Please help me understand my MRI
 

Hello everyone. This is my first post. I'm a 43 year old female. I was rear ended a couple of weeks ago and I felt ear pain and general headaches but nothing too bad. ER CT of brain showed "nothing remarkable" and I felt pain in between my shoulders so they did a thoracic xray and it showed "nothing remarkable". Then my Dr sent me for an MRI for the cervical spine. It's two weeks later and I still have left ear pain. It is like an ear ache like when you are in a plane with air pressure. Left neck and shoulder pain and shoulder blade pain.

Cervical MRI shows:
"C5-6 Disc level: dehydrated, bulging disc is seen with 4mm focal left paracentral disc protrusion with moderate lateral recess narrowing on the left."
and,
"C6-7 Disc level: Desiccated, bulging disc is seen with osteophyte and 4mm left paracentral disc protrusion with moderate canal stenosis and moderate lateral recess narrowing on the left"

I am a person who runs and exercises to relieve stress and keep my weight down. It's really the only hobby I have; working out, because I sit in a desk job all day so running 3 miles and kickboxing is my only enjoyment.

My Dr advised not to run, no kickboxing, nothing jarring. I also work at a computer all day so my head is looking up and down all day and I have computer neck or forward head posture to begin with.

Can someone please advise just how bad this MRI is, what the findings mean?

Can someone please advise if this will heal? Will I ever be able to run again? Will I potentially have problems the rest of my life? What exercises can I do for my neck? Can this get worse?

Thank you.

You are asking a lot of questions about the FUTURE and no one has those answers...you may do a lot of healing down the road to come. And yes, could be you will have to slow down with your exercise regime.

I did a lot of exercising all my adult life, not fanatic, but went to gym many years....sometimes I think I did too much now at almost 77. I've been thru a miserable hip replacement in 2010 that has left me so worse off in many respects. Time will tell everything for you. Be Patient.

Seeing today's exercise world and seeing so many replacements so much younger than myself at 72, replacements were always for the old...today, many many are going thru them so young...and talk about complications...geeezzz

I can compare myself with my folks who lived into 90's and did no fanatic exercise, then myself and the hip replacement at 72 with all my exercise and dancing I did, and seeing so many younger people today.....I see it all. take care and go slower, why not?

Thank you, yes I don't want to make anything worse.

No, you don't want to make things worse, so be gentle with your body and joints...they don't last forever believe me, I've read SO MANY stories since my 2010 replacement and shake my head with all the young people.

If foods are a big concern, we need to learn about what foods are vital for our good health....I'm not saying don't exercise, but MODERATION.....in everything in life.

There is a LOT of good stretching work we can do and I do them as at this point, my walking is horrible since replacement. Body is all OFF... Anyway, take care and TIME is on your side.

PS: I no longer watch the sports fanatics, I did my share over my early life, but I see the destruction of so much from our sports world. My grandgirl plays tennis and grandson vollyball but they are 18 and 15, but they will have their share of joint issues in their lives.

I've stopped watching the LA Marathon that goes down my street to the finish line each year, those poor souls destroying their joints, pounding away on the pavements...

Gad, I sound terrible don't I, I'm just so disappointed with my hip job. But I don't have regrets on how I did my life, we all do what we do at the times we do things....right.

No you don't sound terrible at all, just wise with experience!

Hi Rayanne,

Welcome to the NeuroTalk Support Groups.

I just wanted to let you know that there is a thread in the sticky posts at the top of the forum called

Medical Dictionary & MRI/CT Terminology

That may make it easier for you to understand your results.
I can't personally comment on your results as I only understand the terminology a little.

It sounds as if you need to change your posture with regard to computer work. I'll go and have a look on the
Thoracic Outlet Syndrome forum
as well as here and see if I can find some info posts for you about that.

I don't usually post on Spinal so had trouble finding what I was looking for. :o

Actually the subforum in TOS is for Repetitive Strain Injury... I'll post the link below for you. There are lots of ideas in there regarding posture. I'm sorry I can't help you more. Hopefully some of the members from Spinal will be able to help you out better. take care.

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread22626.html

p.s. just on a personal note I think you need to ask your doctor more questions.
They've not really told you very much by the sound of it.

P. S. Rayanne, I just read your last post in New Members Forum and notice you've mentioned PT. That's who I would be asking about the posture and your working at the computer!

Hi Rayanne,

I would suggest you follow your Doctor and PT's advice to the letter. Neck injuries are notoriously difficult, but with the correct treatment at the earliest point, there is no reason why you will not improve by at least several points. Your Dr would not waste your time on treatment if he did not think it would be beneficial.

Has the Dr indicated whether all the deterioration is from your accident? There is a lot of information you need to clarify with him, timescale wise.

All in all, I am sorry you have had this accident which has brought you to us, and I hope your treatment goes a long way to returning you to the active life you led.

Dave.

Thanks so much for this. Yes, I have a lot of problems with posture and was working on it before the accident. It's one of the reasons I workout and try to engage the core and stand up strait and work the back muscles. It's hard at work because it's easy to catch yourself slipping.