About 3 weeks ago I started having pretty bad neck/shoulder pain radiating down my left arm. Can’t think of any action that caused it, basically just woke up sore and then got worse over the next few days.

Tingling in fingers on left hand, pain in elbow that felt like tendonitis, and most concerning is an inability to flex left bicep/tricep. Fine motor issues with writing, using silverware, etc (I’m left-handed)

After about a week with no improvement I went to the doc who referred me to a back clinic. Went to the back clinic today and she is thinking it is a herniated disc. She seemed mostly concerned with atrophy of my tricep and inability to flex it, raise my fingers against her hand, etc. Says it still responded to the reflex hammer which gives some hope but scheduled an MRI for Sunday morning. Pretty much is already talking about a surgical referral. I got concerned real quick, but she says neck surgery is far less problematic than back surgery as there is a lot less tissue and structures to go through.

Anyone else gone through this? Do herniations ever heal without surgery? Seems odd it would be such a sudden onset without some sort of triggering event.

Pain has subsided for the most part, stiff and sore in the morning but heating pad, ibuprofen, and Tylenol keep the pain in check during the day. Numbness and impact of no tricep control is the most bothersome and concerning aspect and nothing is relieving that. Not getting any better, but not getting worse at this point either.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: 911Boss,

I JUST went through this. Exactly same symptoms as you described muscle weakness in tricept and peck. Pain, numbness alll that. However it was mostly the muscle weakness that was concerning. I started seeing a great chiropractor who adjusted above and below the slipped discs with the goal in mind to relax the entire spine and therefore relax the tension of the effected areas. I also saw a spine doctor for a second opinion. Long story short, don’t lift anything over your head, give it time and opportunity and you have about a 85-90% chance of the discs sucking back in on their own. That is what happened with me and it took about 9 or 10 weeks. Most heal faster. The root cause was arthritis in my neck which is apparently very normal for someone my age (37). I also went to physical therapy but I’m not sure it did much for me. I’d encourage you to do the same because it’s important to keep sending that signal to the weakened muscles. If you have anymore questions let me know! Hang in there man. Odds are in your favor.

I’ll add that you’ll need an MRI most likely to rule out anything serious. You’ll probably be given a steroid to help calm the inflammation. In my case it wasn’t an inflammation issue (the arthritis combine with overhead pressing) so the medicines didn’t do much for me. All my doctors said ills likely recover like most but will have to be careful moving forward.

I have a herniated disk at L3 from 1983 and it reminds me everyone once in a while when I don't do streaches and warm up before doing anything active.

So no they don't heal by themselves. They may get better and you feel relief but never good as new.

With that said, make sure you get a second opinion from a really reputable neck/back practice in your city or even go to one of the big names if it's doable (Mayo Clinic, Clevland Clinic, Duke) are three that I know of.

Since they don't heal on their own, you want to make sure what they are proposing is the right thing.

Also make sure to ask them what you can expect after the surgery. Your spine will be different, and you want to know how different and how it will impact your day to day.

Like can they guarantee that all your current issues will clear up if not what percent of improvement can you expect to see.

I feel your pain man, and it is nothing easy to deal with but don't jump in without getting a clear expectation of the "after" surgery state of your spine and how it will impact your future.

And get that second opinion from a solid practice or clinic.

hang in there.

I’ll be 60 in a couple months. Have been going to a chiropractor pretty regularly for a couple years.

Problem is compounded by some marked degeneration of the disc and very little area between the C6/C7

I had a bulging disk in the C6(?) maybe C7, it was the median nerve being compressed. My symptoms were tingling and numbness in the left thumb 1&2 finger on the palm side. My elbow would turn into fire and my shoulder.

Went on until I couldn’t sleep, nothing helped. I even tried a leftover Percocet with no avail. Only alcohol gave me relief…and it didn’t last long.

It got so that I couldn’t lie down and if my head moved I had lava on my left arm.

Finally went to a doc and he saw a mri I had from my stroke a few months before and he pointed out the issue.

He scheduled me for three shots of steroid into my spine. I think it just was around the spine not actually in it. But they used a X-ray to guide the shot placement. It was really weird, and felt like an elephant stood on my neck/back when they pumped the stuff in. The first one took a few days for me to realize it was working..several weeks later I had the second and then the third.

