> >
> > Barbara,
> > I have terrible stiffness in both thighs when I first stand and
attempt to
> > walk after sitting. It is extremely painful and I feel like a robot
> walking
> > until the muscles do what they are supposed to. The doctor says this
is
> > spasticity. He put me on Baclofen three months ago. It definitely
helps. I
> > also get awful calf cramps mostly at night, but once in a while in the
day
> > too. Do you experience that?
> > Carolyn
> >
> >
> Carolyn,
> I have some stiffness in my legs and when I try to stand and walk after
> sitting for a while, but not as severely as yours sounds, and not with
pain.
> I know what you mean by walking like a robot! (When I first started
walking
> by myself, my husband, reminiscent of those old Frankenstein-type movies,
> would say, "Igor! She walks!" )
>I was on Baclofen for a few weeks, but it seemed to greatly increase
> frequency of urination. I was thinking then that spasticity was the
trembling
> or twitching of muscles, and the baclofen didn't seem to be doing
anything
> for that, so I went off of it. My back pain was not as severe then, so I
> don't know if it would've helped that or not. I'm on Carbamazepine now
and
> take Tylenol when it's at its worst, and that takes the edge off of it.
But a
> lot of the time it's hardly noticeable.
>
> Barbara
>
Barbara,
I was also on Baclofen for at least a month or two (losing track of time).
Dr. told me to stop Baclofen, since I was no longer having the "terrible
knife stabbing" pain, that went from my back all the way through my front,
in my rib cage. I was told that was a muscle spasm. Anyway, I am getting
off track here. He said to see if I could urinate normally, without
post-void retention (no more cathing). If I was still holding urine, he
told me that I would have to go back on Baclofen, to relax my bladder
muscles. Which, to me, meant that if I was holding urine, and not peeing,
my bladder must be "spasming" also.
Anyway, thought I would throw that in. So far, I have not been put back on
Baclofen. In fact, the only medication that I am on now is Fibercon (If
that is medication) and Senecot (another "if that is medication"). At
night, when my heels feel like they are packed in dry ice, and the back of
my thigh feels like a rubber band stretched to almost breaking point, I
take a Valium and a Codeine.
As long as I avoid stress, and overdoing exercise, I seem to be
"maintaining".
Anyway, that is my input on Baclofen.
Debbie