So Saturday I went to get x-rays of my back and elbow. I have been having numbness and tingling in my right arm from my elbow to my hand. Looks like the warranty on my body is close to it’s expiration date. But I can’t have my limbs rotated for better wear or replaced. What’s a girl to do? I had a nerve study on my arm a few months ago, it came back negative – meaning the nerves through my neck to my hand seem to be fine. Ever had a nerve study? Consists of getting stuck with a bunch of needles hooked up to a machine that measures how the nerves are working. Then the doctor did a few where he listened to the sound of certain muscles. I’m amazed at the pioneering doctors that figured out all this stuff. The needles didn’t hurt too much, only the one that was put in the fleshy part of my palm beneath my thumb; that stung quite a bit and bruised pretty quickly. So anyhow… I had a chatty Cathy x-ray tech who said everything looked okay to him but we’ll have to wait for the radiologists official okay, that’s why they get paid the big bucks, to know for sure. I went to get a massage after having the x-rays done and every time the woman pressed at points along the left side of my back I’d feel my muscle twitch in protest – I will not be released! I wound up feeling more sore after the massage than I was when I went in. The masseuse was like, ‘maybe you should call your doctor and see if he can give you some medicine for your back.’ You know it’s bad if a masseuse is telling you to go the drugs route.
I’m also supposed to go for an MRI of my head for this numb arm, in order to rule out MS. The doctor wanted to stress that it’s highly unlikely it’s MS and I’m not worried about that, he just can’t figure out what’s causing my arm numbness and said he’d be remiss if he didn’t order an MRI. I’m 38 which doesn’t seem THAT old but some days I wake up and my back’s sore, I’ve got plantar fasciitis in my feet, various hip and knee joints ache – it’s so annoying. And if I feel this way now how what shape will I be in at 50? So I’m really trying to watch what I eat because I think I’m probably 15 pounds heavier than my body would like me to be and I’m thinking maybe that extra weight is taking it’s toll on my various joints. I’ve also started up on the fish oil regimen and going to the gym (only doing the treadmill and bicycle so far but I want to add the dreaded stomach exercises this week). I need to gain core muscles because my torso is essentially jelly. I’m hoping strengthening those muscles will help out a lot with my back pain. My arm doesn’t hurt and I hated to even mention it to my doctor but the slight numbness/tingling won’t go away. It’s not severe, it just always feels different compared to the left and so I’m frequently thinking to myself ‘what’s up with this arm?’ and try shaking the numbness away but that doesn’t help. Oh well, please let me know if anyone else experiences random numbness in a limb or if anyone knows of good exercises to strengthen the lower back. Oh and for something totally unrelated… if anyone knows tricks in order to chop onions without crying I’d love to hear it, I seem to be tres sensitive to those onions!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Just wanted to let you know I love reading your blog. For the onions, try chewing gum while chopping, run them under water after the first chop or so, or breathe only through your mouth.
Back exercises ... there's this piece of equipment where you do something like looks like backwards sit ups - you're in a contraption that makes you lean forward at a 45 degree or so angle and you have to lift your self up. Also talk to a trainer about it, depending on the gym you go to you can probably get a free 1/2 hour with a trainer. Be firm about your goals and get them to show you the right exercises. Good luck!
Post a Comment