Quote:
Originally Posted by mrsD
Welcome to NeuroTalk:
I would suggest to limit the heating pad. Instead do an ice pack twice a day, for about 20 min.
Use heat only for a maximum of 10 minutes. Heat makes nerves
fire more and makes pain worse in the long run. And your location is a prime shingles spot. If you have had chicken pox as a child you could be activating the Zoster in
the nerve roots there.
Do the ice for a few days, and see if anything changes.
Another option is Salonpas. They have a new large stronger patch that comes 5 in a box, for a little less than $10 at WalMart. One patch is quite strong and if you have inflammation there a patch may work. It will tell you if you have inflammation or referred pain. That area may be referred from parts of the heart, or gall bladder.
This is what the box looks like:
These are the new stronger improved ones approved for pain by the
FDA...a rare thing for OTC products.
I've had great success and relief from Salonpas over the past years.
They really do work for some types of inflammatory pain.
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Thanks for the speedy reply, I tried ice in the beginning when i thought i had simply pulled a muscle at work, ice only made the pain worse. I've tried decreasing the heating pad to low setting for ten minutes at a time at two hour intervals and the shooting pains in my back become much more frequent. After a week of torture I resumed constant use and the pains are less frequent.
I have tried the doan's heat pads, but they didn't help, I will give the salonpa's a whirl tho.
As for shingles, I did have a severe case of chickenpox when I was young that was followed 2 weeks later with shingles. Can I get it again and could this be the cause of my pain or something I'm aggravating trying to treat the pain?
I have considered gallbladder issues due to the location of the pain, but I have no other digestive involvement, there is no correlation to pain and eating, no nausea or abdominal pain etc.
There is a spot directly on my spine, centered between the points of my shoulder blades that if pressure is applied even mildly triggers the shooting pains down my back. I tried to tell the doctor this at my last visit to the er since it makes me think that maybe I'm pinching a nerve in my spine but his response was simply if it hurts to touch it then don't.