What a "pain in the neck"! Literally...

[Schot 407]

Geez, what a run I'm having...

 

Well the good news is my arms are finally giving sensations of improvement. The bad news is that at about the same time I got my nasty sunburn on my neck I also developed a pinched nerve there. See. This is what happens when you hit mid thirties, get an entire winter off work and do practically nothing but dabble on pc for 5 months non-stop. Heh... Lesson learned! Lately I've been hit with a string of physical pains and gogo made a very interesting point the other day. "Dude, you're outta shape!", haha. And I think he's probably right. I think I might have retained a bouncy 20-nothing year old mentallity for a bit longer than I'm allowed. Oops... Nope. Not quite so rubbery as I remember being. ^^

 

Neck pain and pinched nerves though have been an ongoing thing for me though. Since before my twenties I think. Normally when they've happened to me I would just wait them out. That's more or less what anyone has to do when this happens. Basically have to wait for the body to untangle itself. But nowadays it kinda hurts a lot... I've gone to x-rays so I'm waiting to hear back on that but I'm wondering if someone out there also gets regular stiff necks/pinched nerves and if they have their own kind of home remedy. I've been googling for various solutions and have found a lot of great info but I'm more interested in reading about someone's experience from here and if something particular worked well. maybe a specific stretch or routine of stretches? Something I never thought to try before is icing my neck which I guess I'm going to research next.

 

 

P.s.

Unfortunately I'm keeping my posts to a minimum which means I'm missing out on responding to a number of great things on the forum here. There's a few topics and a couple of PMs I need to respond to and I'm sorry to those awaiting. I haven't forgotten! The Speech Recognition solution I've been trying was proving to be a great temporary option. Until my neck started acting up. Ugh!

 

P.p.s.

Just to be clear I'm not in any serious danger. Probably just a matter of getting back into shape and whatnot. ^^

[Dragon Brother 619]

Well I havent had any experience with pinched nerves to tell you about (being a teenager has its uses ), but I will add my hopes that you find some simple way of dealing with it in your research. From everything I've heard about them they are not a pleasant experience, definitely not one you wish to recur. So all I can offer is get well, and get plenty of rest, that always fixes up anything! Or maybe a drink or two to numb the pain

Edited May 2, 2010 by Dragon Brother

[locolagarto 15]

Well I will tell you that Furian and I swear by chiropractic care. not as some kind of cure all voodoo, but honestly your muscles are constantly pulling on your neck and spine every which way, and eventually a muscle wins. Our chiropractor is cool about Insurance and what not. I payed 20 dollars a month to go 3 times a week for my whole family and it was very good for me. They even have a computerized adjuster called Pro-adjuster that is very safe, painless, and made me feel really good. I have pain in my lower back from being overwieght and out of shape, and in my neck and shoulders from sitting at a computer all the time and when I was going regularly it was so much better, I stopped going this year with the job and move and all, but I can really tell I haven't been in a long time.

[Furian67 15]

Like Loco said. Chiro bro Chiro. I first went a 2-3 years ago when my back finally went out. It has always been an issue but all my back did was give a warning twinge. Telling me to be nice today or else!. I probably got my back the way it was from heavy lifting as a kid (hauling wood for our woodburner) and from High school football. Anyways he straightened me right out. I feel better today than I did in my 20-30's. When I get a bad neck from wierd sleep or something he knows whats wrong before I tell him. Its started to be like a little pop quiz. I won't tell him I have an issue.... and he is the one that tells me. This confirms to me the guy knows what he is doing. I don't do that contraption thingy Loco spoke of.... I've seen it and tryed it but I prefer a good ole fashion bend me back into place. Love to hear the bones pop back into place. I hear it and I feel it make a differance.

 

Back to the neck deal, I take a couple aspirin about an hour or two before heading to the Chiro. He gets me fixed right up, I might be a bit sore but its nothing like the pain I was in. And it doesn't last more than a few hours after. Next day I'm peaches!

[Munera 1]

Awww what a nuisance. I don't have any ideas about it, I can only say: Hope you get over it soon!

[Bondbug 32]

Trapped nerves? Yes from time to time. Can't afford professional treatment? I usually work mine out by gentle massage and gentle exercise. I find Ibuprofen a lot better than aspirin and less harmful to the gut.

