What to do next?!
Question: hi,
I have been having a lot of pain coming from my right shoulder blade, I have numbness under my right armpit, and alot of weakness on that side. I also have constant severe muscle spasm there for 5 months! I have uneven shoulders(that you can tell easily by looking at the shoulders). I thought it might have been a curve in my spine, but no it was not. I had an x-ray done and they said it looked straight! So I saw an orthopedic doctor who ordered an MRI, and the results where everything looked fine!(Note: I did not get it done with contrast, I heard that might have shown something?) I don't know what to do anymore! I dont sleep anymore, I can't pay attention in class, because the back pain horrific! The weird thing is I am only, 14! I don't play any sports right now, and I am not even right-handed. Please help me, Do you know what this could be?
thank-you=)
Answers: hi,
I have been having a lot of pain coming from my right shoulder blade, I have numbness under my right armpit, and alot of weakness on that side. I also have constant severe muscle spasm there for 5 months! I have uneven shoulders(that you can tell easily by looking at the shoulders). I thought it might have been a curve in my spine, but no it was not. I had an x-ray done and they said it looked straight! So I saw an orthopedic doctor who ordered an MRI, and the results where everything looked fine!(Note: I did not get it done with contrast, I heard that might have shown something?) I don't know what to do anymore! I dont sleep anymore, I can't pay attention in class, because the back pain horrific! The weird thing is I am only, 14! I don't play any sports right now, and I am not even right-handed. Please help me, Do you know what this could be?
thank-you=)
The muscle spasm is a likely cause of all of this. The spasm could be compressing the brachial nerve or some other nerve that is part of the brachial complex.
There are a couple of things you can do that might help (and maybe not if the spasm is not the cause) - use a warm heating pad on the muscle spasm a couple of times each day (a tube sock filled with rice and placed in the microwave oven for 2 minutes works great). After applying the heat, massage the sore areas as best you can. Then, go to a doorway and hold onto the door frame with the arm on your sore side held at shoulder height or higher, and move around at different angles until you find a position where you feel pulling on the muscle spasm. When you find this point, gently stretch the muscles three times by holding a gentle stretch for 20 seconds each time. If you can't find the right spot with the door frame, try the same thing by holding a weight (like a1 gallon milk bottle filled with water) and try stretching you arm and shoulders by letting the weight pull downward at various angles. The first link has some good stretches. You could ask you doctor to send you to a physical therapist to find the right exercise. A massage therapist might also work.
One other thing you can do is to make sure you are getting enough magnesium. Ask your parents if they would buy a bottle of tablets with magnesium and calcium. Take a tablet with each meal and at bed time. Spasms that don't go away sometimes need additional magnesium to get them to release. You need to drink plenty of water to get any benefit. If you don't see an improvement within a week, then magnesium isn't going to help, so you don't need to keep taking it.
Otherwise, there is one other condition called thoracic outlet syndrome which causes this type of problem, but with the spasm present, it seems more likely that the spasm itself is causing the other symptoms.
naturalphysiques.com/cms/index.php?ite...
nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/thoracicoutlet...
See if your parents can take you to a chiropractor. I had a pinched nerve that nobody was able to help. I went to the chiropractor and the pain was relieved within a few days. There is no medication and nothing invasive. (no cutting or shots) It worked for me it might help you too.
Have you tried a Neurologist's they specialize with nervous system. You could have some pinched nerves along your spine. Hope your parents have insurance ..... ask for one of neck ,mid and lower spine(MRI). If something is wrong that's the person to see.
Best of Luck