It worked, and reduced the bulging so that I could lay flat and sleep. Turns out my stroke doc had told me to watch TV and closed captions to learn or work thru my compression issues post stroke. This led to laying on the couch funny…that led to the disk problem.

During this time I went to a chiropractor and showed him the mri and the plan for the neck doc..the chiro helped me with the pain by hanging me upside down to release pressure on the disk-this helped along with the steroids.

Still to this day if I tilt my head down and place my chin on my chest it will give me tingles in my hand that is much stronger than the all the time tingling I suffer now.I have the tingling in the mentioned fingers that will be with me forever.

Ohh, before I got the steroid the neck doc put me on gabapentin..that really really helped in hiding he constant pain. It was a low dose IIRC, and I remember that you couldn’t quit cold turkey, you had to reduce the dose over a week to prevent seizures. But it worked for me.

I wish you luck. Like others have said, get a second opinion before you go all in on surgery. It may be that the less invasive will work for you as it did me.

BTW, when I met the neck doc, he asked what I wanted and I remember telling him I’d let him operate on my in the hallway with a butter knife if he could make the pain stop. After seeing my scan he said I wasn’t a candidate for surgery and he opted for the steroids.

quote:

Originally posted by 911Boss:
About 3 weeks ago I started having pretty bad neck/shoulder pain radiating down my left arm. Can’t think of any action that caused it, basically just woke up sore and then got worse over the next few days.

Tingling in fingers on left hand, pain in elbow that felt like tendonitis, and most concerning is an inability to flex left bicep/tricep. Fine motor issues with writing, using silverware, etc (I’m left-handed)

After about a week with no improvement I went to the doc who referred me to a back clinic. Went to the back clinic today and she is thinking it is a herniated disc. She seemed mostly concerned with atrophy of my tricep and inability to flex it, raise my fingers against her hand, etc. Says it still responded to the reflex hammer which gives some hope but scheduled an MRI for Sunday morning. Pretty much is already talking about a surgical referral. I got concerned real quick, but she says neck surgery is far less problematic than back surgery as there is a lot less tissue and structures to go through.

Anyone else gone through this? Do herniations ever heal without surgery? Seems odd it would be such a sudden onset without some sort of triggering event.

Pain has subsided for the most part, stiff and sore in the morning but heating pad, ibuprofen, and Tylenol keep the pain in check during the day. Numbness and impact of no tricep control is the most bothersome and concerning aspect and nothing is relieving that. Not getting any better, but not getting worse at this point either.

Had this surgery in 2015. E-mail me (see my profile) and include your phone number. I'll walk you through what to expect.

Yep. L3 and L4 discs in 2005. Shooting pain through my left hip and down into my leg. Physical therapy to learn stretches, moving carefully, keeping weight off, and not bending over for long periods. They haven't really gotten better so much as I've learned to move around without bothering them. In recent years, I require a good seated upper torso twist to my right to get them both to pop when they're bad, and then they instantly feel better. Probably need to see a chiropractor.

Sorry you're dealing with this, man.

Mine was more bulges and arthritis irritating the nerve. Pain that kept me up all night. Tramadol helped but only for short periods of time. I never had gabapentin.

It felt like fire across my right upper back and down my right arm. You could feel knots in spots far from the spine. No position gave relief when trying to sleep. I had an MRI and did the conservative treatment route.

Using a real ice pack for long periods of time helped. I’m surprised I did not get frostbite.

It took 3-4 months to heal. No surgery. I still occasionally feel it but nothing like those few months.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Oz_Shadow,

I had surgical correction on C6/7/T1 for similar issues, but the pain had gotten unbearable. It will amble along for some people, but for the ones that really get the bulging into the spinal cord, you know there's not a chiropractor in the universe that could help.

I had both degenerative areas done via anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF), and got instant relief. I was at a point I was unable to lie down, and any movement of the neck produced excruciating pain. So it was a godsend surgery for me. Unfortunately for me, it wasn't all good news. I procrastinated long enough that I never have gotten 100% of the "tingle" gone from my left hand, so I learned to live with it.






I suggest finding a good surgeon and moving forward before it deteriorates to the point you can't get it back. Best of luck!!

