Myoclonic Jerks w/ Fibro?

I have been having muscle jerks with increasing frequency over the past couple months. I went to see a neurologist.  He told me these were most likely caused by a drug interaction.  I take Wellbutrin, Zoloft, & Nortriptyline.  The muscle jerks frequency & intensity seem to correlate with the increase of Nortriptyline my PCP had me taking.  So the neurologist told me to stop taking the Nortriptyline.  But, the muscle jerks have not gone away yet.  I am down from 60mg per night to only 10mg over the past couple of weeks.

These muscle jerks feel electrical & make my limb or limbs move.  It can start in my leg, then travel up to my arm & even one side of my face with contract.  It is very annoying & kind of scary at times.  I have these at least 10 times per day.  But, I have 100's of muscle twitches or zaps that I can feel even though they do not make me physically move an entire limb.  My nerves feel very irritated & on edge.  This is often accompanied by a pins & needles feeling in my legs & feet.  It is very uncomfortable, but not really painful.

The neurologist said they can treat them with Klonopin.  But, I take that for sleep at night & it is not something I could function while taking during the day. Plus he made it seem like it was caused by anxiety.  I do not have anxiety.  I have had it in the past & I would know it if I had it.

My questions to you all is; are Myoclonic jerks part of your Fibromyalgia?  Any input would be appreciated.

Is that what they're called... good to know.

I have been having muscle spasms since before I went on medication, they're not constant or anything, but usually when I'm laying in bed. I can get them all over.

Just in the last little while, I've been getting what I refer to as electric shocks. Usually when I've been spooked, but sometimes just out of the blue. I liken it to the "shock" test they did when checking for carpal tunnel. Feels like I've touched a low voltage wire.

I'm seeing my doctor... in July (he's booked for three weeks and then on vacation for four).

I did a bunch of research today on the internet.  I think what I have/had is called "serotonin syndrome".  There are varying degrees & it is from too much serotonin being in the blood stream.  I think doctors treat Fibro with antidepressant meds often as a first line of treatment.  I think for many people it does help.  The problem is that I was already on 2 antidepressants (I know they all do different things).  I think adding the 3rd med just screwed me up.  I had the same myoclonic jerks when I too Ultram for pain when I was on Wellbutrin & Cymbalta about a year ago.  I was told to discontinue the Ultram & the myoclonis stopped.

I am stopping the Nortriptyline tonight.  I am still really twitchy, but the big zappy muscle jerks seem to be decreasing.  I wonder how long it will take to get it all the way out of my system?  I wonder if my nerves are just really irratable now & it will take a while to calm them back to a normal state?

Ya, the "shocks" are not comfortable at all.  I would look at your meds with your Doc to see if it is a side effect or has something to do with the fibro directly.  Let me know what he says.

Oh Gina Oh Gina I have had Fibro since 1998 and yes I have the same thing and yes over years has gotten worse. I now get panic attacks when i never had them and restless les is awful I take mirapex for it and seems to help all that other stuff is meds and just fibro. Baclafin works best for me for my muscles I can taske one in am and 2 at night. sleep well it is not a automatic thing. shocks come from muscles in neck and now it is a mess and so is my spine. 2 bad discs. I take clonazapin a smaller dose of Klonopin. Works okay but nothing after a while makes you sleep except pain meds and I stay away A doc told me once that if I ever ran out I would suffer far more than I was then and addiction to them will cause a doc to stop them. So not thanks besides they too have side affects. what is the other term for Nortriptyline? I know I have been on it. Thats not Lyrica is it Stay away from that stuff it really makes you bad so does the new one Savella. I actually am thinking of getting a medical card for marijuanna even though I have never been a smoker. I am told I will sleep at night from the use so I am thinking strongly. At least it is natural and not chemical driven. Hope some of this helps

Ya, I have been off the Nortriptyline now for 2 days.  The muscle jerks are the same, & last night I had a terrible time with them (& the pain of course too).

What about Magnesium deficiency?  That is common in Fibro & then we have the malabsorption on top of it.  I know the blood levels do not show a deficiency very often so how do you know you are deficient & how much you should take?

I swear I am not going to try all these new fibro meds until I can get to the bottom of these jerks & twitches!  My husband is starting to see them and trust me he is not very observant kind of guy! ;-)

Grrr!  I am determined to find help.  I just do not feel like my PCP has knowledge about WLS or  Fibro.  I have asked to go to the pain clinic, but he seems hesitant.  I am not sure why???

I have these types of muscle jerks all day.  They occur especially when I am sleepy. I do not have serotonin sydrome.  I take wellbutrin also. I have found the neurontin helps. I take two 300mg caps before bed as well as two 300 mg caps during the day.

I have periodic limb movement disorder.  It is a sleep disorder which cause me to jerk around at night and wakes me up.. The neurontim helps with this. I wonder if the klonopin you take at night keeps you from being woken up by jecking around.

I have wondered if the muscle jerks are a side effect of wellbutrin.  Wellbutrin decreases the seizure threshold. They aren't exactly seizure though.

I have no idea what causes them. They are not from anxiety. They don't seem to do any harm.  They do cause the strange sensation you mentioned. The worse part is that it draws attention to me. I guess that I am embarrassed.

They never happen when I am driving or walking.

I have thought that perhaps the muscle jerks are part of the over sensitive nervous system that they say we have.

That all sounds very familiar, & I do think the klonopin helps me not feel them at night.

I do get some while I am driving, sitting or moving about but none that jerk me to wear it would be dangerous to drive etc... Just zingy & uncomfortable.

I do want to try the neurontin as the klonopin is not something I can take during the day.  It makes me to sleepy.  Plus I am praying it helps with the pain so I can not function without pain meds & muscle relaxers everyday.

Thanks for sharing your experience.  I really could use all the input possible.  I just had a ton of labs come back most look pretty good, but there are a couple things that look off & have dropped a lot over the last 8 months.  Hoping that it could explain some of my symptoms.

I know I sound like a detective...but I feel like I will never get better if I don't.

Take care,