I am in SO much pain. Surely this can't just be because I am fat?

[herewegoroundthebastardbush]

This is really a question either for the medical or for my fellow fatties - I'm 5'6, about 14 stone (😬) and 39. I used to be around 10 stone. put on a lot of weight very rapidly about 5 years ago when my mum died, and ever since then have struggled with binge eating and the weight has continued to creep up.

So the past 6 months or so, I'm in horrible physical pain much of the time. It started with my knees, which have never been great since I went through a phase of running to work on concrete in my 20s (idiot). But now it's not just the odd twinge, I'll be literally limping and whimpering and climbing the stairs is murder. I've also developed a horrible permanent pain in my right foot which the internet tells me is plantar fasciitis. And I can't ever seem to get comfortable in bed as whichever way I lie seems to pull the base of my spine out of alignment and it feels strained.

I have a busy life, two small kids and one is at nursery and the other at school, so every day after work I have to do a very brisk march march up the road to nursery and then turn and walk very fast back to school to get the eldest (about 40mins fast walking - or jogging if im late!) all told. I've started to dread it with a mortal fear as I am in SO much pain - some days I'm literally limping and gasping with it, but I can't stop because obvs then no-one would pick up my kids (partner has the car as works in a different city). That's the low point of my day, but just getting out of bed and standing up in the morning is horrendous too, it hurts so much and I literally limp like a comedy pirate for the first 20 mins of the day my foots so bad.

The one time I went to the GP about my knees, she did the head tilt and talked to me about my weight (didn't even examine my knees), and that aches and pains are more frequent as we age so its important to take care of our weight to reduce that. I agree I am too fat and need to lose weight. I am trying. But I see people far fatter and older than me who don't seem to be in total agony as they walk around!? So is this normal and fixable by losing some weight? Or is there something I should be worried about?

Could you see an osteopath? That might help at least with the back pain in bed

I largely ask as today I am in SO much pain I am considering going to the chemist and getting co-codamol or something and just start taking it every day to keep the pain at bay - I've been quite avoidant of taking pain relief for this as it's not a short term problem so there's sort of no point giving myself 3-4 hours 'off' unless i fix the underlying problem - but if there is no fixing this then I need to develop a coping strategy, whatever it is or whatever the risks of dependency etc, because as it stands I am miserable and don't want to live like this.

I'm pretty broke tbh so it's NHS only for me ...

And my trouble is all NHS services gatekept by the GP who won't do anything unless I'm a normal BMI it seems.

Could it be rheumatoid arthritis?

It sounds like your GP might have taken the issue less seriously due to your relatively young age for joint issues and maybe your weight, too (and being female doesn't tend to help, either). I'd go back and try again, if not see another doctor. In the past I had similar stats to you and walked miles everyday, sometimes even ran, and wasn't in pain at all. I don't recommend an osteopath as they are not medical professionals and have been known to cause permanent damage to people.

With the NHS you usually have to keep going back and going back and insisting, that is the system we have now, sadly. There's people with cancer being sent away until they have come back several times.

I've been heavier than you and I'm older and my knees are fine. Have you tried using knee supports when you have to walk?
You do need to go back to the GP.

Plantar is so painful. If you are able to, I would pay to see a sports physio and they will give you stretches to do, plus you may need to look at your shoes. If you are going to brisk walk/jog daily then you may need some arch support. I run 3 x a week but if I don’t wear the correct trainers my plantar flares and my feet and ankles are so sore I can’t move in the morning. In my experience the nhs aren’t great with any kind of sport injury and you (might) get out on a waiting list if you’re lucky, whereas a physio will see you straight away and you’ll feel better after 1 session. Mine is around £60 a session.
it’s not normal or necessary to be in pain like you describe. 💐

@thenewaveragebear1983 plantar fasciitis is in the feet, the OP referred to her knees.

My mum had that horribly, really suffered, but I thought that was related to her Crohn's disease which luckily I didn't inherit... As I understand there isn't really any treatment?

You’re really not fat enough to be in pain all the time. Sounds like my autoimmune symptoms I’m afraid!

Go back and see the GP again. Make some notes in advance about how it’s affecting your quality of life and really emphasise the level of pain you’re in - that this is not just a few aches which will resolve when you’ve lost weight. Ask them what could be causing it rather than exacerbating it, and at what point/under what conditions they’d be willing to refer if not now - but doing nothing isn’t a viable option for you.

I have got horrible foot pain too which the internet says is prob PF. I'm a smorgasbord of pain!!

Physio. You possibly can self refer on the nhs but it might be a long wait. Do you work, your employer may have access through o optional health.

i get similar problems caused by tight posterior chain muscles. Not saying it’s that but gp isnt specialised in biomechanics usually and a good physio will have a far better idea what’s going on.

Losing weight won’t do any harm too but you know that, don’t immediately assume it’s the cause if things.

What kind of shoes are you wearing? Have you looked into getting specific insoles to help with the plantar fasciitis? There are also exercises you can do to help it.

My knees and shins were very painful before I started wearing orthotics in my shoes (I have very flat feet which were causing issues). Not weight related at all!

When was the last time you bought a new mattress? And do you have a firm supportive mattress?

What shoes are you wearing? Especially when doing the morning march. What do you usually carry? Backpack? Off to one side?

Can you ask the doc to recommend an osteopath, or ask around for a recommendation. Book an appt, ask them for an opinion.

You shouldn't be in that much pain from carrying a little extra weight.

They blame everything on being fat. I think you need to go back and insist on a referral. Keep going and making a fuss, you will have to push and insist. In the meantime do you use knee braces? And proper supportive shoes/insert soles?

I was 13.5 stone at 5 foot 4 inches in my 50s until I started weight loss. I did not have the extreme symptoms you’re describing. I did have some problems with both knees which shifted as soon as I lost the first half stone, though.

Your problems could be resulting from a combination of issues - weight, plus possible back problems and perhaps the rapid walking on very hard surfaces. I would try to shift some weight but I think other things are an issue.

@madeinmanc in her op she says she has plantar fasciitis 🤷‍♀️

She also referred to her feet hurting, it's in the OP

Go back to your GP with evidence of what weight you have lost in the past month or so (even if it's just a few lbs). Discuss the limits its putting on your life and how it is affecting your mental health. Explain how it's your second time coming and how much agony you are in.

Look up YouTube videos for plantar fasciatis. Stretch. Do some at home yoga videos before bed (or, frankly, any time you can).

Write all this down and take it to your GP as evidence as to how you are trying to help yourself, she'll be more likely to take you seriously.

Good luck

Honestly I did the whole plantar fasciitis/wear the right shoes shebang for years - PF is meant to clear up in a couple of months. Nope, it’s a connective tissue disease 😂😭

Hopefully not the case for you OP, but autoimmune diseases do run in families and your mum had 2.

Plantar fasciitis is the pits but you will get rid of it by stretching every day multiple times - dropping your heel down on steps is a good one. You probably need some more supportive shoes and never go barefoot wear laced trainers indoors. Your knee is connected probably- what shoes do you wear? You are possibly pronating or supernating when you walk hence better shoes ideally with an orthotic which you can buy in boots. Standing on a golf ball and rolling foot on a frozen bottle of water are all things previously suggested to me for this.

You need to either go back to your GP or find another GP. This level of pain is not normal, and taking painkillers might be one of the appropriate treatments, but self-medicating is not the best approach.

You are putting massive strain on you back, hips, knees and feet. Just because other 'larger' people haven't shown such signs of strain, does not mean they are not doing damage.