Anyone have any suggestions for arm weakness- my arms are getting so fatigued -feels like I just lifted weights when I did nothing- This is so depressing on top of everything else! I guess this is muscle wasting (I hate those words) Its not even where my RSD started -which was in my foot-
You just can't make up this stuff- it's so unbelievable! Big time depression

Thanks for any thoughts

Debbie

Have you cheked out TOS? Maybe its nerve compression. Forgive me if you already have, was just thinking that sometimes that happens to us TOSers

Hope you feel better

I agree with Shelley, TOS is often diagx as RSD as there are cross symptoms.
I say that one often goes with the other.

Do you have problems holding the phone to talk, typing, driving, blowdrying your hair?

When the arms are raised it can compress the nerve bundle of Cervical nerves, C5/6/7/8 and T1 as they travel behind the collar bone and in front of the first rib. press the area behind the collar bone about midway to the shoulder, is it tender?

The compression of the brachial nerves Thoracic outlet TOS, can cause heavy arms, weak arms, hands to fall asleep, like waking with the hands asleep or ring and pinkie finger numbness or tingling. Don;t sleep with the arms overhead either....

A TEST: Bring your arms up and back like the stick um up position of being robbed. all the way back until you feelit in the shoulders wing and spine...if your round forward or do not hold them back to close the outlet it will not reproduce the symptoms. SO mot just raise them up...bring them back as putting the wings together...Generally we say open and clost the finger for three minutes, but many cannot do that, put them down when it is causing problems.

If you try to checkl your posture from rounding shoulder you may be able to improve this fatique. Place a campells soup can in a nylon back pack to encouage the shoulders back....

If someone looks at yhour profile do you have rounded shoulders and a swan like or turtle neck from reverse curve?
Hope this improves for you
Dianne

Hi Deb,

I certainly do have arm weakness (RSD left hand/wrist) and while the muscles in my left hand dwindled significantly quite early on, the muscles in my whole left arm, specially my upper arm, are now wasted noticeably.

I was trying to do something the other day that I should have been able to cope with, and could have maybe a year ago...and realised I just plain didn't have enough strength in the muscles. Then - worse than that - realised I didn't have *any* muscles in my left arm. Went and looked at myself properly in a mirror - bit of a shock - I've always been quite strong. Little skinny stick arm. So I've decided to do the PT exercises daily from now on (swinging the old soup tins, etc), I slackened off a bit, but I reckon it's a necessity, drat!

I also have spinal stenosis and cervical spondylosis, but this isn't happening because of that.

BTW, the best posture exercises I've come across are these (very simple):

Drop you shoulders and sit straight-backed, looking straight ahead. Tuck your chin right in, keeping your head in line with your back so you make as many double chins as poss. Don't look down, though, keep looking straight ahead. You'll feel it it at the base of your skull and down the back of your neck. Keep your shoulders dropped. Hold this for 10 secs, relax. Do it again, but turn your head slowly to the right, hold for 10 secs. Relax. Then same again turning left.

Then, sit in a chair, do the same chin-tucking, and, keeping your body straight, bend your head to your shoulder as far as you can, as if you're trying to touch your shoulder with your ear. Don't bring your shoulder up to meet your head, keep it dropped and relaxed. Do this both sides, left and right, and grab the edge of the chair to help you stretch the neck muscles - bending the head to the left shoulder, grab the chair edge with your right hand, you can lean over sideways and pull against the chair; then the reverse for the right side.
Good thing about this exercise is that you can do it anywhere! Just makes you look like The Amazing Multi-chinned Turtle for a bit, LOL.

I suppose it's a domino effect; once one bit of you weakens, it must affect the rest of the body. Aaaaaagghhhh......
all the best!

Thanks for your suggestions- I will certainly give it a try!

Debbie