Possible nerve root damage in C5 and L5 from a horse accident. also a suspected deformity in (L5?)

by Hannah
(John Day OR)

Hi,

I would very much appreciate an email response after reading this, as I will probably forget that I even wrote this.

I have had serious nerve pain in the back of my right shoulder for approximately seven or eight years, and my right big toe is partially numb.

My upper arms and legs have recently been very sensitive; maybe the past two years if i had to guess. If I run my hand quickly over the skin, it hurts, and the skin on my thighs have also been extra sensitive in the same way. If I get lightly slapped in these places, or run my hand over them there are a few numb spots in my upper back that i notice when i get a massage; a single stroke up my back muscles feel like spots are missing and sometimes tickly spots in the middle of my back.

The pain in my shoulder is constant; almost a crawling burning electrical kind of sensation. If my hair tickles my shoulder it hurts; and sometimes it will never stop itching.

Using the computer makes the pain much much worse. I have not been to a doctor yet, I will soon, but I want to avoid any serious surgery.

The back of my right shoulder has hurt for a long time, I believe since i was eight or nine, definitely before my horse accident where i was bucked off and landed straight on my head...well actually on my mouth in a pile of you know what; my first thought when I hit the ground was "oh my gosh, I'm going to snap my neck!" Then i woke up with two people around me yelling my name, scared, because i was knocked out for a while. I opened my eyes and thought "haha, I'm alright guys" and tried to stand up. NOPE. EXTREME pain shot all through my spine, and my lower back hurt so bad.

Since the accident, about a third of my toe has been almost totally numb. My neck didn't hurt but it could have been, I am not sure. The pain in my lower back was too strong to care about anything else, and my two friends even had to carry me back home. Moving, or bending my back after that was always terrible pain starting in my lower back and shooting through my whole spine.

For the first year after hurting my back, I could barely bend it without that same shooting pain. After the first year, I had more range of motion in my lower back, but if i relaxed while it was bent (to tie my shoes and whatnot) it would get stuck that way, and when i tried to straighten it out, i got the same shooting pain. It would take me at least five minutes to straighten my back out again.

After a year of complaining about my back pain to my mom, and being called a hypochondriac every day, i finally got an x ray done, and the "specialist" told me nothing was wrong. i told him to look again. THEN he told me it looked like i had a deformity in my lower back and that surgery would likely paralyze me.

At that time, i didn't think my shoulder pain was related. but since reading about it on the internet, i suspect it might be. i knew the numbness in my toe and my shoulder was nerve pain just from the way it felt; i didn't need the internet, or anybody, to tell me that much.

I'm not sure if this is relevent either, but two different times, once walking to town, and another going down the stairs at school, both of my legs started feeling tingly and like a million raindrops were hitting them and it did scare me.

So if you could help, great. If not.. well I have a doctor's appt six days from now, on february 18th 2015.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you Hannah for a very thorough history; may I suggest you copy and paste it, and take it to your doctor; it will help him having it set out like this.

A few questions to start off with before we get too specific.

1. Can you raise your big toe off the ground?

2. Sitting in a kitchen chair, straighten first one, and then the other leg parallel to the ground. Is there a difference?

3. Raise your arms above your head, to the side, and behind your back. Does it hurt? Where?

4. Turn your head first right, then left and look up at the same time. Tell me what you feel.

Keep to this thread.

Dr B

Comments for Possible nerve root damage in C5 and L5 from a horse accident. also a suspected deformity in (L5?)

Average Rating starstarstarstarstar

Click here to add your own comments

Feb 19, 2015
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Thank you for getting back to me :D
by: Hannah

1.) Yes, I can raise my big toe off the ground without pain.

2.) Nothing too noticable.

3.) No pain right now, but the place that normally hurts tickles with all those movements

4.) When I turn my head up and to the right, it feels like i'm squeezing a swollen muscle in between, and it hurts my shoulder. When I turn my head left, it pulls on my right shoulder, but looking up and to the left doesn't hurt.

ps. I had my doctors appointment yesterday, and they took x-rays on my neck. They called back today with the results and said nothing is wrong.

What they meant is that nothing is seen on the xray that explains why you are getting these pains. Not that nothing is wrong.

An xray only shows the bony structures; soft tissue injuries such as a slipped disc can't be seen on x-ray.

It's time to find a local chiropactor who can help you; talk to friends and family, and your doctor and find the right person.

It's certainly helps that you can lift your big toe, and straighten your leg. And that nothing is seen on the xray of your neck.

Exercise, care with bending, lifting and housework for example are all vital. And some patience. Good luck.

Dr B

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to Chiropractic help Questions (Low back pain).





Did you find this page useful? Then perhaps forward it to a suffering friend. Better still, Tweet or Face Book it.

Share this page:
Enjoy this page? Then forward it to a friend. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.