Thanks!!!

First of all, I'm glad to hear your MRI was normal. That's a good sign.

Nerve irritation doesn't sound too far off and may possibly be what is going on. It can take a while for things to calm down. So give yourself some time and don't try to rush it. Work SLOWLY to going back to your normal activities. Maybe find another form of exercise other than weight lifting for the time being since that seems to irritate things for you.

Muscle spasms and tightness can irritate the nerves as well and visa versa. Your muscles or nerve may not be ready for the strain that you are putting on them.

Have you tried heat and ice? Alternating? Any kind of muscle rub/arthritis cream? A nice soak in an Epsom salt bath may help as well and they make Epsom salt cream that you can buy that works well too. The magnesium can help relax the muscles.

Also, have they used a TENS unit on you to see if that brings relief? (I love, love my TENS unit.) There are medications that can help bring relief as well. I'm not sure what you have tried. For nerve pain, there is not much that helps. I take gabapentin for nerve pain and have had success with it. Others have tried Lyrica and other meds used for epilepsy.

Are you still doing the massages? I get what is called the MS hug. My intercostal muscles spasm due to nerve damage caused by a lesion in my spine. I started getting gentle massages 2 to 3 times a week. It took a year for things to calm down and for me to get the full benefits of relief.

As for posture, when we're in pain, our posture is always off. We tense up areas to compensate for the area that is hurting trying to protect it, as I think Starz mentioned. I can shrink a couple of inches when I am in pain. My gait can be off when I am in pain. My shoulders, neck, etc all tense up and create posture issues and more pain when I am hurting. It's just part of being human. Try learning some breathing techniques for relieving pain. Well, they may not take all the pain away but they can help you refocus and by doing so it can lessen our perception of pain.

Give yourself some time to heal. It really can take a few months to heal from an injury to the body.

Let us know how it goes at the doctor tomorrow.