[Mite]

Hey everyone!

Wow, I finally made it! after a year of googling to no ends I finally came across NeuroTalk and registered immediately!

Well to start im 25, student, and just completing my education thankfully. I live in Canada so a big eh to the canuks and hello to the rest of the world

SO, to the problems :P

1 year ago during summer break, I picked up a landscaping job and worked like a dog! 60 hour weeks etc (tuition is expensive).. After the summer completion I started noticing problems in my hands.

- Tingling all over palm, fingers, base of wrist and thumb.
- Friction feeling like a scraping of the tendon and sheath along my fingers when i close and open hand.
- ALso slight tingling in my feet

This all progressively got worse. I have done NCS, MRI's, Tests to no ends, etc.. I have been through neurologists, othopedics, GP's, chiro's, acupuncture etc.. neuro and ortho said I had some carpal tunnel although Nerve tests came back negative.

So , after being ripped off by 2 chiro;s. I FINALLY found 1 chiro that specializes in soft tissue therapy. (Active Release Techniques)

After 3 visits my hands feel AMAZINg, she did release therapy in scalenes and pronator teres in forearm (which were incredibly tight) she found tons of scar tissue. So, I can go through the day lift weights, pull etc.. do whatever and no tingling (as of 4 days ago). She also realy works my palm and stretches the carpal tunnel ligamnets and breaks up scar tissue.. when i leave her office my hands feel amazing.

However, I went shopping 2 days ago and just pushing the cart along the parking lot pavement to the doors (40 ft)(heavy vibrations) .. My hands just stiffened up , all the tingling and stiffness came back instantly. I could lift whatever and not feel the symptoms, but assoon as vibrations touched myhands, everything came back along with some depression about it.

The chiro im seeing and acupuncturist thingk i have Poor blood circulation to hands and feet (maybe a root cause), ( they are always freezing along with my nose which i feel mild tingling) .. my brother also has circulation problems so im assuming genetics ( i am relatively fit and active )

MS has been ruled out thank god so just some nerve damage it seems.

So, I start a new job monday which requires some physical labour... I studied a long time for this job and dont even know If I will be able to make it through it .

Sorry to write a book :/ and excited to be apart of the community and find some support!

Enjoy the SUn!
Mite

[Jomar]

Hi,
I can't really comment of the feet part of the problem..
but possibly your hand/arms problem might be based higher up in the neck/shoulder/collar bone/top rib/pec minor area....??
have your DC check all those places.
And to check for trigger points in the scalenes & upper back - those are pesky for referring pain to other places.

You might want to skim thru our Thoracic outlet syndrome {TOS} forum & the useful stickys there - to see if any of that might apply.

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum24.html

Your hand symptoms sounded very familiar to me.

I had some RSI injuries & neck/shoulder strains that eventually became a chronic TOS type thing..
At the beginning {also work comp}
My PT and docs mainly focused on the pain & sx were in my hands and not the total of all my other symptoms.
So it took me reading online & learning for myself -and finding a really good DC & adv PT guy- to find the real causes of my failure to fully recover.
I would recover to a point when off work but as soon as I returned to normal tasks - symptoms would all come back quickly.

so check out the stickys - post #1 has a crash course of links on TOS and therapies.
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread84.html

[Mite]

Thanks for the reply!

THats a whole ton of info I will definitely go through it! The only symptoms of TOS i currently show is the tingling in the hands. hopefully my condition doesnt progress to this point and I will definitely keep an eye on it. My DC is doing work on my scalene's and my neck is starting to be smoother and not as tight so I hope im trending in a positive direction.

How long or fast do nerves heal??? any whack of vitamins i can gulp down to helP?

[tamiloo]

Just wanted to add my welcome!! Jo*Mar gave you some great information!! Hope you can find answers soon...cruse around the different forums...lots of amazing folks here on Neuro Talk willing to listen! Take care!

[mrsD]

Hello, Mite:

Welcome to NeuroTalk. I understand your dilemma quite well.
In my case my hand problems started when I was about 30, and after many years of suffering, it was found to be due to low thyroid functions.

