Severe Nerve Pain
 

Hi Everyone! I'm an 18 year old female who has been suffering from extreme pain these last few months. I'm also a new member, so forgive me if I'm not quite sure how everything works yet! :)

In early April I had some art pain, condensed to my forearm. It started as random sharp pains, but by the end of the night turned to numbness, weakness, and constant sharp pains. It had covered my arm from my elbow to the tips of my fingers. The next morning, the problem persisted, and included swelling and blue/purple discoloration. We went to a doc-in-the-box urgent care and it was decided I had some type of pinched nerve caused by a misaligned spine. I tried going to a chiropracter and taking medicine prescribed, but to no avail.

By May, BOTH of my arms, from shoulder to finger tips, had me in excruciating pain. Everything had worsened, I was failing my last classes as a senior and no one had any idea what it was. In 5 months (april to now)I've been to 3 doctors, 3 specialists, had a brain MRI, neck MRI, (both with contrast) CT Scan, EMG, X rays, average blood tests, and been on so many different medications I don't think I could list them all. Everything is structurally sound and seems like I shouldn't be having any problems.

I've gotten worse still, with the pain moving to both of my legs, though thankfully staying in one area around my mid thigh to below my knees. I'm unable to have a job, go to college, or live a real life because of the pain.

I feel numbness, weakness, and stabbing pains. It's worse the more I move. I have no grip or arm strength, though I am able to walk when my leg(s) hurt, but not very well. When it's bad I cannot write, type, open doors, or text (not to mention everything else). Sometimes it's just one arm or one leg, other times it's everywhere. No one has been able to find a diagnosis or provide any help.

Does anyone else out there have the same or similar problems? Did you get a diagnosis? Does anything work for you? Above all, I hope you're doing okay. Please, let me know. I'd love to meet other people in my same situation. I'm stuck at home all day and I need to remeber how real this all is. :grouphug:

If it was mainly the arm issues I'd suggest our Thoracic outlet syndrome forum.. TOS for short.. but with the legs involved , I don't know..
you might read some on our TOS forum and see if it fits..or some of the PT /therapies..

Lyme can make for difficult diagnosis and perplexing symptoms.. if you're outdoorsy /hiker in tick areas?

I would look for a cranio worker, sounds like pinch nerve(s). I live with a lot of pain issues and it's all related to osteoarthritis and I'm 81 the same numbers as your 18 or reversed.

My back issues all started at 18, but I've worked on my body all my life.

Hi! They've ruled out it being a pinched nerve! That's what I thought in the beginning too! We're leaning now towards fibro, and the last few medications I've been put on are normally used to treat fibro! Unfortunately, none of them have worked yet.

Thanks so much for the reply! When I looked up TOS I was baffled about how much it sounded like what I'm going through! But yes, that's not including the legs. I'd never heard of it before, so that you for informing me. A tick bite could be the cause, I'm fairly outdoorsey, but I don't think I was yet in Early april. It was still basically winter where I'm from! :D I have been randomly sick, flu like, fairly consistently this last year. But nothing major, just annoying. Are the other symptoms I'm having often realted to Lyme disease? Thanks :)

Oh at 18 they are saying Fibro, they told me that at 60something. Still feel you need to do bodywork as "they" don't know it all to "rule out" this and that. They tell patients Fibro when they can't find the issues...they meaning doctors. Get to a good alternative healer who knows the body. And the drugs are not the answer in the books.

PS to my message: There are some areas where one can find a Doctor of Osteopathy who works on the body and is also a medical MD. We have many in my town here in So. Cal. and they are gold to finding the real issues and moving the body. Problem today is many DO's coming out of their schools are not doing manipulations. The old docs sure did.

Oh yeah! Fibro is definitely a diagnosis of exclusion! It's pretty BS :/ I'm still trying to look for answers and a real diagnosis. Where I'm from the medical help is pretty limited. I may have to go out of state.

Often we can't come up with a "definite" anything on our health issues. Fibro from what I've heard over many years is a lot of issues gone wrong...like Thyroid for starters. You are so young. Again, see an other than allopathic MD if you've exhausted ALL.