Hi, I’ve read about the ms hug several times on here now, and am wondering if what I experience could be this. Quite regularly I get pain in my ribs, lower ribs. When I get this pain, sometimes it starts in my back, sometimes at the front, but will often finish off affecting both bits. It can be on both sides of my body, or just the one side. Now when I get it it’s constant for a day or two, I’ve always put it down to having sat not straight, leaning over on the arm of the chair the day before or something, or having stretched. Stuff like that. However, I’m now wondering if it’s all connected to everything else that is going on. It’s very uncomfortable. Paracetamol and ibuprofen together will sometimes take the edge of it, but not always. A warm bath actually seems to help somewhat, but not for long before it starts again. I often have to take my bra off straight after work, as it does seem to make it worse, but I don’t think it actually triggers it, it just is uncomfortable to wear one when I get the pain, I’m just wondering what other peoples experience is of the hug. Could this be it, or is the hug just not like this at all? Faith
Hi Faith,
The MS Hug (which is actually just a nickname, not a medical term at all) is one of those things that seems to be described differently by everyone, so not very easy to say whether what you’re experiencing is the same as other people mean, when they say they have it.
However, I would say a warm bath easing it strongly suggests the problem is muscular (the MS hug is really spasms of the tiny muscles between the ribs - called intercostal muscles). So yes, you may well be right.
Are you on any medication at all? Muscle relaxants tend to ease this, as they do for other types of muscular tightness.
Tina
x
my 1st experience of the ms hug the sounds the same as yours,it could last days,really scared me the 1st time and i gave myself a panic attack,but over they years it happend more and the doctors said it anxiety,that was it,the anxiety word,everytime i went the docs with nerv pain i got the words anxiety,it made me more anxious because people werent believing me,i wasnt having panic attacks,it was real and happening to me,ive known for 6year something wasnt right with me and finally got sent for an mri,the scans came back and dont sound too clever but i still got 5 weeks to wait to see brain doctor to tell me whats wrong and put me out my misery
my 1st experience of the ms hug the sounds the same as yours,it could last days,really scared me the 1st time and i gave myself a panic attack,but over they years it happend more and the doctors said it anxiety,that was it,the anxiety word,everytime i went the docs with nerv pain i got the words anxiety,it made me more anxious because people werent believing me,i wasnt having panic attacks,it was real and happening to me,ive known for 6year something wasnt right with me and finally got sent for an mri,the scans came back and dont sound too clever but i still got 5 weeks to wait to see brain doctor to tell me whats wrong and put me out my misery