chin/in starting position. Repeat 10 times. Then do chin in again, look left as far as you can, hold 5 seconds, back to chin in, repeat 10 times. Then same thing, looking right. Then chin in, ear to right shoulder, back up to chin in, 10 times, then repeat on left shoulder.

Everytime you start this set of exercises you start with the chin in, then drop head back and swivel. Do this whole set of exercises up to 10 times per day. Once every waking hour while you are in pain. I do them everywhere, in church, in a restaurant, everywhere! It is a habit.

He has a book for sale on amazon with excercises for your back too complete with pictures, so maybe I saved you some money typing this crazy explanation, lol.

There are many PT's trained in the Mackenzie Method, you just have to ask. And then they can show you it in person. When I do this, sometimes I can hear/feel my discs moving back into place.
The first time I ever did it at home prior to my dx (my friend had lent me her book) I sat up straight, pulled my chin in and BOOM I felt blood circulate into my hands that had been 50% numb for weeks. It was really cool.

Hopefully my rambling makes sense! Take care, I hope you get feeling better!

-Donette

Thanks, Donette for the explanation. I will try it soon.

me too. Same as Sue and Kat and everyone . . . Cody says he can even SEE it as a huge lump sticking out of my neck sometimes. It was super awful before LDN; just like my feet, those two things kept me awake for years and the LDN kicked their BUTTS. I used to use every possible topical, plus opiates, plus a massaging pillow and a horseshoe-shaped pillow to get to sleep around the pain of that joint.
(Aside - I DID break my neck in high school. Cracked C2 and C3 against each other in an accident. I always figured this was from that, but heck, if everyone else has it, too, then maybe I'm NORMAL! heehee)
And NO, my most glamorous-sounding injury was, oddly enough, NOT horse-related. I was rear-ended in a Geo Metro. lol

donette, i found all that very interesting and useful! learn new things here every day!

now off to search for that book, "mackenzie", etc.....

Thank you Donette. I tried it and could hear a lot of snap, crackle and pop. It does feel better though.

Same here, tried the M. neck exercises...no go. Now have intolerable neck ache. Interestingly, my new physio tried a very sililar exercise with me last Thursday. But would not let me turn my head too much - so guess I overdid it. Oh well.

I get cranky neck quite a bit. Seems to really restrict my motion when it happens. I've found a unique therapist that has taught me to work the trigger points in my armpit/ribcage areas to loosen my neck. Works pretty quickly to stop the chronic headaches.

Seems the flares in the ribs create hell for our necks because we're supposed to be on a spring-board and when things are flared and stiff down below, everything above has to compensate to keep our eyeballs looking strait to the horizon. So the muscles start to contort us in little ways and will freeze in place to keep things in balance, causing over-work to those muscles and tendons, creating those ever so lovely pain places.