All I can say is that I hope your neurologist will explain all of this to you!

Sure, problems in the back can affect nerves and that can affect where the nerves connect. The spine is like a highway system, with the nerves being the "roads." If you have a road block, you're bound to have troubles on the other end of it. Stupid metaphor but it's late and I'm tired.

Massage is both good and bad for me. It's very good for getting the "kinks" out of my muscles. But massage is like exercising the muscles and they can become temporarily weaker (due to the MG). The way my neuro described the back issues and MG is that maintenance is the key (with strength training, physical therapy, etc.). And making your core muscles as strong as possible. Since I've been doing that, I haven't found myself in that bad of shape. I massage those kinks out every single day and/or right away when they occur. Sooner is always better with pain management too.

I have a bad cervical spine area due to an accident. It can cause a variety of problems. The edema, however, I believe needs to be fully investigated with things like a chem panel (kidney/liver function), heart evaluation, etc. Edema has more to do with capillary permeability/shifting of fluids/albumin, etc.

I'm glad you've found some relief. I hope you can try to keep those core muscles in shape - it's such a struggle. It definitely helps.

Annie