I had a fusion at c5-6 done because my legs kept giving out. I'd be walking along and just fall over, went back to climbing trees for a living after the surgery and was fine for awhile. Had more problems a few years later and had to have c2-3 done. I'm mostly ok, but have two somewhat numb hands with minor loss of fine motor skills, and a numb left foot with some spasticity in the left leg. I can still walk so long as it isn't real far. Running, couldn't do it if my life depended on it. Other than that, I am good to go. email is in profile if you want further info on what I've been through, but post here to say that you have sent me email because I'm not too diligent in checking my mail.

I'm recovering from neck fusion surgery(C5&C6) right now. It's the same procedure Slabsides45 had, ACDF. I'm in the fourth week of recovery with 2 weeks to go. Having to wear a neck brace when I'm out of bed. I may need another surgery for C4 & C7 later on. The surgeon concentrated on the two worst areas of my neck. As I understand it the spinal nerves were being pressed or pinched by the vertebrae as the opening for the spinal cord has narrowed (stenosis). The doctor recommended surgery as I had a severe case of stenosis.

I was having some of the same issues you describe, pain and tingling in my fingers, shoulders and arms. In my case it wasn't sudden. Those problems were slow to develop. I've had physical jobs over the course of my career. Wear and tear along with age(65) caught up with me. I found out I had a herniated disc in my back at L7 long before the problem with my neck was discovered. I haven't done anything with my back yet as that problem wasn't as severe a case as my neck was.

A couple of other symptoms that came up within a few weeks before the surgery, it felt as though something was tightening around my neck at times and I started getting severe headaches. These two symptoms were somewhat scary. I was convinced surgery was the only option. After surgery I can say that the headaches haven't returned and I no longer feel the tightness around my neck. Some of the other problems are going away slowly. There's a definite improvement though.

As far as herniated disc problems go I don't know if they can be healed outside of surgery, I know there are steroid shots for pain. In my case I have arthritis in my neck, back and left knee.

This was my second surgery this year, I had dual inguinal (lower groin) hernia surgery in mid May.

Wish you the best in dealing with your condition.

quote:

Originally posted by JohnV:
I JUST went through this. Exactly same symptoms as you described muscle weakness in tricept and peck. Pain, numbness alll that. However it was mostly the muscle weakness that was concerning. I started seeing a great chiropractor who adjusted above and below the slipped discs with the goal in mind to relax the entire spine and therefore relax the tension of the effected areas. I also saw a spine doctor for a second opinion. Long story short, don’t lift anything over your head, give it time and opportunity and you have about a 85-90% chance of the discs sucking back in on their own. That is what happened with me and it took about 9 or 10 weeks. Most heal faster. The root cause was arthritis in my neck which is apparently very normal for someone my age (37). I also went to physical therapy but I’m not sure it did much for me. I’d encourage you to do the same because it’s important to keep sending that signal to the weakened muscles. If you have anymore questions let me know! Hang in there man. Odds are in your favor.

I’ll add that you’ll need an MRI most likely to rule out anything serious. You’ll probably be given a steroid to help calm the inflammation. In my case it wasn’t an inflammation issue (the arthritis combine with overhead pressing) so the medicines didn’t do much for me. All my doctors said ills likely recover like most but will have to be careful moving forward.

I would NOT recommend having a neck adjustment from a chiropractor before having an MRI. If there is narrowing of the foramen, an adjustment risks permanent damage as well as plenty of other issues.

First matter of business is get an MRI, and if possible, take those MRI images & results to a "second-opinion" spine doctor who is not a surgeon, and who does not do injections (a surgeon will recommend the surgical route, and a PM&R who does injections will recommend injections). For a truly neutral opinion, go to someone who does neither, and seek their unbiased opinion.

I’ve been dealing with complications from fracturing L4 for 25 some odd years now. I’m fused at multiple levels from discs blowing out. I won’t bore you with my issues, but I will HIGHLY recommend getting at least two opinions from the best neurosurgeons you can find. Also know that surgery is a crapshoot sometimes. One person will do great and the next (me) will be left in constant pain even though the structural problems were fixed.

Oh yes. There first time I noticed it was after a tractor accident and telescoping my spine a bit. A couple weeks after that I had the first flare up and it was amazing. I would have cut my arm off if it would have made the pain go away.

After that I connected the dots on other issues I was having that was caused by it. Strange sensation in my arm pit that caused me to see a cardiologist that turned up nothing. Tremor in my left hand, shrinking of my left arm that I thought I was imagining.

