United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

HI LIZ,
THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND WORDS. I AM IN THE COLLINGWOOD AREA IN ONTARIO AND I FOUND A DOCTOR IN TORONTO. I AM SEEING AN ORTHO ON WED. BUT I DO WANT TO TALK TO A PROFESSIONAL WHO DEALS SPECIFICALLY WITH BP. I WILL EMAIL YOU TOO. THANK YOU. KAREN

Karen,
WELCOME to our crazy little worls, though it is getting bigger, scarey! I will agree with Ronin the the Bvitamins are good! I take mine everyday! As far as sleeping is concerned... I wear a compression glove at night which helps me with the pain too, but as Liz said, you NEED a good nights rest! The more sleep you get, the more relaxed you will feel during the day and the less the pain will bother you. I find that getting to the gym helps my pain a great deal. We are all hear for you so ask away with your questions! Feel free to email me at any time as well.
Courtney (WiLdNcRaZyNeY@aol.com)

Hello Karen. I know exactly what you mean when you use the word 'scared'. I'm 6 years down the line & still remember that feeling as if it was yesterday. (in fact, I wish I could remember other useful stuff that well).

I'm really pleased that you've found us. Being able to talk is half the battle to dealing with this.

We all know the pain you are going through. We know because we have been there, unlike the medics, and the doctors, and other well-meaning people. If you can, take as few pain-relief drugs as possible. There is a growing number of people who've come off pain-relief and found they can cope with the pain eventually. And it's a lot better for your body if it's not full of chemicals.

Keep yourself as active as possible during the day. It'll help to keep the pain away all the while your mind is on something else, and you'll get tired enough to sleep better at night.

Visit the other BPI website at tbpi-group.org for loads more support and a few laughs.

THANKS COURTNEY, COMPRESSION GLOVE. WHAT IS THAT? I WILL EMAIL YOU WITH MY FURTHER QUESTIONS. THANKS FOR YOUR RESPONSE.
KAREN

Hi Karen. My name is Mike but I'm better know as Mikeyb around here and the other msg board. It really is a small world as I'm from London Ont. So we aren't that far away. I'll try and keep this short. I TBPI'ed my right arm 5 years ago. Had my brachial plexus reconstructed surgically 3 months after the accident. I was treated here in London at St. Josephs Hospital. They have an excellent Hand and Upper Limb Centre on site. If you have any questions don't be shy. My email is mikeyb@execulink.com

Take care,

Mike

THANKS MIKE. I AM GLAD THAT YOU AREN'T THAT FAR AWAY. I WILL EMAIL YOU. THANKS FOR YOUR RESPONSE. KAREN

Hi there and welcome. I was going to give to mikeys address but I see he found you anyway, he was the first person I 'spoke' to on these boards a long time ago and he's a great support.
Let us know how things are going, you're in the early stages right now, things will seem a lot less scary in a while, I promise! Take care and ask for help whenever you need it, that's why we are here. :0) Jen NZ

Hi Karen, I hate to hear of new injuries, but am thankful you found this site as quickly as you did. The BPI guy in Toronto is Dr. Rajiv Midha at Sunnybrook HSC 416 480-4740. He requires a referral from your family doctor or neuro specialist, and all your reports as well as emg's and mri's done. Hope this helps. Please stay in touch and let us know how it goes.

Hi, Karen! I'm new to this board too. But, I have mostly been reading and not writing. On July 2, 2003, my Black Lab knocked my legs out from under me. I sustained a fractured dislocated shoulder, and a brachial plexus injury in my left shoulder/arm. I couldn't move my left arm at all. I started seeing an orthopedic surgeon the day after my fall. I started physical therapy within two weeks. Within a month, I was able to move my elbow, then slowly my finger feeling started coming back. I was not satisfied with the orthopedic surgeon. I felt like he was spending too much time on my shoulder and not my BPI. Also, I only have 20 physical/occupational visits per year through my insurance carrier. I decided to see a neurosurgeon that I had seen before for a ruptured disk. He prescibed me neurotin for my nerve pain. On my second visit, he suggested I go see a BPI specalist in New Orleans. The orthopedic surgeon wanted to wait a year before going forward. Being 2 1/2 months out, I wanted more. Now, I'm just waiting for approval from the BPI specialist and hoping he'll see me. I'm in Tennessee and he's in Louisiana. Everyday, my wrist, hand, and fingers swell and I'm still in pain. Luckily, I have been working since four days after my fall. My company doesn't have short-term disability. Keep yourself busy and be positive. Those are the best medicines I have found. My e-mail address is sureluv37@aol.com if you need to talk.

Donna

My main surgeons card reads " hand and reconstructive surgery ". Sounded good to me ? What the heck was I gonna do ? After I figured out the " in's and out's " of it I realised I was in the best hands possible for my type of injury. In fact it was the Emg Dr. ( emg being a nerve conduction test ) who was most knowlegeable about what the bpi was and how it all worked. So they all had a pow wow over coffee and decided what to do with me to get the best result possible for my particular injury.

Your in Collingwood so I'm sure if you ask your Family Dr. Or whoever treated you in the ER you can get a referal anywere in Ontario. If I where you I'd definately look for treatment in a major centre such as Toronto, or London.

Once the swelling goes down a bit in a month or so you should be doing ( Dr ordered ) assisted physio therapy to try and WAKE THAT ARM UP. You should have an EMG test within a month, that and an MRI and a CT scan. If things don't get better after 2 months they will have you do another emg. They need to see how your arm is doing after the trauma has calmed down before they decide to take further action.

Your still early days in this Karen, you may have just severely stretched all your nerves. I never thought my arm would ever work again. I thought it died and just rotted away but it eventually most of it came back.

Take care,

Mikey