Sometimes wear a light knee strap, or even a corset (!) if the back twinges when I'm working ... from lifting heavy stuff 50 odd years ago.

 

Sitting too long at the PC is a problem. I get twitchy leg syndrome or whatever it's called, a bit like sciatica, but the Ibu quick sorts it.

 

Gonna pump up the tyres on the bike ... honest. That's a sort of kill or cure option ... just the pumping. Don't try that just yet Schot!

 

What a lot of young crocks we have in this forum!

 

P.S. What causes/caused the neck problems? I have escaped that one even after fracturing my neck in a motor cycle accident.

Edited May 2, 2010 by Bondbug

[gial 2]

just gulp a couple red potions. You'll be fine in no time

[Schot 407]

lol gial. Hmmm... Well I've never been fond of those dark potions but maybe I'll try some of that pale stuff Dragon Brother is havin. Oh and hey. That teenager thing works pretty well as I recall. I'll have to try that again some time. *dreams* ^^

 

Thanx for the well wishes guys. I really appreciate it. Well good news is that it seems this time around it's just a stiff neck. Whew! It was hard to tell the other day but I never developed a specific point of pain which for me is tell tale of a pinched nerve. This time it's just an all around general pain. Interesting thing I learned online about stiff necks is that rest isn't as good for a stiff neck as being active is. Moderately active of course.

 

Hard to say what the source of the pinched nerve is Bondbug but I can get it in either the left side of my neck and shoulder blade or the right side of my waist. I feel it most near the top back-most side of my right hip. Now that I think of it that would be about the spot where I had been hit by a car many years ago. I had been thrown many meters from the point of impact and knocked unconscious briefly. Funny thing about that accident was that I didn't have a single injury from it. No pain at all, not a single scratch in fact. I guess I roll well, haha. But maybe the accident threw my spine out of alignment somewhat. Hopefully my x-rays will reveal something...

I don't have a pump handy but I have been doing simple neck stretches every so often and I think that's helped. I still have some pain but it's bearable now. When it first hit though it was real bad.

 

It's nice to read about your experiences with chiro loco & Furian. It's something I've considered for some time now. The bad rep that Chiropractic Care has had because of opposing mainstream care deterred me a bit from ever trying it. Not only that but it isn't easy to decide who I'd let manipulate my spine. Especially in my case. I mean we're talking about my neck here. Images of a practitioner quickly twisting my neck followed by a loud crack sound come to mind. Gulp! Still... When I get these pains I feel as though I need someone to grab my arm and pull my shoulder away from my neck. As if my shoulder/muscle/tendons/ligaments/whatever else is pressing too closely towards my spine and neck. So maybe a consultation is in my near future. There's plenty of doctors at my work so I'll see what they think and maybe get a referral.

Oh and as for that neck thingy I've been thinking of getting something to that effect. I'd wager that the Pro-adjuster was for Neck Traction? I might try that at home. There's a few home options for that. The general idea I think is to pull your head a bit to relieve simple gravitational pressure on vertebrae in the neck area. Same concept as those machines you can lie on that put you upside down.

[locolagarto 15]

lol gial. Hmmm... Well I've never been fond of those dark potions but maybe I'll try some of that pale stuff Dragon Brother is havin. Oh and hey. That teenager thing works pretty well as I recall. I'll have to try that again some time. *dreams* ^^

 

Thanx for the well wishes guys. I really appreciate it. Well good news is that it seems this time around it's just a stiff neck. Whew! It was hard to tell the other day but I never developed a specific point of pain which for me is tell tale of a pinched nerve. This time it's just an all around general pain. Interesting thing I learned online about stiff necks is that rest isn't as good for a stiff neck as being active is. Moderately active of course.

 

Hard to say what the source of the pinched nerve is Bondbug but I can get it in either the left side of my neck and shoulder blade or the right side of my waist. I feel it most near the top back-most side of my right hip. Now that I think of it that would be about the spot where I had been hit by a car many years ago. I had been thrown many meters from the point of impact and knocked unconscious briefly. Funny thing about that accident was that I didn't have a single injury from it. No pain at all, not a single scratch in fact. I guess I roll well, haha. But maybe the accident threw my spine out of alignment somewhat. Hopefully my x-rays will reveal something...

