We have another poster here, a young man too with severe circulation issues in his legs!

He is on this thread...and it took a while for him to be properly diagnosed too:

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread115853.html

Hey Mrs D,

Wasnt sure if you caught my last post but Im really pretty sure its not a blood flow thing as I have never had any kind of blood flow symptoms before. This all happened *directly* after injury.

So Im stuck between a rock and a hard place because I really thrive on my morning jogs or evening swims. I just want to have peace of mind knowing that Im not making my nerve situation worse.

Sorry to belabor this, but do you think Im making the situation worse by doing these kind of exercises?


I will see if I can setup another appt with a neurologist, as the first one I saw didnt seem to have answers for me.

If you're having increased symptoms when exercising, then it seems logical to hold back for a while and give yourself time to heal.

maybe yoga, tai chi or something less aggravating to the area...and less repetitive of the leg motions

Have you considered expert chiropractic care?
Many study more than just spine adjustments , they learn about other modalities of care like low level laser therapy (LLLT), or IF stim .

I wish I had my own LLLT, just a short shine of the light on my shoulder or elbows and they feel better. (chronic RSI stuff)

John have you asked your doctor about the activity and if you should continue or what activity may be better? We are all different so it is hard to say. Also for me some activities like a bike I could not do but can walk though I am always in pain. Hope you feel better

Thanks for the replies. Maybe I should try yoga but still, even with any kind of even stretching in the pelvic region, it seems to make things worse.

This has been ongoing now for a long time and for me to completely give up cardio activity for like another 8 months that raises my heartrate along with being good for depression isnt at all good for health. I just dont know how long I could give myself time to heal while not exercising. I would go absolutely mad. In fact I am going mad. Just the other day I did a pull up, felt some strain down there, and now the numbness is worse and my erections are almost non-existent. Definitely going mad.

The neuro's and uros I have seen havent been much help. One said bloodflow to the area is good but they really couldnt tell me if I should stop exercising or not. Actually one online uro said "No problem keep on exercising" but he couldnt examine me in person so that doesnt really count much.

I just dont know if the irritation is harmful to healing or if it is just irritation and has no effect. This is the absolute worse place to have nerve damage...

Feeling really stuck and lost in all this. Would an MRNeurography help to identify the problem?

--if you can get it; not many places do this and I don't know of an insurance plan that pays for it (still considered "experimental").

You might want to have your sacral spine imaged, though--too many doctors stop at the lumbar, as they think the sacral bone is so rigid it can be moved, but it can be, and it can twist and put pressure on sacral nerve pathways. You may also have nerve impingment/compression further down along the pudendal nerve, which eventually enervates the pervic/genital area and the ****, and which can become compressed/entrapped at a couple of areas along its progression:

http://www.pudendalhope.org/

http://www.pudendal.com/

Well, I can't speak for pain in the genital area, my PN is mainly down my legs. My only suggestion is ice. It has worked wonders for me in trying to deal with my PN and being that it's not a pill, or anything invasive, I recomment it highly. Generally if you place the ice where the pain originates and do 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off for a few hours the difference can be astounding. No guarantees, but it's simple, non-invasive and the best part it's free. Wishing the best of luck to you and all of us!

Yes, I love ice too.

I wouldn't put it directed on the genital area for John tho...but on the sacral part of the back instead.