Now you are a male, and less likely to have thyroid issues, but today, with the pollutants in our environment, males are showing up hypo more often now. So did you have a good thyroid screening with all your tests? Sometimes doctors don't do them on young males. Do you have relatives with thyroid issues?
Low thyroid results in a tissue deposit along nerves and tendons, and this compresses the carpal tunnel.

Your question about vitamins is valid. Get a B12 done, and make sure the numbers are over 400. Don't accept test results as "normal", as lab ranges in US are antiquated. Also get a Vit D done, since you are not outside as much now as you were, you might be low in this as well. Both blood tests can be done at the same time. About 1/2 of US is low in D...and you want a result of at least 50ng/ml.

Stay away from MSG (monosodium glutamate) in processed foods and restaurants. This can cause tingling of the extremities and fluid retention. Also avoid high salt. If you notice this is worse after drinking alcohol the night before, you are going to have to cut back on that. Chronic drinking can cause fluid retention in the hands.
Depending on your test results, those two vitamins I mentioned, we can discuss dosing. But for now you can take a B-50mg complex to start things off. The B-50 will have thiamine in it and help with the alcohol metabolism, if you are having some of that.

I did not see men often with carpal tunnel. Men are just not that subject to it. But they do get it. Women have it more often, and the monthly changes with fluid retention seem to aggravate it more, when repetitive strain is present. You know weight lifters wear wrist support braces when lifting, so as not to pop a tendon, or pull one resulting in inflammation. You might find the standard wrist splints for carpal tunnel (available in many pharmacies etc) good to try at night. When mine was bad I wore them every night and they took the compressive pressure off the nerves/tendons in my hands.

That stiff pulling feeling, might improve with using a rub like Biofreeze. (or Perform which is the same formula, if you can't find Biofreeze). Biofreeze is sold now online and more available.
I rub it into my hands after gardening, because sometimes my wrists flare up from digging with a trowel. But typing doesn't bother them much. I avoided surgery, by living conservatively, and getting my thyroid fixed, and guarding my hands, from lifting heavy stuff.

You are welcome to visit our PN forum here and TOS...where lots of people share stories and things they have done to reduce discomfort.

This is PN:
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum20.html
I have a B12 thread at the top of the page there.
Jo already gave you the TOS link.

[elvislvs16]

I am not to sure on how to start on asking some questions or who to ask so I have just decided to go here and hope to get some help. First I am just wondering if people have some auras or warnings before their seizures that are simulor to mine. My warning is very scary and I feel like I am going to die every time I before a seizure. I also have a deja vu feeling before the feeling of death. So does anyone else feel that way?

[tamiloo]

Originally Posted by elvislvs16

I am not to sure on how to start on asking some questions or who to ask so I have just decided to go here and hope to get some help. First I am just wondering if people have some auras or warnings before their seizures that are simulor to mine. My warning is very scary and I feel like I am going to die every time I before a seizure. I also have a deja vu feeling before the feeling of death. So does anyone else feel that way?

First off you could go back to the beginning of the New Member Forum, start a New Thread and introduce yourself and give a little history...I do want to welcome you also!! The link below will get you back to the beginning...

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum88.html

Hope you can find the answers your looking for...great folks here on NT and plenty who will listen! Take care!!

[Mite]

tamiloo Thanks for the welcome! I hope to try and stay active on the board and meeting people. Also maybe give some helpful hints when I come across some .

To MrsD. Well I have done many blood tests and yes everything came back normal. Im in Canada so I think our numbers or measurements might be in different values but my B12 is 269 pmol/L which is not B12 deficient according to canadian standards?

they are : not b12 deficient >150 , Posssible 110 - 150 , Probably <110.

as for Vit D I have not been tested for that but will this week for sure!
My current Dr. doesnt think its a Carpal tunnel, because I dont show any of the signs. (You can press as hard as you want on the area and it deosnt cause tingling, wrist in weird positions and no tingling, its more in my neck and forearm)

So for Thyroid possibility, I definitely show some of the symptoms for it. My GP grabbed my neck for like 3 seconds and ruled it out. IM assuming thats not how you check? lol

THanks for the link to PN. I will for sure be roaming through.

[mrsD]

Originally Posted by Mite

tamiloo Thanks for the welcome! I hope to try and stay active on the board and meeting people. Also maybe give some helpful hints when I come across some .

