Body aches are common symptoms for a variety of conditions. The flu is one of the most popular conditions that could result in body aches. Aches could also be caused by your everyday life, specifically if you walk, stand, or exercise for prolonged periods of time.
You may just need some treatment at home and rest to relieve your body of aches. But some aches, particularly ones that last for a very long time, may be a hint that you have an underlying condition. In such cases, you may be required to see your doctor for a diagnosis. They can help in creating a long-term treatment plan to relieve your aches and also other associated symptoms.
Continue reading to understand more about what may be causing your symptoms.
1. Stress
Your immune system finds it to be very difficult to control its response to inflammation when you’re stressed out. Consequently, your body can’t fight off sickness or infections, as well as it generally does. This could result in body ache as it becomes more vulnerable to infection and inflammation throughout your body.
Watch out for other symptoms of anxiety and stress, such as:
● Hot flashes or cold sweats
● Abnormally high heart rate
● Hyperventilating
● Increased blood pressure
● Headaches, such as migraines or tension headaches
● Abnormal physical shaking
If you think stress may be causing your body to ache, make tiny changes to your daily lifestyle in order to decrease your stress as much as possible. Try these steps:
● Meditate for a few minutes every day. Take your mind off the events or people causing you stress, and instead focus on your breathing.
● Leave a stressful environment, or take a walk, or remove yourself from triggers.
● To assist in articulating the cause of your stress, share your feelings of stress with someone you can trust.
● Take short naps throughout the day or try relaxation techniques before bed to refresh yourself if you’re losing sleep over stress
2. Dehydration
Water is a necessary ingredient for your body’s healthy and normal functioning. In its absence, it's difficult for your body to properly perform many of its important processes, including digestion and breathing. You may feel physical pain as a result of other processes not functioning properly, when you become dehydrated.
Other symptoms of dehydration may include:
● Extreme thirst
● Disorientation or dizziness
● Dark urine
● Exhaustion
If you don’t drink sufficient water, specifically on a dry or hot day, you can quickly become dehydrated. You should try to drink at least eight quarter-litre glasses of water each day, plus a lot more if you’re sweating or physically active.
Drink plenty of water if you’re dehydrated until the episode passes - if in the event of a condition like diarrhoea. Drinking beverages or water with extra electrolytes can help you keep yourself hydrated, and it also helps replace the electrolytes that were lost to diarrhoea, too.
See your doctor right away if you are unable to manage dehydration on your own, or seek emergency medical help to assure you don’t become extremely dehydrated.
3. Lack of sleep
Not getting the required amount of sleep can have an impact on your overall health. You at least need 6 to 8 hours of sleep each night, including the REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. Your body’s cells and tissues need proper sleep in order to stay healthy, and your brain needs it to stay alert and refreshed. Without sleep, your body will not have the time to replenish, and give rest to certain essential processes and energies. This often can result in pain.
Other symptoms of sleep deprivation may include:
● Disorientation or confusion
● Trouble comprehending when listening to other or reading
● Falling asleep during the day without realising it
● Trouble in remembering things
● Trouble in speaking properly
Try to maintain a consistent sleep schedule each night. Your body requires you to follow a circadian rhythm or a daily rhythm, to stay healthy.
Try techniques to relax before going to bed, such as:
● Meditating
● Drinking hot tea or any other hot beverage
● Having white noise in the room, like from a fan
● Listening to a podcast or music
4. Cold or flu
The flu and a cold are both viral infections that can result in inflammation. These infections start attacking your body, and in response your immune system attempts to fight them off. Inflammation, especially in your chest, throat, and lungs, can be extremely painful. As your body works hard to fight the infection, the rest of your body might ache too.
Other common symptoms of flu or a cold include:
● Coughing or sneezing
● Hoarse voice
● Sore throat
● Earaches or headaches
● Colored, thick mucus
Drinking plenty of water, gargling with warm salt water, and getting rest to ease your throat pain can help your body recover quickly from the flu or a cold. Over-the-counter medications, though it’s best to consult a doctor at all times, can help in relieving your aches and symptoms.
If you have been dealing with symptoms of flu or cold for a few weeks, or if you can’t breathe, eat, or drink properly, see your doctor, right away. The doctor can help in treating your infection.
5. Anaemia
Anaemia occurs when your body doesn’t have enough red blood cells properly functioning, so enough oxygen is not supplied to your body tissues. With anaemia, most parts of your body could feel fatigued as they lack enough oxygen to function properly or to remain healthy.
Other symptoms of anaemia include:
● Dizziness or Disorientation
● Exhaustion
● Abnormal heart rate
● Cold hands or feet
● Pale skin
● Chest or head ache
Anaemia could have many causes. If you don’t have enough vitamin B-12, iron, or folate in your system, taking a supplement for the deficiency may help in treating your anaemia.
If supplements don’t seem to help you get better, see your doctor for a possible diagnosis and an examination so that you can begin treating the underlying condition.
6. Vitamin D deficiency
A low blood calcium level, or Hypocalcemia can occur when you don’t have sufficient vitamin D in your body. Many of your body’s major organs, such as your muscles and kidneys, rely on calcium to work efficiently. Your bones also require calcium to stay healthy. Without enough vitamin D to help you in calcium absorption, you can feel pain in your bones and in these organs.
Other symptoms include:
● Confusion or dizziness
● Spasms or muscle twitching
● Body cramps
● Seizures
● Numbness
7. Arthritis
When your joints become inflamed Arthritis happens. This can be a result of:
● Infection in a joint
● Autoimmune conditions during which the lining around your joints is worn away, such as Rheumatoid arthritis
● Breaking down of the cartilage around your joints, as in Osteoarthritis
These can all result in aches in your joints and also end up limiting your movement.
Other symptoms of arthritis include:
● Unable to move your joint all the way
● Stiffness in your joints
● Warmth, swelling, or redness around the joint
When to See A Doctor
You may require emergency medication care if you’re suffering from any of the following symptoms:
● Trouble breathing
● Seizures
● Exhaustion or extreme fatigue
● Passing out
● Trouble drinking or eating
● Bad cough that won’t go away even after a few days have passed
Even if other milder symptoms tend to last for more than two weeks, it is advised that you see your doctor. At 1 Health Medical Centre, our expert orthopaedics can examine you for other possible underlying conditions as well. The orthopedist will provide you with a tailored treatment plan specifically designed for your needs to help treat the cause and reduce the aches. Call or Book an appointment today to get rid of your body ache or body pain.