Apparently I have a pinched nerve in my neck. It’s impossible to sleep because my arm throbs and burns all night all the way down to my thumb. I’m seeing an ortho/neuro doc. So far, he’s given me meds that don’t work for shit. Even worse, I have diminished strength in my left arm. When I hold something in front of me, I can’t lift it up with my wrist- it just hangs limp.
Has anyone experienced this? and if so have you used any alternative remedies? Did it resolve itself eventually, or were you left with some permanant deficit?
BTW, I’m 37 yrs old, and have been lifting for 25 yrs. I can’t really remember having any traumatic injury, but I do tend to overtrain.
Any potential remedies and prognosis is going to depend on the exact diagnosis. An exact diagnosis is found through a combination of examination and imaging (most likely MRI, but not ALWAYS). If you have already had these, share the report for a better answer.
I am sorry to hear about your injury. I am a bit older (55) and have been lifting heavy for about 8 years. I am having similar symptoms and am curious what has happened since your posted in February.
It be fair, I have had tingling and numbness on and off for about four years, especially when back squatting. I did not have any muscle weakness. At that time my orthopedic surgeon determined this was due to normal aging and vertebral bone spurring. Since there was no significant muscle weakness, and very little pain, not much was recommended, except physical therapy. The exercises cleared up the acute issues at the time, and the sporadic tingling was not much of a concern.
Last August I had a decent workout and the next day I was in agony. (Scapular pain). The acute symptoms were pretty bad for about a month, and p-t resolved most of the pain issues, but I am fighting through the muscle weakness (tricep and bicep, C7, C5-C6). It is pretty noticeable and annoying.
I am improving but very slowly. I am seeing a neurologist on Thursday. (Initially the hypothesis was a rotater cuff tear, but that [thankfully] was ruled out by an MRI study).
A rundown of your experiences would be much appreciated.
Thanks. I have a great PT guy and it has been helpful. I generally do not trust chiropractors unless they are directed by a sports medicine type doc.
I doubt this will be chronic. The impingement (and thus the pain) will decrease as the nerve inflammation is decreased. Right now it is an acute issue and I am betting my neurologist will prescribe prednizone (I tolerate it very well).
The hard part will be trying to figure out what in the gym triggers this. I was getting better and on Monday I overdid it, and it was a set back.
At 19 I would be real careful. My gym trains guys for strongman and their joints take a beating. I think you getting involved with this at your age is terrific. DILIGENCE is important.
Thank you for responding. I would love to keep a dialog going and hopefully we can help each other.
[quote]roberteli wrote:
Apparently I have a pinched nerve in my neck. It’s impossible to sleep because my arm throbs and burns all night all the way down to my thumb. I’m seeing an ortho/neuro doc. So far, he’s given me meds that don’t work for shit. Even worse, I have diminished strength in my left arm. When I hold something in front of me, I can’t lift it up with my wrist- it just hangs limp.
Has anyone experienced this? and if so have you used any alternative remedies? Did it resolve itself eventually, or were you left with some permanant deficit?
BTW, I’m 37 yrs old, and have been lifting for 25 yrs. I can’t really remember having any traumatic injury, but I do tend to overtrain.[/quote]
Go see a GOOD osteopath. Seriously. A single session and you’ll be set, I promise. I suffered from severe sciatica due to a twisted pelvis and three blocked disks… a painful session for 45 minutes (cost 40 bucks) and i walked home pain free and have been pain free since. Resumed training a week later and now, barely 2 months later Im setting PRs in squat and dead.
Emphasis on “GOOD” though, a bad osteo session and you may end up in the emergency room.
[quote]nafnlaus wrote:
im being more careful now, i used to do olympic weightlifting but now its pretty much over for me.
Regarding osteopaths, as you say seeing a good/bad osteopath could mean emergency room or recovery. That makes sense since osteopaths are not a part of any decent healthcare system, they are in similar group as homeopaths and that means SCAM. Osteopathy has very low success rate and has been proven useless for treating most injuries. Sure they can pick up things that MT’s do but they are working on non scientific basis, mentioning “body&spirit unity” as a principle in “medical treatment” means bullshit[/quote]
Osteopaths are not homeopaths. They are regarded as medical professionals in the US (D.O).
They are not the same as chiropractors.And my osteopath reset my spine WITHOUT any mind-body-spirit talk or whatever the fuck you call it. He did talk at length about the spine and the various nerves in the region and analyzed my gait.
However, if you end up with a bad osteopath - you will end up in the emergency room. if you do decide to go this route, research your osteo properly. Mine was recommended by the owner of my current gym as well as a few competitors who train there.
I have multiple herniated discs in my neck did everything from pt chiro and injections nothing worked I bought a neck pillow and a McKenzie book called treat your own neck… best 15 bucks I ever spent. Surgery was an option but the neurologist wanted me to try the excersices. They really work do them exactly like the book says. Surgery may still be in my future but the burning that travelled down my arms is much better