To MrsD. Well I have done many blood tests and yes everything came back normal. Im in Canada so I think our numbers or measurements might be in different values but my B12 is 269 pmol/L which is not B12 deficient according to canadian standards?

they are : not b12 deficient >150 , Posssible 110 - 150 , Probably <110.

as for Vit D I have not been tested for that but will this week for sure!
My current Dr. doesnt think its a Carpal tunnel, because I dont show any of the signs. (You can press as hard as you want on the area and it deosnt cause tingling, wrist in weird positions and no tingling, its more in my neck and forearm)

So for Thyroid possibility, I definitely show some of the symptoms for it. My GP grabbed my neck for like 3 seconds and ruled it out. IM assuming thats not how you check? lol

THanks for the link to PN. I will for sure be roaming through.

To convert picomoles from Brit reporting to US reporting, one multiplies by 4/3... that gives 320 by US, Standards. Just below, and somewhat borderline for B12. So taking some methylcobalamin daily would be a good idea. 1mg a day on an empty stomach should raise you up. It is not normal for a young person to be getting low... so you have to look at that yourself. There is more info in detail on my B12 thread on the PN forum. Low B12 levels lead to nerve malfunctions.

[MelodyL]

Originally Posted by Mite

Hey everyone!

Wow, I finally made it! after a year of googling to no ends I finally came across NeuroTalk and registered immediately!

Well to start im 25, student, and just completing my education thankfully. I live in Canada so a big eh to the canuks and hello to the rest of the world

SO, to the problems :P

1 year ago during summer break, I picked up a landscaping job and worked like a dog! 60 hour weeks etc (tuition is expensive).. After the summer completion I started noticing problems in my hands.

- Tingling all over palm, fingers, base of wrist and thumb.
- Friction feeling like a scraping of the tendon and sheath along my fingers when i close and open hand.
- ALso slight tingling in my feet

This all progressively got worse. I have done NCS, MRI's, Tests to no ends, etc.. I have been through neurologists, othopedics, GP's, chiro's, acupuncture etc.. neuro and ortho said I had some carpal tunnel although Nerve tests came back negative.

So , after being ripped off by 2 chiro;s. I FINALLY found 1 chiro that specializes in soft tissue therapy. (Active Release Techniques)

After 3 visits my hands feel AMAZINg, she did release therapy in scalenes and pronator teres in forearm (which were incredibly tight) she found tons of scar tissue. So, I can go through the day lift weights, pull etc.. do whatever and no tingling (as of 4 days ago). She also realy works my palm and stretches the carpal tunnel ligamnets and breaks up scar tissue.. when i leave her office my hands feel amazing.

However, I went shopping 2 days ago and just pushing the cart along the parking lot pavement to the doors (40 ft)(heavy vibrations) .. My hands just stiffened up , all the tingling and stiffness came back instantly. I could lift whatever and not feel the symptoms, but assoon as vibrations touched myhands, everything came back along with some depression about it.

The chiro im seeing and acupuncturist thingk i have Poor blood circulation to hands and feet (maybe a root cause), ( they are always freezing along with my nose which i feel mild tingling) .. my brother also has circulation problems so im assuming genetics ( i am relatively fit and active )

MS has been ruled out thank god so just some nerve damage it seems.

So, I start a new job monday which requires some physical labour... I studied a long time for this job and dont even know If I will be able to make it through it .

Sorry to write a book :/ and excited to be apart of the community and find some support!

Enjoy the SUn!
Mite

Hi there.
Just wanted to say Welcome and Howdy!!!
My B-12 level is around 2000. You heard me correctly!! 2000
I had neuropathy in my feet (from diabetes) almost 2 years ago). I came on this forum, learned all about a specific form of B-12, which is Metholcobalimin and the rest is history. I take 5000 each and every morning, sub-lingually, on an empty stomach. Don't know where you can get it in Canada, but online is easy and it's not that expensive. I have used iherb.com and puritanspride.com (which gives the BEST value I have ever seen)

Give it a shot. You never know.

And I'm so proud of you (at age 25), to be doing what you are doing.

Best of Luck

melody