I haven't had too many flair ups (and astounding pain) in recent years, but my left arm clearly has atrophied and is much thinner than my right and my slight tremor has become a noticeable shake, at times on the scale of Gene Wilder's "but I shoot with this hand". So I no longer shoot with that hand.

And if I bump my head or shoulders on anything, it's like a lightening bolt down my spine that nearly puts me on the floor.

Just returned from the bathroom... again... and it reminded me of another odd thing. Amazing hand cramps that distort my fingers into some crazy twisted shapes. It happens if I don't stay extremely hydrated, which I try to do. Which of course keeps me peeing constantly.

I had extensive C-spine surgery in 2020, mostly the result of a bad horse wreck in the past and resulting arthritis which was choking the spinal canal (genetic stenosis played a role too). I was an unusual case in that pain and stiffness were my only symptoms, no numbness, tingling, loss of muscle strength.

The concern you are showing is probably warranted and about all I can say is, see a couple of neurosurgeons.

I sent you an email, with a suggestion that should help a lot.

I had very similar symptoms a couple years ago. Went to three different doctors, a shoulder/elbow/hand surgeon who sent me to a nerve specialist who sent me to a neck surgeon, none of which could diagnose it after a battery of examinations and tests, including an EMG.

The last one sent me to a Physical Therapist, since my insurance required trying PT before they would cover a neck MRI.

Within the first 5 minutes of meeting with the Physical Therapist, he had diagnosed it: Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. Basically, an overly tight pectoralis minor was compressing my collarbone and shoulder blade into the underlying brachial plexus nerve, causing nerve pain and tingling stretching from my neck through my shoulder and elbow and down to my fingertips, along with muscle weakness in that arm.

The muscle tightness at the root of it was caused by poor computer posture, after being promoted at work to a more sedentary administrative position that involved a lot more computer use.



A few weeks of PT and daily stretching exercises and I was right as rain. I still do those stretches when I get the occasional flare-up of the tingles.

So there's hope that it's not specifically a cervical issue requiring surgery. There are potentially other simpler explanations with much less invasive solutions.

Here's a link with more explanation and examples of some stretching exercies: https://esportshealthcare.com/...cic-outlet-syndrome/

quote:

Originally posted by 911Boss:
About 3 weeks ago I started having pretty bad neck/shoulder pain radiating down my left arm. Can’t think of any action that caused it, basically just woke up sore and then got worse over the next few days.

Tingling in fingers on left hand, pain in elbow that felt like tendonitis, and most concerning is an inability to flex left bicep/tricep. Fine motor issues with writing, using silverware, etc (I’m left-handed)

After about a week with no improvement I went to the doc who referred me to a back clinic. Went to the back clinic today and she is thinking it is a herniated disc. She seemed mostly concerned with atrophy of my tricep and inability to flex it, raise my fingers against her hand, etc. Says it still responded to the reflex hammer which gives some hope but scheduled an MRI for Sunday morning. Pretty much is already talking about a surgical referral. I got concerned real quick, but she says neck surgery is far less problematic than back surgery as there is a lot less tissue and structures to go through.

Anyone else gone through this? Do herniations ever heal without surgery? Seems odd it would be such a sudden onset without some sort of triggering event.

Pain has subsided for the most part, stiff and sore in the morning but heating pad, ibuprofen, and Tylenol keep the pain in check during the day. Numbness and impact of no tricep control is the most bothersome and concerning aspect and nothing is relieving that. Not getting any better, but not getting worse at this point either.

Yes. Need to see a neurosurgeon. I had the same problem and symptoms, but with the right arm/hand--feel like you have glue on your fingers with the lack of sensation? Turns out I had to have C5-C6-C7 fused due to lack of discs in-between those vertebrae.

quote:

Originally posted by cas:
Just returned from the bathroom... again... and it reminded me of another odd thing. Amazing hand cramps that distort my fingers into some crazy twisted shapes. It happens if I don't stay extremely hydrated, which I try to do. Which of course keeps me peeing constantly.

This will happen to me at times, and when it strikes it does so without warning and is brutal. I drop anything in my left hand-which isn't good since I do a fair amount of rather tedious surgery with the assistance of that left hand!!