Numbness!

Hi! For those who deal with LBP, sciatica, leg and foot issues, have there been people who had numbness in the foot in association with all of the above? I didn't have foot issues until a particularly bad episode/flare-up in December which I now see as perhaps a bit of an extinction burst because overall I am doing better physically and emotionally now than I have for the last 2 years since that December bomb. This forum has helped me tremendously. So, I am doing better in many ways. Feeling more "myself" in a fundamental way and dealing with somewhat milder symptoms than normal. BUT, the sciatica flare up in December was combined with severe burning sensation in foot and leg. That was new. The burning was intense but short-lived. But my baby toe is still dead to feeling and I have partial numbness that never really goes away in the outside edge of the foot, sole of foot, combined with partial numbness in the calf. The numbness in the calf was actually pretty bad for a while but I kept walking/jogging, and it is only partially numb now. No longer a limp. I feel like I have normal strength back but not normal feeling there. So, there is residual numbness in the calf, foot, sole of foot, and baby toe. I could break that toe off and not know it haha. Honestly, I would take this over pain any day! The numbness is just weird. I'm wondering if anyone has had similar numbness issues that did resolve over time. I can wait for it to go. I do have a herniated L4/L5 that compresses the nerve blah blah blah, but my understanding from Steve Ozanich is that if the herniation were causing issues, it would be more like complete paralysis. I can jog pretty comfortably. I almost feel like that day of "burning" sensation somehow burned out the nerves and left the numbness. Again, I could live with it. But has anyone had something like this numbness that went away? It's been almost 2 months with the numbness. Thanks

 

That's a long time. I'd talk to a TMS doctor.

 

Two months is just a short second in the TMS timelines. I started experiencing numbness in my hands in December 2015, along with CRPS, which was a very bad "bomb", using your terminology. I recovered to 99% of my abilities within about 2 years, and no longer cared much about numbness. Five years later, I still have some minor residual numbness in my fingers that recedes at a very slow pace. It does not bother me, I view it as a minor annoyance and I know it will eventually go away. I would not be surprised if there is some possible nerve damage from the "bomb". After all, I had EMG that, per my doctors, was evidence of "irreparable" nerve damage. However, we know from the latest discoveries by neuroscientists that nerves regenerate and recover. It is a very slow progress, especially in the old folks like me. I now have one third of my middle finger fully recovered its sensation, two more thirds to go. But I know that eventually it will happen.

 

Two years ago, after my divorce, I thought things were going okay. But then my muscles began twitching all over. Legs, shoulders, even my left eye. It twitched for about two months. That stopped. And then, my right foot began getting paresthesia. It lasted all day on most days. Arms would fall asleep at night. I was getting freaked out. I did a TMS session and accepted the diagnosis. Months went by and things improved gradually. Some days I felt zero symptoms. Then, my new girlfriend and I began having challenges in our relationship. I also purchased an RV to begin traveling. And my teenage daughter had a fallout with me, we've since found an agreement and harmony. However, the past few days, especially since the girlfriend issue, the numbness came back with severe anxiety! I am sensing that underneath all these symptoms--and I've had them all throughout the years; back pain, tennis elbow, sciatica, even Lyme disease to the point of being bedridden--it's trauma that I cannot face. It's too much. I had some severe stuff happen in life, during my childhood and teenage years. How do I get to the bottom of this and resolve it?