I don't have a pump handy but I have been doing simple neck stretches every so often and I think that's helped. I still have some pain but it's bearable now. When it first hit though it was real bad.

 

It's nice to read about your experiences with chiro loco & Furian. It's something I've considered for some time now. The bad rep that Chiropractic Care has had because of opposing mainstream care deterred me a bit from ever trying it. Not only that but it isn't easy to decide who I'd let manipulate my spine. Especially in my case. I mean we're talking about my neck here. Images of a practitioner quickly twisting my neck followed by a loud crack sound come to mind. Gulp! Still... When I get these pains I feel as though I need someone to grab my arm and pull my shoulder away from my neck. As if my shoulder/muscle/tendons/ligaments/whatever else is pressing too closely towards my spine and neck. So maybe a consultation is in my near future. There's plenty of doctors at my work so I'll see what they think and maybe get a referral.

Oh and as for that neck thingy I've been thinking of getting something to that effect. I'd wager that the Pro-adjuster was for Neck Traction? I might try that at home. There's a few home options for that. The general idea I think is to pull your head a bit to relieve simple gravitational pressure on vertebrae in the neck area. Same concept as those machines you can lie on that put you upside down.

 

The Pro-Adjuster is actually a electronic piston that vibrates, it has feedback for pressure, RPM, and throw distance that go back to a PC program. a trained doc uses it to see which vertebrae are moving or not moving the way they should, and it vibrates the vertebrae loose so to speak. it doesn't give a crack or unusual movement to the neck or spine.

 

Furian's "if I feel it it's working" method is a lot more physical. this is the Palmer method. it dates back to the guy that invented chiropractic 100 years ago. Dr Palmer. I always felt as if something was adjusted, and it hurt after, as Furian explained.

 

The stigma between Chiro and MD has been around for 100 years. Some chiro will claim they can cure cancer. those are the freaks you stay away from. the practitioners that you look for are just the ones that say "they are there to align your spine so that it works the way it is supposed to".

 

it's a 100 year old argument. Medicine and surgery vs. physical medicine. Many of the things you are talking about doing at home (unsupervised by an untrained patient) only at a Chiro office they at least went to school for 4-8 years and got a license.

 

Think of your Spine as the internet. When all the connections are in good shape the net works correctly. When a connection is strained, you get odd errors and bad data. Your spine is the main line to the main CPU. if there are disconnections due to misalignments the data is corrupt. We feel this as pain when it is at its worst. Chiro puts the main line back online at max bandwidth so that all the connections are at optimum.

 

The best Chiro care is in combination with correct exercise. Something you are trying, but you keep getting interrupted by bad connections(miss-alignments).

 

An MD is gonna try medicine or surgery to correct something that is just out of alignment. That worse in my opinion.

[Furian67 15]

Think of your Spine at the internet. when all the connections are in good shape the net works correctly. When a connection is strained you get odd errors and bad data. your spin is the main line to the main CPU. if there are disconnections due to misalignments the data is corrupt. We feel this as pain when it is at its worst. Chiro puts the main line back online at max bandwidth so that all the connections are at optimum.

 

Wow, now that explains it for the modern day blue collar worker. I totally understood it.

[locolagarto 15]

Think of your Spine at the internet. when all the connections are in good shape the net works correctly. When a connection is strained you get odd errors and bad data. your spin is the main line to the main CPU. if there are disconnections due to misalignments the data is corrupt. We feel this as pain when it is at its worst. Chiro puts the main line back online at max bandwidth so that all the connections are at optimum.

 

Wow, now that explains it for the modern day blue collar worker. I totally understood it.

 

Lol that stuff just comes to me sometimes, wish I could write my Clan description that easy.

 

Made sense though, huh?

[chattius 2,527]

What is a 'pinched nerve' ?

 

An infection of the nerve itself?

A blocked nerve caused by pressure from a hematoma, or from stiff neck muscles because of stress, computer work?

