Any insight on what may be going on with me is appreciated!

Hello,
I'm a 35 yo wht female. 2 yrs ago (oct 4) I was hit by an SUV. The back wheel went over my back leaving tread marks and a huge gash. Since, my back hasn't been the same, which I've learned to cope with. Now out of nowhere I woke up Monday 9/23/13 and got out of bed like I usually do only to fall down when I attempted to step on my right leg. My right leg was completely numb, paralyzed whatever.... it was like a noodle. No pins and needles, no feeling at all or muscle control. It took about 5 minutes for my leg to start coming back. My entire right leg was very sore for the next 2 days. It felt as though I had worked out intensely but only on my right leg.
Come Tueday night, my entire body started consticting. All my muscles were sooo very tight and felt rock hard. It was panicking, my husband calmed me down. I eventally fell asleep only to wake up Weds morning with my neck, down my left shoulder and down my let arm in complete pain. It's now been a week and the pain has not gotten any better. It's so horrible, I can't sleep from the pain and I'm barely able to function throughout the day since my left arm is limited use due to pain and my neck/shoulder can barely be moved.
I went to Urgent care, dr said he thinks it may be cervical radiculopathy C6, they did X-ray and nothing significant showed. I had 2 nerve tests conducted today EMG and another... both came back normal. Was told I don't have a pinched nerve. What else would be causing this insane pain? Sometime I feel the muscles from my face being pulled down cause my mscles get so tightened up, and I continusly get muscle spasms on my left arm, my left eye aches from time to time... Please help. I'm so worried and scared because I have no idea what's going on. Dr. perscibed valium & percocet.... Gets me drowsy but pain is peircingly there

Please help somebody.... I woke up this morning (after an evening of tossing and rurning) in more pain. Same locations but sharper pains. can't move my neck either way without extreme pain that shoots down my shoulder and into my left arm. As I'm here typing this I have constant ongoing pain.... I can't use my left arm for anything at this point unless I want to suffer some more....

Dear One Rita - I feel so bad for all the pain you're in and with no answer as to what is causing it. Your symptoms don't seem to match any postings I've seen on this board. Seems like very few tests have been done to get to the cause for your pain. To me, just loading you up with valium and percocet is not an answer. Have you seen a neurologist or did another type of doctor order the tests? If you did see a neurologist, and that is all he/she had to offer, see another. Or in either case, perhaps a neuro-muscular specialist would be of help. Also I'm thinking there are meds specifically for muscle spasms that might be of help until you get better answers as to what is happening. Do keep pursuing this until you find a doctor who can give you some answers and help. You don't deserve to suffer like this. Hugs, Ruby

Thank you Ruby for your kind words. I ended up in the ER last night due to the pain. Again they did xray of my neck, everything is fine. Blood work came back ok. They are stumpped as to what it can be. In the meantime, I'm researching local orthopedic dr's and neuro dr's. It's so difficult because I'm new in Los Angeles and everything is different here. I'm used to the Orange County medical procedures.... they do things differently.... but I'm sure that goes for everywhere... I'm just frustrated, scared, worried and above all... in extreme pain... I really need to get an MRI done

Hi,
I usually post on the "Back Problems" board but occasionally look in here.
I would suggest that you need to see a spine specialist. All other doctors know a little bit about the workings of the spine, but if something is not blatantly obvious, things can be missed and the patient can waste a lot of time wondering what is wrong. I wasted over a year in pain by listening to my well-meaning internist....

You need to look for a fellowship-trained orthopedic SPINE surgeon or a neurosurgeon -- just be sure the practice is limited to the neck and back. (You don't want a general ortho who works on other joints, and you don't want a neurosurgeon who prefers brain surgery....)

It sounds like you have some nerve compression --either cervical or lumbar. There are things that can cause this that are not clearly seen on MRI.
EMGs are only a snapshot in time and are not a reliable test to completely rule in or rule out nerve compression. It is just one piece of the puzzle.

I am not from CA but do know that Cedars-Sinai has a well-regarded spine program with both ortho spine surgeons and neurosurgeons, as well as physiatrists and interventional pain management doctors.

You may have to hunt for awhile to find answers. Don't be discouraged...but do get attention from a spine specialist as soon as you can get an appointment. If you should suddenly develop loss of bowel or bladder control, or develop sudden muscle weakness like foot drop, go to the ER right away. Those are potential symptoms of a serious condition called "Cauda Equina Syndrome."

Good luck.

Hi Rita,

This is perhaps a remote possibility, but has anyone suggested the possibility of "frozen shoulder" syndrome? It's fairly common (especially among women, for some reason), but is often misdiagnosed as something else because it's hard to detect with a CT or even an MRI. Most of the symptoms you've described -including excruciating pain- could be indicative of frozen shoulder, including involvement of the neck and arm on the affected side. It is almost never bilateral, affecting just one side or the other.

Has the range of arm movement been severely restricted because of pain and a sense of being "locked up" on the affected side? Are you unable to move the arm behind your back without severe pain and muscle resistance (i.e, locking up)? How about horizontal movement? Are you unable to raise the arm above shoulder height, or even waist height? Restrictions in such movements -and terrible pain- are the primary indicators of frozen shoulder, and the pain persists even when motionless.

If that turns out to be the diagnosis, be of good cheer! Frozen shoulder often goes away on its own after a few months, although it sometimes persists for longer than a year if untreated. Conservative treatment involves physical therapy, massage therapy, ultrasound, anti-inflammatories and home exercises. Surgical intervention to relieve the pressure of the tissue sheath that causes the problem is rarely recommended, and often does no good.

Many hugs for your pain, and good luck!