Back again...with numbing arm and hands
Hi everyone, it's been a while since I asked a question...here it is:
At night I have great difficulty sleeping because I can't find a position that is comfortable with the back of my neck. And, when I sleep on my right side, my left arm is on my left side and I will wake up with the arm totally numb, and can hardly move it. This lasts for a few hours and starts to tingle then becomes weak until the next night or two. Then, last month, my left hand swelled to almost twice my normal hand size. It took several days for the swelling to go down. Could not even cut my rings off -so tight. Today, my hand is still slightly swollen and very weak. Hard to pick up small things with my fingers.
Two weeks ago, I had an MRI on my neck (previous surgery in 2002 for anterior cervical discectomy with fusion C5-C7), to see if the plate moved or any more problems since 2002 surgery. Not a thing is wrong with my neck except normal boney "old age" things going on, but very normal.
The neurosurgeon said all is fine with my neck and has no idea why my hand swelled so much and the problems with my arm at night, not to mention all the pain. He wants me to have steriod injections in my neck - no way!!!
Also, my fatigue is extremely bad along with falling asleep so easily during the day and while driving.
I will see my neurologist in November and get her opinion. My next MRI for possible MS is in January.
Any thoughts?
Thanks, Linda
Hi Linda,
It's good to see you!! So sorry to hear about this latest bit of health mysteries.
When you say that your hand swelled - what it the joints in your hand or the fleshy part? I only ask because swelling, tingling, numbness, weakness, arm going 'dead', etc that I have had before turned out to be caused by rheumatoid arthritis. RA can affect the spine as well.
Have you had any recent bloodwork done to look at inflammatory indicators? It might not be a bad idea to talk to your doctor about this some more. Definitely talk to your neurologist about the weakness, tingling, etc. I hope that you get back to feeling better soon.
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Hi Lisa, thanks for responding. The joints were fine, it was just my "fleshy" part of my hand, but the entire hand. Bloodwork came out negative for RA or other things she tested for. For now, my hand is feeling pretty good. Occasional tingling, but better than before. It lasted about 2-3 weeks. Now it's OK. How strange. Weakness is still present, but not near as bad as last month. Anyway, thanks for your comments. They mean a lot to me. Anyone else care to comment? Thanks, Linda