Nerve pain in back

coachgrd · Nov 7, 2017

Hi everyone. Have any of you dealt with nerve pain in your back, specifically between your shoulder blades? How have you found relief?

I have some that radiates up into my trapezius. I also have headaches daily that I wonder are a result of this. I mentioned both to my Dr. during a physical last month and he suggested a chiropractor. I went 3 times and found it was doing little to nothing. (He was the kind that use one of those pens that poke/prod.) There are some things that really agrivate it, like running the log splitter.

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Valveman · Nov 7, 2017

I have had lower back problems, pinching a nerve to my right leg for 30 years. A lot of pain in the leg. A few years ago I discovered inversion therapy. I have one of those upside down things that hangs you by the feet. Once I realized I only need about 30 degree angle it has worked great. I spend 10-20 minutes each night before bed hanging at 30 degrees. Changed my life. No more leg pain. Feels good for my upper back as well. I bet it would help you too.

dmccarty · Nov 7, 2017

Chiropractor.

You can certainly get headaches from having a painful back and/or neck. Been there done that.

For my first back injury I went to an MD who just gave me drugs that made me a drooling sleepy mess on the couch and kept me out of work for a week. Work was talking about putting me on short term disability. :shocked: The wifey had been telling me to go to a bone cracker but I did not.

The drugs just dealt with the pain and did nothing to fix the problem. A short time later I mess up the back/neck again and the pain was starting to ramp up. This time I did what the wifey told me to do and went to a bone cracker. I saw him on a Friday, he did a bunch of tests and took an X ray. He told me to go home, take over the counter pain medicine, and put a cold pack on my back for 7 minutes every hour, for as many hours as I could. Come back on Monday after the X rays are evaluated and we would start treatment! :shocked::shocked::shocked:

The look on my face must have mirrored what I was thinking which was, "You have to be kidding. This pain is getting worse and I will be in the ER over the weekend."

He gave me his card and said if the pain gets bad to call him.

I did what he said and the pain did NOT get worse. I started treatment and eventually I was healed. This is not an over the night cure but the pain was manageable with out heavy duty pain medications.

A year or so after my back/neck was finally healed we had a car accident. Here we go again. Back to the bone cracker but a different one since the old one had moved out of state. The new guy used a little gun like thing to do the adjustments which I much preferred to the old guys body bone cracking. The little gun would slightly move the bones around which would improve my long term pain. Sometimes, there would be more soreness after a treatment but the overall pain would go down. After about five months or so, during one treatment, I felt the neck move into place like it should be. The pain went away completely at that point.

Ice is your friend. I also did acupuncture and cupping which worked as well. Short term effect but so are drugs. Just easier to pop a pill.

I have learned to be very careful to make sure I am not hurting my neck or back through repetitive motions and/or being locked into one position for too long. Having the proper position to work is very important too. Just a slight adjustment can work wonders.

Later,
Dan

jeff9366 · Nov 7, 2017

Much back pain in aging males is the result of too much gut. The human body did not evolve to support twenty pounds hanging over the belt.

If, in addition, your core strength is below average, it exacerbates back pain. Usually the two go together.

Almost every back pain study shows the most effective long-term therapy is Yoga. However, you need to attend a one hour Yoga class at least twice per week for two months (16 classes) before you will notice improvement in your balance, core strength and flexibility.

Yoga, Physical Therapy, Chiropractic and Massage Therapy all are part of one ring. Some closer to Yoga, some distant but related.

If weight is your problem you may need to check into one of many specialized, residential Fat Farms for a month, to learn new eating and exercise habits.

TheMan419 · Nov 7, 2017

Yoga helped my lower back pain. However much of the yoga that i was doing mirrored the exercises that my physical therapist said I should do. For me paying a few bucks for the yoga class forced me to go and do. Also the mental health benefits of yoga for me were amazing. I got out of it due to life just getting too busy. Hopefully this thread will incentivize me to go back to it.

I still do my PT exercises a few times a week. I should do them every day and feel better when I do.

I am one of those that views Chiropractors as quackery, but I know lots of people that get relief.

It is not a short term resolution, via PT, Yoga etc. Yes weight plays a big part.

Kentuckyfarmer · Nov 7, 2017

Lots of years ago I had a car wreck and two days later my neck and shoulders hurt so bad I couldn't hardly move. Getting dressed was almost impossible. The old ball and chain at the time said got to the bone cracker so I did. Man was he good. Three visits and felt like I was a kid again. Nothing hurt and he was good. Fast forward to a couple years ago and don't know why but neck and shoulders were stiff again but not as bad as when I had the wreck. Went to different bone cracker (other one retired or died really don't know) but this one really hurt me in everything he did. Went twice and called it quits. I couldn't take him trying to break my back. Self medicated with Motrin and heat and cold packs. Took a couple weeks but things got better. I think bone crackers are the same as some plumbers. There's good and there's bad. I've had both.

CalG · Nov 7, 2017

You might try "rolling" over the painful areas.

The hard foam rollers can do wonders. I use a lacrosse ball to really concentrate on nerves and pinches.

Work around, it always amazes me how "far away" the cause can be from the symptom.

Those big muscles in the lower torso , hips and legs can screw you around and the pain will show up most anywhere.

Roller use can be pretty much self directing, i.e. the pain let's it's self known when you roll over it, then you can just work around that spot with the roller. When the discomfort of pressing the area with the roller is gone, so is the issue. Usually, for a while any way. ;-)
Any way, check out rollers etc . Can't hurt

Tractor Seabee · Nov 7, 2017

Has a nerve conduction study confirmed the pain is a nerve source? If so regular pain medications do not work. I have disc and arthritic spur problems in my spine that create pain in arms, legs, and back. Had two spinal surgeries, first one did not work. Different surgeon next time and worked great. Several years later pains came back. Surgery was indicated again but opted at my age to grin & bear it. Using Tramadol 3 times a day and that keeps me functional. Tramadol is non-addictive and only works on nerve pain. May be time to see a neurologist.

Ron

jerrybob · Nov 7, 2017

I agree with the chiropractor comments........vertebrae gets messed up.....so do hips......a couple of adjustments and you might be surprised at the relief. Good luck.......