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Nerve pain in arm

AnnaK

AnnaK

New Member
Hi!
I am new to the forum and to the whole idea of tms.
I had a blood draw in January and got hit in one of the nerves in my arm (probably ulnar nerve). It was a horrible electric sensation.
Since then I have had problems with my arm arm and hand. Actually the first month I only had some pain in my hand, it was totally tolerable. Then I went skiing (cross country) - very light and only for like 15 minutes because I was scared of hurting my nerve even more. And so I did! Awful pain (and tingling) combined with horrible anxiety (had the anxiety all week on the vacation, prior to the skiing, due to fear of more pain).
I have had nerve conduction test that shows no nerve damage and was told by the neurologist not to worry so much - all was totally good. I have all motor sensation. It’s just the pain. And that is not so little... I haven’t been able to use my hand for months because of the pain.
Well, after summer I felt better. Pain was less and I felt more optimistic. I dared to use the hand a little bit more. And I wasn’t so scared.
Then I had an other health condition flare up, got some massage for that and guess what...pain in my hand got back massively. (She massaged the hand but not the spot where I had the blood drawn in my elbow.) Here I am today. And the anxiety is through the roof. I have catastrophic feelings and can’t see the end of this nerve pain. I have all the symptoms of nerve pain, tingling, burning, stiffness, aching. I believe I will be like this forever. You know, nerves...
Before all this happened in January I was on disability leave due to stress and burnout.
And other stressors: I have a mother with Alzheimer’s who is getting considerable worse. There is so much sorrow around this. She has no language left. My 16 year old son is having a hard time in his new school. Unmotivated and tired of studying. Some days he stays at home, which adds to my already high anxiety level.
I try to believe that my arm is “whole” and that “the nerve is fine”. But I still believe somehow it’s structural and want more tests done? I am so confused.. Yet I know my over all condition, had a burn out and now looking for new jobs, is so stressful in it self.
Could this be tms?
 
AnnaK said:
Hi!
I am new to the forum and to the whole idea of tms.
I had a blood draw in January and got hit in one of the nerves in my arm (probably ulnar nerve). It was a horrible electric sensation.
Since then I have had problems with my arm arm and hand. Actually the first month I only had some pain in my hand, it was totally tolerable. Then I went skiing (cross country) - very light and only for like 15 minutes because I was scared of hurting my nerve even more. And so I did! Awful pain (and tingling) combined with horrible anxiety (had the anxiety all week on the vacation, prior to the skiing, due to fear of more pain).
I have had nerve conduction test that shows no nerve damage and was told by the neurologist not to worry so much - all was totally good. I have all motor sensation. It’s just the pain. And that is not so little... I haven’t been able to use my hand for months because of the pain.
Well, after summer I felt better. Pain was less and I felt more optimistic. I dared to use the hand a little bit more. And I wasn’t so scared.
Then I had an other health condition flare up, got some massage for that and guess what...pain in my hand got back massively. (She massaged the hand but not the spot where I had the blood drawn in my elbow.) Here I am today. And the anxiety is through the roof. I have catastrophic feelings and can’t see the end of this nerve pain. I have all the symptoms of nerve pain, tingling, burning, stiffness, aching. I believe I will be like this forever. You know, nerves...
Before all this happened in January I was on disability leave due to stress and burnout.
And other stressors: I have a mother with Alzheimer’s who is getting considerable worse. There is so much sorrow around this. She has no language left. My 16 year old son is having a hard time in his new school. Unmotivated and tired of studying. Some days he stays at home, which adds to my already high anxiety level.
I try to believe that my arm is “whole” and that “the nerve is fine”. But I still believe somehow it’s structural and want more tests done? I am so confused.. Yet I know my over all condition, had a burn out and now looking for new jobs, is so stressful in it self.
Could this be tms?
Click to expand...
A needle hits a nerve and your arm goes out. It's a peripheral nerve that healed. TMS....all the way....it's fear you are dealing with. Let go. Look at your stressors. Dig deep.
 
Thankyou, Click#7 for your reply. I really really try to think this way. But it is so hard.
I don’t have pain when I sleep at night, should that be an answer for the tms approach? But as soon as I wake up and get caught in monitoring pain it aches and hurt. And then it continues all day when I am doing stuff. I am really scared of using my hand now, even though I try too.
Anna
 
Anna,

The neurologist was able to tell you your nerve is fine. That is fantastic, because if he/she understood TMS, you would have received a TMS diagnosis. If you haven't started to write an evidence sheet, write down you have TMS. Write down your pain goes away at night. Anything that you learn that supports TMS, add to your list of proofs.

You're just getting started so I recommend doing one of the programs here, read success stories, and a few books. The library is a good source to find books you'd like to buy.

