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Tingling in arms and hands especially pain in left arm, and in the neck (trapezius area)
by Sean
(Keyword: tingling in arms and hands) Hello Bernhard, About 5 weeks ago, I went for a motorcycle ride in cool weather, and thought that a draft had hit my neck, causing me to stiffen up. This had happened before, and generally went away in two - three days. This time, it did not. After the first week, I went to see a doctor who gave me a shot for the pain, and subscribed muscle relaxants. The pain killers did not work, but the muscle relaxants just caused me to become "heavy" and not move much (the medication was Vicodin). I was not a fan of this stuff at all. Meanwhile, I have stopped taking these meds, because none of them had helped. I sought the assistance of the emergency room at a military hospital. They x-rayed my neck area, and rambled off something to the effect of my having an "slightly adjusted disk", yet proceeded to give me another shot for the pain (which did not help). The doctor had also recommended I attend a physical therapy, which I did last week for the first time. The Physical Therapist asked many questions about my sitting, working, computer habits etc., and then again said that I had a "stiff neck" in other words. She tapped my arms, had me apply pressure to her hand with my face (pressing into the shoulder) and had me do a few posture exercises (sitting up straight, and then slouching back into a relaxed position). She really put me on edge when she told me that my pain will never go away. When I asked her why, her answer was "well, your 44 years old and work a desk job". I thought to myself, that cannot be the answer to telling me that I am always going to feel this way, and all that the treatment would do is extend the period of painlessness. Now, some of the areas of pain have gone away, but therefore are more concentrated on one area on my neck, and the tingling down my arm is more intense, whenever I sit too long in a bad position (or on a hard chair for example). Oddly enough, I still work out on an elipitcal trainer (45 minutes every day) and can do gardening work without any pain or problems. In short, the more active I am, the less pain I have. My big problem is trying to sleep. I constantly toss and turn, looking for a comfort zone without pain, in order to fall asleep. When I do fall asleep, and roll over, I wake up and go through the entire procedure again. I have read myself silly on the internet, which I know can happen, but your the first site I have come across that allows me to ask a question. I don't want to buy the fact that I will always have this stabbing pain, and tingling sensation, and with summer coming...it really makes it hard to even look at my motorcycle, knowing that until this problem is treated, that I am not going to risk my life on two wheels. I truly appreciate your taking the time to read my email, and welcome any feedback you can provide in helping me to the road of recovery. Many thanks, Sean Ah, Sean, a man after my own heart. I've had a bike most of my adult life, and wondering which will be my next! Probably a BMW R80. You don't say which bike, but if you have dropped handle bars, with the neck in the extended position, that could be the problem. The neck doesn't like prolonged extension. Otherwise, just a new activity after a long winter of discontent. A couple of important questions:
Are the X-rays on plain film, or digital? If the former, take digi photos of them. If digital, open the folder (you may need help) and R-click copy, or Ctrl-Printscreen, save on your desktop and then paste them into the spot on the page (up to four photos). Handy man? Look at the Home traction unit page at C-H. Can also buy them, I recommend the lying down type, not the sitting ones. Let me have some answers and we'll take this further. Dr B Click here to read or post comments. |
