Back pain and pins and needles.
Posted , 6 users are following.
Hi my name is paul and I am a 33 year old Male. I have had what started as upper back pain for around a couple of years now and dont know where to go next or what to do. I feel like I am at the end of my tether and am mentally now broken.
I could not pin point where the pain started but only believe it could have been one of two things. firstly and more likely this I had a pretty hard fall in november 2017 where I fell down my stairs and caught myself on my banister with my right hand, I didnt feel any immediate pain but a few weeks after I started to feel in and around my right shoulder blade some pain, I continued to lift weights and could push through the pain for a few months but that gradually got worse so I stopped weights. when doing any form of cardio it would produce the same pain making me want to bend over as felt like heartburn then in my chest.
I no longer feel this pain so much as I no longer exercise and havent for over a year now. my back is almost permanently hot now and for the past month I have had pins and needles in my right hand, predominantly fingers.
I have tried resting, stretching, seen specialists including chiropractor, physio and osteopath but nothing has really seemed to help. I had an mri on my right shoulder blade but it didnt show anything, I struggled to complete the full mri as I am claustrophobic but was in there for around 25 minutes. does anyone know if you are able to have an mri and be sedated? I have also had an xray on my spine, back and chest which showed nothing along with blood tests which were also negative.
my only other potential cause may have been through stress as I lost two babies through miscarriage at 12 and 21 weeks which was tough emotionally for me the support I had to show my partner plus had limited support from friends and family.
can someone please help or suggest something
thanks in advance
0 likes, 8 replies
derek76 Paulwilliams
Posted
Depending on where you are there are some open upright scanners. In some ways they are better for the back as you then have pressure on it.
Paulwilliams derek76
Posted
hi Derek thank you for replying so soon. I am based in bristol. I have never heard of an open upright scanner. is this an mri also? do you know is this something you need to be referred for or can pay privately and if so do you know the cost please? thank you
amkoffee Paulwilliams
Posted
Before you attempt an Open MRI ask about the accuracy of an Open MRI. When they first came out I was told they weren't as accurate as a closed MRI. I too am claustrophobic and have found a way to get through an MRI as I've had several. the first thing I do is to put a wash rag over my eyes so that I can't see anything that's going on. Then I have a mental checklist of everything I'm going to think about while I'm in the MRI. It needs to be a long and extensive list so that you don't run out of things to think about. I remember once I went thru a mental list of all the bills I needed to pay. Try to concentrate hard on those items and not on what's going on. I found it most useful when I had headphones and was able to listen to music. The other thing I wonder is if you had contrast dye used when you had the MRI. Contrast dye will show things that might not normally show up on an MRI. and finally just because something doesn't show up on an MRI does not mean there's not something wrong with your back. when we are in pain we will spend thousands of dollars and thousands of hours chasing after a diagnosis. That is understandable but it's not always fruitful. Try to come to term with your pain and limitations and try to see a pain management doctor.
Paulwilliams amkoffee
Posted
thank you for replying as well much appreciated. I am at the end of my tether now so will try a whole of back mri. I really dont think I will be able to cope with it so think I need to enquire about an open MRI.
lee12629 Paulwilliams
Posted
ask for a valium to take before the test.
Objx Paulwilliams
Posted
Sounds a lot like the problems I'm having. I have had a right shoulder MRI about a month ago and they found a small cyst in my right rotator cuff and some seperation of the shoulder bone. For now its just PT. Yet tommorow i have an MRI for my neck. I couldnt tell you what the pain is, but they do offer sedated MRIs in NY.
lee12629 Paulwilliams
Posted
x-rays will not show enough,MRI of your spine is what you should ask for,could be a herniated or bulging disk,nerve entrapment etc,none of which would show on an x-ray. Also an EMG test would be a good start. See a neurologist.
amkoffee lee12629
Posted
Lee12629 I agree that an MRI is needed but while an x-ray won't show any disk material it will show changes in spacing of the vertebrae. When the spacing between the vertebrae is small this indicates a bad disk. And an MRI will also show nerve entrapment that an x-ray won't show.