Pinched nerve in neck w/radiating arm pain. Questions

[weeluvdisney]

I pinched a nerve in my neck a week ago. I have never been in so much pain in my life. The radiating arm pain is worse then the pinched nerve itself. I went to the dr and left with steroids and pain pills. After suffering 4 more days with that not helping I went to the chiropractor for the first time. After 2 visits and adjustments I felt worse then before I had went so I won't be going back. Anyone with this experience I am wondering if you can tell me what treatment you sought if any and how long before you felt better. I am averaging 2 hours of sleep a night. I just want to feel normal again instead of miserable.

 

[crz4mm2]

How was it diagnosed?
If it is not just a "pinched nerve" it could be something more serious.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Have you had an MRI? Have you considered seeing an Interventional Radiologist for a steroid injection?

http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=epidural

 

[DVC1991]

not sure if the original doctor you went to was a neurologist, but if it wasn't that is who you should go to see next.

The steroids were given to reduce inflammation, which might be a cause of the nerve being pinched. The pain pills were given to try and lessen the pain for now. They will always start out with conservative management before bringing out any big guns. If a trial of the steroids and pain meds don't help, I'm sure they will order an MRI as the next step if they haven't yet. There may be a chance they will send you to physical therapy to see if that helps after the MRI. It seems like a long and drawn out process, and that's because it is. For one reason, they don't want to dive into more complicated treatment methods and surgery because if they are not necessary, they want to avoid it. Second reason is because the insurance companies make them go through this process. You can of course go around the insurance company and try and speed things up, but in these cases the insurance company won't pay for the treatments.

 

[stitchfan75]

You didn't pinch a nerve, you herniated a disc somehow. Back in 2011 I ruptured 2 cervical discs and had the same pain you are describing. I tried steroids and pain pills, then got epidural injections. Finally after 5 months I went in and got them fused. The relief was immediate. By the time I went in for surgery I had no use of my left arm and was on flexril/hydrocodone/Lyrica. I spent 3 days in the hospital (I have horrible reactions to anesthesia) and 8 weeks on leave from work...worth it.

 

[weeluvdisney]

I assumed it was a pinched nerve because of the pinching feeling I felt. The Nurse practitioner seemed to go with that. The chiropractor did xrays and said pinched nerve. I have read that these symptoms match a pinched nerve in the c6 area of the spine. I just don't know what and when to do next. I told both Drs my symptoms and no one said herniated disk or anything about an mri so I don't know.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I guess I never answered the second half of your question. My DH had this issue, yes a herniated disc (which "pinches" or compresses nerves so they become inflammed and painful, often excrutiatingly so, and weak), and had all the treatments mentioned (save chiropractic). He'd be fine for about a year or so, but it would always come back after he either snowblowed or mowed or did something else somewhat strenous. More discs became involved, also (new MRI if symptoms progress). Finally, one summer it got to be the worst it ever was, and he'd maxed out on the shots. So he went in for minimally invasive discectomy surgery at New England Baptist Hospital in Boston and it was the best thing he ever did. In at 6am, out by 11am, small scar, pain gone almost right away, totally gone by the three month mark. Later wondered why he'd waited so long. Surgery for this has improved so much. For some people, one shot is all they need. It just depends on the individual. I agree that most would start with conservative treatment and move up. Good luck.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I assumed it was a pinched nerve because of the pinching feeling I felt. The Nurse practitioner seemed to go with that. The chiropractor did xrays and said pinched nerve. I have read that these symptoms match a pinched nerve in the c6 area of the spine. I just don't know what and when to do next. I told both Drs my symptoms and no one said herniated disk or anything about an mri so I don't know.

If you don't have a regularly scheduled follow up, and the don't see you back again, they assume you're better. You need to go back to let them know you are still in pain, and take it from there. They will refer you to the appropriate people in your area, and most likely send you for an MRI to determine exactly what's going on and where the problem is. (No guessing games with shots in the spinal column!)

 

[kellyg403]

I have found that if I alternate cold/hot for and hour then do again every two hours it helps. I know this sounds dumb but I take pamprin too. When I was first told I had a pinched nerve I was 3 months pregnant and couldn't take any type of pain reliever. Physical therapy is really what I believe helped the most. I would say that the pain could last a few days or a few weeks. I don't have this happen often to me but I noticed that if I do repetitive motion I get that pain. Since my pain was/is intermittent I really have not sought further treatment. For all I know it could be a disk!