 

If it is no infection, visiting a sauna may help. If it is an infection you should visit a doctor and not visiting a sauna at all. Stiff neck muscles relax by sweating and then bathing in cold water. We do a family sauna day every 2 weeks.

 

We have the word Hexenschuss or Alpschuss for a heavy pain in the spine. Hexe is a witch and Schuss is a shot. In old times people believed they were shot by a witch or an alp.

 

I read into nerve infections when our 3rd daughter suffered from borreliosis. Hope it is 'only' a stiff neck in your case.

[FrostElfGuard 9]

Hmmm. Schot.

 

Often pain comes from being out of alignment under load. That is: your body is mechanically made to operate in a certain way. For instance, when picking up a heavy object, your knees should bend no further forward than toes (when viewed from the side). Any further

risks injury to the knees. So: hinge joints (knees and elbows) should be used as hinges, not a ball and socket (shoulders).

 

I tend to develop pain from being tense and using a computer for hours (hardcore Sacred anyone?). If you lose track of how you are

sitting, where you arms are positioned, if your neck to too far forward... these all lead to 'aches and pains'. When it gets to be too much,

you get a lot of pain...

 

I think what is a permanent solution is find out what might be wrong with your sitting/playing posture and correct it. If you have someone observe you ---how you sit, (bad things would be: legs crossed, leaning forward, elbows too far forward, shoulders hunched forward, spine curved with the middle of the back pushed out in the back) when you start your session, and how your are 'naturally' (that is, not knowing you're going to be observed just then) after a couple of hours of play.

 

If the root of your problem is continued mis-alignment... moving the mouse pad, keyboard, screen, chair height, chair position, keyboard tray, etc... all could be arranged to eliminate your strain for over reaching.

 

 

For elimination of acute pain: RICE: Rest Ice Compression Elevation... which isn't so easy to do with the back! Or the neck! The rest part is easy (well, easy but boring!) Ice: 15 minutes on (wrapped in a towel to prevent freezing your flesh)... The ice cools the area and that helps squeeze gunk out of the damage area. Letting it return to room temperature and then cooling it again creates a sort of squeezing the sponge kind of motion, which should help clear out the floating damaged tissue (or excess platelets and plasma).

 

Physiotherapists use Ice packs (wrapped in towels), stretching exercises, exercises, electricity (to make your muscles twitch and relax on cue) to help with the healing.

 

Chiropractors--- I grew up in a house where my Mom was highly prejudiced against doctors and more so for chiropractors. They scare me! Like Jason from Friday the 13th! Or Freddy Kruger! --- I know someone who is one in the U.S., and a few of my co-workers go to them regularly.... and a I had a roommate who went regularly... But from what I've seen, the chiropractors are quite happy to have re-injure yourself so that you need to come back for more adjustments... The roommate I had would watch tv, sitting on the floor... with his back curved in a C shape, hips and head 2 feet from the tv... and mid-back a good 6 inches further away. It was nasty! He told me his chiropractor said it was ok! No! Not okay. Stretching is one thing, but doing something like this for hours! Not ok!

 

So. If you have such pain, I would recommend either a physiotherapist or a chiropractor... but I'd also to the ergonomic assessment to figure out how you're regularly using your body... and adjust your playing posture to prevent re-use of an out-of-alignment muscle/bone(s).

 

Phew!

 

Wishing you the best, as always...

 

Frost/Dave

 

Chattius mentioned sauna/pool

[Bondbug 32]

Do any of you get a sudden tweak at the base of the spine as if a joint is trying to slide off the one below - and you walk round like a banana for from half an hour to two or three days?

[FrostElfGuard 9]

Do any of you get a sudden tweak at the base of the spine as if a joint is trying to slide off the one below - and you walk round like a banana for from half an hour to two or three days?

 

Not me. Something to look forward to when I age?

 

You know... I've gotten a lot of guff over the years for being tall... but one advantage short people have is when they do something out of alignment, (load with a twist), they can't generate anywhere near the damage we long-limbed tall-folk can. Go shorties! FTW!

[Bondbug 32]

"load with a twist" ... spot on. Hate to discourage you Frosty but this problem cropped up from time since long before I retired. I get it much less now ... perhaps my spine joints are setting rigid.