I'm also wondering if you could be helped by Dr. Claire Weekes, you can read about her here on the wiki, or listen to some YouTube and see if you think she will help you with anxiety. Her books are wonderful and I apply her advice to help myself to react to the pain in a way that lessens it, rather than increase it.

Grab on to some hope, there are many people who are not generating pain anymore and you are going to learn how to do it!
Lizzy
 
Thank you so much, Lizzy! So many good tips! I will surely follow them.
This whole ordeal got to me really. I am so afraid of not being able to type on a computer. (Fear, yes!) I am a journalist...
I will read and reread your advices again. I already got the book “Unlearn your pain” by Shubiner.
There are so many things that fits. And actually I had a “switch” in thoughts today for some minutes when the pain eased. But when I put pressure on the hand later (just by using the hand) it aches again. And I am scared of making pain worse. Well, you can see... I am just in the beginning. :) Hope, yes!
Anna
 
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Anna,

You have quite a few stressors in your life. You need to be gentle and kind to yourself, first of all.

Two years ago, I had a bad bout of shingles down my right arm. It was awful, but it was the stress of my life that kept the nerve pain there for months after the case had cleared up. I'm sure of it. If I get stressed out, even now, two years later, I get nerve zap and achey sensations, even in the other arm.

Nerves DO heal. It's a bit slower than muscle, but they do repair. Please think of calming down your system, first.
Place your hand over your heart and say: "I am safe. I know the right answers to my problems will come to me day by day. I am safe."

I think Lizzy's suggestions are great.

Also, what you focus on WILL increase. I know it's hard, when it hurts, but do what you can to distract yourself.
If it was true nerve damage, then the pain would not move around or come and go.

Read Steven Ozanich's book "The Great Pain Deception." It's SO helpful.

peace to you,

Marcia
 
Oh Anna, you do have a lot on your plate! Lizzy and Marcia have given you some good suggestions. I’m new to TMS and new here as well, so don’t have a lot to add to what they are saying. But I do want to echo that you need to be really, really kind and patient with yourself. This is not easy! But you are in the right place to find help. It may go away and then come back worse than ever. Don’t give up! It sounds you are doing all the right things. For some of us it takes a long time to recover! Hang in there!

Suky
 
I am not a physician, but I know a little about ulnar nerve injuries because I had one at my right elbow. After passing by the elbow, the ulnar nerve continues on to the little finger and part of the ring finger. That is where the numbness or tingling occurs. A grade 1 injury to the nerve heals locally in a few days to a week. A grade 2 or 3 injury, which is what I had, takes longer because the nerve has to regenerate from its origin in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. That occurs at the rate of about an inch a month. The neurologist estimated the distance from my spinal cord to my elbow to be eighteen inches, and he said I should be find in about in eighteen months (give or take for a little variation among individuals). He was right.
 
AnnaK,

Dugget is right about nerves healing at about an inch a month, but I want to remind you that the neurologist said your nerve is fine. Also, you don't always have pain. This is TMS. You don't have to heal, you have to change your thinking and tell your mind you've got this. Do like Marcia said, hand on heart, I am safe, I am strong. You're subconscious brain believes what you tell it, and that changes what your conscience brain believes. Its a cycle that you can take control of.

Good luck,
Lizzy
 
Thank you for all the kind replies. I really appreciate them! Marcia, the thing you write about to place the hand on my heart and tell myself that I am safe...it really touched me to tears. Thank you. I do have so many stressors. Some of them I can’t control. They all add to my daily fear and anxiety.
Still, I am really struggling. I thought I could have a sense of what is “mind” and what is structural. I have healed many times before, had a whiplash several years ago that healed, a shoulder bursitis that healed this year, knee pain that have healed before.
So I guess, I really have trouble in believing that this pain is only in my mind. It surely increases highly with anxiety, but the aching pain... it feels very real. And the arm was actually better before the massage a couple of weeks ago.
In March, after having a flare up after skiing, my physiotherapist told me the nerve got irritated. I can’t get her words out of my head after this flare up either... hmm.
I am sorry, I am just so confused! But I will continue reading Schubiners book “Unlearn your pain”. And I meditate every day. I really wish it is TMS!
All the best to you.
 
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Hi Anna, I'm sorry for you. The first question I want to ask you is, why don't you go to the doctor? You need to be diagnosed with your nerves, get an x-ray, maybe a CT scan, you can't self-medicate.. You see that you are in pain, this increases anxiety, your body is under constant stress. Consult a doctor. I had something similar. I used to box professionally. I broke my leg once in a sparring match. It's a bit of a long story, but my leg didn't heal properly. Because of this, I was in severe pain, and my doctor prescribed me oxycodone. This is a strong painkiller, be careful with the dosage. I strongly ask you to consult a good doctor, maybe he will allow you to buy oxycodone 30 mg online, do not spare money for your health.
 
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