Wave of pains?

Treatments, Rehabilitation, and Recovery
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lemur
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Feb 24, 2011 9:40 pm
Injury Description, Date, extent, surgical intervention etc: I was run over by a car June 2010, among other injuries, I tore my C8, C7, and C6, leaving my left arm almost completely without function (yes I am proud I can somewhat wiggle a finger :) !) I have had 0 surgeries, and have been in PT, although I find PT to be generally depressing and not too much fun. I am a high school student, and sometimes find this to be difficult to adapt to. Anyone have tips I would be much appreciative.

Wave of pains?

Post by lemur »

So, while often times I have the normal nerve pain, I have learned to avert my thoughts from it to manage the pain. Recently I have been getting these waves of even MORE intense sparks of pain, and I really don't know what is causing it. It is really painful. Anyone experience this? Ways to deal with it? Thank you!
:)
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Christopher
Posts: 845
Joined: Wed Jun 18, 2003 10:09 pm
Injury Description, Date, extent, surgical intervention etc: Date of Injury: 12/15/02

Level of Injury:
-dominant side C5, C6, & C7 avulsed. C8 & T1 stretched & crushed

BPI Related Surgeries:
-2 Intercostal nerves grafted to Biceps muscle,
-Free-Gracilis muscle transfer to Biceps Region innervated with 2 Intercostal nerves grafts.
-2 Sural nerves harvested from both Calves for nerve grafting.
-Partial Ulnar nerve grafted to Long Triceps.
-Uninjured C7 Hemi-Contralateral cross-over to Deltoid muscle.
-Wrist flexor tendon transfer to middle, ring, & pinky finger extensors.

Surgical medical facility:
Brachial Plexus Clinic at The Mayo Clinic, Rochester MN
(all surgeries successful)

"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."
~Theodore Roosevelt
Location: Los Angeles, California USA

Re: Wave of pains?

Post by Christopher »

weather changes (most barometric) bring about surges of pain for me. Once the weather stabilizes and has committed to rain, sun, or whatever, the pain stays more consistent and regular. Less flare ups.

I find staying hydrated is key, and reducing emotional & physical stress helps too.

Best of Luck,
Christopher
MW
Posts: 81
Joined: Fri Jun 19, 2009 6:13 pm
Injury Description, Date, extent, surgical intervention etc: LTBPI, Feb 2009, hit by truck while on a run. Free muscle transfer at Mayo Clinic 6 months later.
Location: Chicago, IL

Re: Wave of pains?

Post by MW »

I concur with Christopher on weather changes. But the most reliable thing for me is sleep. If I'm sleep-deprived, I'm almost always feeling more pain, which unfortunately for me leads to less sleep, which leads to this bad cycle. To come out of it, I often need to wait for a weekend to sleep in. I've also been prescribed some meds that help - trazodone for me works well with minimal side effects.
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hilltopfwb
Posts: 82
Joined: Fri Dec 11, 2009 11:50 am
Injury Description, Date, extent, surgical intervention etc: May 24, 2008 an 88 year old lady did not see me and pulled out while I was riding my 06 HD Street Glide. The accident resulted in 9 broken bones and brain hemorrhaging. The accident's most serious results was two avulsions confirmed in my C6 & C7 vertebrae. In Oct of 08 Dr. Li of Wake Forest University performed nerve transfer lasting around 8 hours in surgery. I have limited use now of my left arm. It took until July of 09 before it moved at all, and now is moving limited. I experience burning pain in my left hand, staying busy helps keep the mind off of burning. I visited the Mayo Clinic May, 2010 and consulted with their brachial plexus team. May 1, 2012, I underwent a muscle transfer at Wake Forest University. This surgery was deemed a success and I have more movement in my arm.
Location: Fuquay Varina NC 27526
Contact:

Re: Wave of pains?

Post by hilltopfwb »

Early in the first year of my injury I had what I called "shooting pain" that accompanied the constant burning that most of us deal with on a daily basis.

I seldom experienced it after around my first year. I never quite developed in my mind any cycle, it seemed more random for me, but I know that everyone is different. The only exception to that particular statement is that when I am wore out and tired, I always burn more in my hand. Nothing will take the place of a day at home recuperating.

Best of Luck,

Jeff
Master DIVER TOM
Posts: 759
Joined: Tue May 05, 2009 11:51 am

Re: Wave of pains?

Post by Master DIVER TOM »

Hi Jeff,
Ok :roll: , What I do after and during doing Semi that seem to help, I first try to support my elbow when I could, it takes the pressure off the pain/ stretch issue and gravity on the shoulder. There are many ways to do this arm rest cars, desk ,arm chair, couch a pillow. To me anything to relax the nerves can be done by supporting your arm, it help me. Next, when I get really bad nerve pain, I use ice in summer and heat in the winter. Weather changes , and temp changes made me switch to ice/ heat usage. If you have a floppy wrist use your front pocket when you can , That also helps pain. All I can state is what Ive done over the years that help me ;)

Best trys,
Tom
jesseb
Posts: 8
Joined: Tue Jan 25, 2011 12:11 am
Injury Description, Date, extent, surgical intervention etc: Injured 02/01/04 in snowmobile accident; recently turned 21.
Multiple facial, limb, and rib breaks. Only lasting injury is due to left brachial plexus avulsion of C6, C7, C8 & T1. C5 vertebrae fractured, allowing nerve to remain in tact. No sensation in, and minimal movement and use of left arm, except for phantom nerve pains. Whenever the pain sets in, I try to focus on the fact that God allowed me to live and be thankful He is giving me a second chance..
Two BPI related surgeries at Mayo Clinic-Rochester.
1- Right gracilus muscle transfer connected to left bicep and clavicle, intervated to allow elbow bending. Sural nerves taken from both calves for nerve grafting. Partial tibial nerve graft.
2- Fusion of Left wrist and thumb.
Cartilage removed from wrist and thumb to solidify joints with harvested bone marrow from my hip. This surgery has highly improved the functionality of my left arm.
All proper diagnoses and surgeries performed at Mayo Clinic-Rochester.

Re: Wave of pains?

Post by jesseb »

I experienced the most intense phantom nerve pains the first six months after my nerves were avulsed. The one thing I did was tuck my chin into my chest. I advise against this. I have continually done this since February of 20004, and my posture has suffered because of this strategy. One thing I learned that helps a lot I learned from a prenatal class. Take a deep breath, and slow let the air out. I live in Minnesota and am almost always in pain during the fall and winter. I visited Arizona once in October and was pain free for almost a whole week. If you are experiencing lots of nerve pain and are looking to move, I'd consider Arizona or some place down southwest.

I hope this is helpful. Best of luck!
Jesse
jmar
Posts: 528
Joined: Tue Aug 10, 2010 3:43 pm
Injury Description, Date, extent, surgical intervention etc: brachial plexus stretch during thoracic outlet syndrome surgery on may 18, 2010.

Re: Wave of pains?

Post by jmar »

lemur, when i first came home from the hospital, i could not push down a key on my musical keyboard. my hand and fingers were that weak. i would put my hand on the keys and then take my good hand and push each finger down indiviually. it hurt a little bit but i ignored the pain. after about 2 or 3 weeks, i was able to push the keys down with my injured fingers, but not far enough to make it play the note. now i can play entire songs with my injured hand. it is very slow. but who cares? i still cant play chords but at least it helped to strengenth my hand and fingers. i am no pro at playing the keyboard, i just play for fun and something to do.
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