After Whiplash, Could a combination of all of the symptoms mentioned be nerve entrapment?

by Gayle
(North east England, UK)

Hi, I was wondering if you could offer an opinion on my symptoms.

I was involved in a car crash 13 years ago which resulted in whiplash.

I hope it's okay if write this as a timeline of events.

I wore a collar for 4 weeks. Ever since, about 3 or 4 times a year I trap a nerve down the left or right side of my neck, into the shoulder blade, which is so painful I find it difficult to sleep compfortably, or turn my head to the side of the trapped nerve.

I cannot turn over in bed without 'throwing' my whole torso over, as turning with the neck first usually results in a trapped nerve.

It can be brought on by doing something as simple as drying my hair, or turning around. It takes 2 weeks to go away, and during these periods I have pain down my arm, but not really in the hand.

18 months ago I slipped at work and landed on a wooden floor, landing on the heels of both hands which I had put out to break my fall. Apart from the heels of my hands stinging a little, and a little pain in my neck, I had no other symptoms. About a month to 6 weeks later, I typed up a report for work, typing on and off for six hours, (I usually only do small amounts of typing at work.

I remember my hands aching a little as I did this. About 2 days later, I was aware of a strange burning sensation down both forearms, tingling, burning, itching hands, itchy sore tendons and itchiness over the carpal tunnel entrance to the hand, it was worse on waking in the morning, the burning in my hands and arm muscles alos woke me at night, and once I cooled my arms by lying them on top of the covers, it went away a little, although I never woke with clawed hands.

I also had aching joints in my fingers. This lasted for over 2 weeks, even though I wasn't doing anything repetative. I also noticed slight tinlging in my toes too.

I went to the doctors, and she said that she thought it might be repetative strain injury or mild arthritis, and to come back if the symptoms persisted. (I might also add that I was terrified that it might be MS, as one of the symptoms is pins and needles in your arms, and someone close to me has this condition and their quality of life is horrific, and even though the doctor said it didn't sound like this, every time any of these symptoms occur I begin to feel sick with worry)

From then on I would get ocassional pains, such a tingling when typing, itchy forearms, pain in the arm muscles, but only for a day or two.

Around the same time I also got a car and began to drive to and from work, a journey that only took 30 minutes or so. I began to experience a buring, painful itchiness down the side of my thigh muscle when driving, that would sometimes last all day. I also experienced aching finger joints. I Googled this, and it was a common thing that drivers could get, so I didn't worry about it tooo much.

I had very few symptoms last year, but at the beginning of December 09 i began to wake with burning, tingling arms and forearm muscles, every day, waking at night with burning arm muscles, pain in the thumb muscles, aching under the finger nails, buzzing in the finger tips it lasts all day, and is still going on 7 weeks later, I also have pain in the leg muscle, even though I didn't drive for 4 weeks, and I have a tingly sensitive spot on my left foot that won't go away either. (I fell from a ladder about two years ago, landing on my left foot, I heard a lot of popping sounds, which I was later told may have been torn ligaments, I only rested it for a day, then went back to work with it bandaged, so maybe it is something to do with that).

I went back to the doctors again last week, and they again said they thought it was not MS, but repetative strain injury, and are sending me for tests in 8 weeks, time, but I'm so worried that I'm even thinking of going privately just to get it over and done with as I worried sick every time I wake up and the symptoms are still there and I don't do repetative actions, and can't understand why i'm getting this all the time. i do sleep in a funny position, with my hands under the pillow and my arms bent, so I'm trying to train myself to sleep on my back.

I don't think that it's just carpal tunnel syndrome, as I also get golfer and tennis elbow symptoms. I have looked at lots of stuff on the internet, and one of the things that keeps coming up is entrapment neuropathy, distant, reffered pain, from trapped nerves in the neck which can produce all the symptoms of carpal, golfers and tennis etc. so I'm wondering if it's maybe something to do with my neck after all.

It was also interesting to read that changes in pressure on body tissues can result in some of these symptoms, and I do sucba dive regularly.

I really want to get to the cause of the problem and not just treat the symptoms.

Anyway, i'm sorry to have gone on so much, but it was such a relief to find your site and read other people's experiences, I look forward to hearing from you, and I will try the ice therapy.

Gayle, North East England



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Joshua Answers:


Hi Gayle.

The good news is, MS doesn't really run in families (more because families are in the same environments), and it is HIGHLY related to Vitamin D deficiency.

Easy fix. Get your Vitamin D level checked. And then get your level up into the 40-80 range.

Have whoever is close to you get their level up around 100, it is proven to decrease relapses (or however you want to say that)

Do read www.easy-immune-health.com's MS and VItamin D information


Moving on.

Thanks for including the timeline and all the details. That saves a lot of back and forth.

(CONTINUED IN PART 2)





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Joshua Tucker, B.A., C.M.T.
The Tendonitis Expert
www.TendonitisExpert.com

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