 

[DVC1991]

I assumed it was a pinched nerve because of the pinching feeling I felt. The Nurse practitioner seemed to go with that. The chiropractor did xrays and said pinched nerve. I have read that these symptoms match a pinched nerve in the c6 area of the spine. I just don't know what and when to do next. I told both Drs my symptoms and no one said herniated disk or anything about an mri so I don't know.

you wouldn't be able to see a herniated disc on X-ray, only on an MRI. you can't see nerves really either on an X-ray, just if the space between the vertebrae is smaller, implying that you would have a pinched nerve. an X-ray in this situation is essentially useless because it will show bony structures, not anything nerve/disc/muscle related.

 

[jetskigrl]

Sounds exactly like my situation. I woke up one morning with pain in my back, shoulder and arm - totally out of the blue. I thought I had just pulled something while working out. But it got progressively worse so I saw my regular doctor. He started me on physical therapy and that actually helped for a bit. But then the pain came back worse than ever. Another round of PT and I was still in pain. Finally got an MRI and they found 2 bulging discs and one herniated (that was compressing the nerve). I was sent to the Orthopedic Surgeon who also referred me to a Pain specialist and another doctor that ran nerve tests on my arm. Two steroid injections did nothing and the nerve tests were positive for damage to the nerve going down my left arm. And like you said, I was miserable all the time (couldn't sleep, in pain all day at work, etc).

It took a little over 2 years of conservative treatment but the doctor and I finally decided to do the surgery. I woke up after surgery and could tell the difference instantly. It turns out there was a bone spur from my disk compressing the nerve. Nothing but surgery was ever going to take care of that.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I guess, from what we were told, that when a disc herniates, the substance that keeps it lubricated oozes out and hardens. That can be what compresses the nerve. In the discectomy, the doctor went in and trimmed that away so it was no longer compressing the nerves in DH's back (and going all the way down his leg, to his foot). So yes, somehow, whatever it is that is compressing the nerve to cause it pain and weakness, has to either shrink (with anti-inflammatories, like steroids) or be removed (via surgery). Some may be fortunate to have relief from other methods, and if so, maybe the nature of the problem isn't as severe as some people's can be.

 

[disney4us2002]

I concur with the others that you need to get an MRI and see what is really going on. I have a herniated disc in my neck and my left arm will either throb or go numb. It was terrifying at first because with the left arm involved, I was just sure it was heart-related. There was no trauma or anything associated with my issue. One day I had no pain and the next was excruciating. I have been pretty fortunate so far in that I have been able to avoid serious treatment by rest, hot then cold treatments, and absolutely NO lifting with my left arm. When it was really flaring up, I considered cortisone injections, but luckily, the pain would subside. I would say, since diagnosed in 2007, I've had maybe 1 really bad flare-up per year that required bedrest with heating pad/ice alternates for a few days.

Good luck. Pain sucks!

 

[klmall]

This happened to me on the day after Christmas in 2011. I too haven't had body pain like that in my life; no muscle relaxants or pain killers did more than dent the pain. Add to the fact that being the week after Christmas my regular doctors were on vacation including my orthopedic group. We went to one of those Urgent Care type places because the pain was so bad I couldn't sleep, find a comfortable position to sit etc. and paced the whole time in the waiting room and examination room waiting for a doctor. He did nothing but prescribe a visit to my ortho; big help!

The pain also radiated down my arm and into my right thumb which as I found out is a classic symptom of a herniated disk. By the time I saw an ortho person ten days later the pain had subsided some but it had been hellish. I eventually had a disk replacement which gave complete relief for a year. But as I was informed the degenerative disease that caused the herniation continues and I get some occasional pain in adjoining disks but at least the numbness in my thumb has finally disappeared. The longer you wait the more damage to arms and hands so I probably postponed the surgery for too long but overall I think I came out okay.

 

[weeluvdisney]

Thanks for all the replies. My mri is Sunday so I guess I will find out next week what is going on.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Glad you followed up and they ordered an MRI. Good luck. It's the first step in getting you some real relief.

 

[mousefanmichelle]

I fell a few years ago and had a disc buldge in my neck with radiating pain down my arm/tingling/numbness. I had PT for about 8-12 weeks and I was fine. I snapped my head and felt it pop this past May and began having the same symptoms I had previously. I didn't want another MRI - so I told my Dr to write me a rx for physical therapy again and another round of therapy later, I am fine. Lucky for me I work in a PT dept where they can help me Good luck!

 

[jetskigrl]

Thanks for all the replies. My mri is Sunday so I guess I will find out next week what is going on.

Good Luck!! I hope you gets some answers and some relief soon. When I had my MRI, I knew that the technician performing it could not tell me the results or anything. But after he completed the scan, he said "I think your doctor is going to be able to get you some help now." So I knew whatever it was, it was immediately obvious to him too ;-) As soon as my doctor saw it, out came the referral slips to the specialist. I was just a bit irritated that it took that long to get him to order the MRI for me.