This is probably going to be kind of lame and long, but I just want to vent in the hopes that it might alleviate some stress.
My mom strained her neck/trapezius on her left side two weeks ago. The next day she started feeling some numbness/tingling in her neck/shoulder on her left side and on the left side of her head. It started spreading down her left arm the next few days, so she went to see a chiropracter last friday. She saw a regular docter monday who took x-rays and said everything was fine with her spine and the neck strain was clearly visible from the x-ray. She also went to a neurologist wednesday, all while it was getting gradually worse every day. She is scheduled for an MRI tomorrow morning. And she’ll probably call the neurologist tomorrow since she doesn’t want to wait until tuesday for her next appointment. Now it has gone down her side to her waist. The chiropracter and docter both told her it was due to her injury and a pinched nerve in her neck. The neurologist did all kinds of reflex and response tests and she was ok on all of them and he didn’t seem too concerned about the whole thing. She could feel him poking her with a needle all down her arm and everything. But why the hell does it keep getting worse?!?!?
I am just beside myself with worry. I’m so upset I’m almost making myself sick. I can’t fucking stand this. I’m losing my damn mind.
Why the fuck is this happening, why the fuck isn’t it getting any better. I fucking hate this.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
There I think I’m done for now. Thanks for bearing with me.
Aaron
Being the proud owner of about five herniated discs in my cervical spine, I understand what you’re going through. Disc and nerve injuries can behave strangely - fine one day, crippling the next and merely bad the next day.
You didn’'t say what the original injury was - slipped in the bathtub, car accident, etc. but there are two things that can be done for it in the meanwhile: Take ibuprofen (assuming her stomach can well…stomach it) and don’t get your (or hers) knickers in a bunch. Stewing and fretting will only make it worse. Trust me on this.
As part of the workup, I’m sure the neurologist did some function tests to be sure the nerves aren’t actually damaged. For now, it sounds like the nerves are perhaps compressed a bit and annoyed. This is where the ibuprofen comes in - it’s an anti-inflammatory med that can help calm things down.
Hopefully, the MRI will reveal something useful, but don’t be surprised if it doesn’t, or even if it does indicate herniations or cervical nerve root compression, that the doctor recommends doing nothing except waiting. Certain spinal conditions can be treated surgically, but quite often, the danger of spinal surgery outweighs the potential benefits.
She was sweeping an uneven brick pathway in the backyard and the broom would get stuck sometimes and she would jerk to a stop and that repepitive stress of jerking to a stop is what caused it.
You can feel the tightness in the muscles on the side of her neck and in her trapezius muscle. She is taking muscle relaxants from the regular docter and ibuprofin and something for calming stressed nerves from the neurologist.
Wouldn’t a spinal thing such as a slipped disc show up in the x-ray?
By the way thanks for the response. Any rational discussion is helpful for alleviating this stress I’m feeling. I know it’s just this muscle strain that is causing the nerves to be compressed or whatever and I’m sure it will be fine. I’m just totally stressed out is all. I just need to relax and let the doctor do his thing.
She’s gotten that many appointments that quickly?
When I had a herniated disc a few years ago, my HMO wanted me to wait a month or two at a time between appointments. I had to raise all kinds of hell, since I could barely walk or drive my stick shift. So I guess she at least has some luck.