Chronic Forearm Pain/Unrelenting Pinky Twitch

Hello and I hope everyone finds themselves well during this difficult time in regards to the coronavirus. This is my first post on these forums and I am seeking the help and opinions from its members.

For two years now I have had very chronic bilateral forearm pain that I believe(d) to be RSI. In addition I have a very strong sensation that mimics cubital tunnel in my right elbow, been told I have many symptoms of Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (underwent physical therapy for two months), and an almost permanent rhythmic pinky twitch in my right hand. There are very few times when the twitch subsides. My symptoms have consumed my mind, as my job requires that I use my hands and arms very frequently, not to mention that one of my favorite past times is playing video games with my family and friends. It is one of the main ways I stay in touch with my brothers as we are all getting older and leading our own lives.

I have begun reading Mindbody Prescription and I undoubtedly have many of the traits described. I am very OCD and the fear of never getting rid of the forearm pain, armpit discomfort, and pinky twitch consumes me at times. Admittedly I hyper focus on the symptoms because it is so hard not to. We humans require our hands for almost all tasks. I have been told by different doctors that it’s carpal tunnel, cubital tunnel, Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, etc and I have become obsessed with improving my posture and stretching and massaging my very tight forearms. Yet nothing seems to work.

As I have said my problems feel very real. It feels as if there is something structurally wrong with my elbow and the nerve is very irritated. However when the physical therapist tested my grip, my grip strength has not suffered one bit and she remarked it was actually very good. I definitely present real symptoms as I was extremely tight from a muscular standpoint. Mostly just the right side of my body. Is it truly possible all of the above is being caused by my constant stress over the situation.

Though I would prefer to not discuss it over the internet I know exactly where the source of my stress and anger/would stem from over the past few years. I have undoubtedly buried almost all of it and attempted to move forward with my life without addressing it.

I have largely given up on my ability to play video games and throw the football etc. My last question would be should I ignore the pain and continue playing? I fear permanent damage unfortunately.

Thank you so much for your time in advance,

DWhite44

 

Yes.

So did ours... and they are gone....or at least the pain is gone. The problem is sitting here between my ears.

when your pain goes away you will look back at that paradox as one of the first moments that debunks the 'structural mythology'. I could bench press the whole stack when my 'back' was damaged (their words, not mine). I was in agony.. this fits much more closely to Sarno's diagnosis of Ischemia than with their 'weak core' or 'degeneration' or 'overuse' theories. It would also account for your grip strength being fine in spite of pain... the ischemia is there to help distract you, not destroy you.. the pain thinks it's helping you (Read Sarno)

People have been using their hands extensively since we came out of the trees. St Paul sewed tents til his hands were like leather..people spun wool, Sanded wood, did fine detailed art,etc.etc... the whole 'RSI' thing is a relatively new diagnosis implying either A. Evolution is wrong and we are weakening or B. God is messing with us. I don't believe either one of those. It is TMS. That's why no one ever recovers using the 'medieval structural mythology' of which Sarno spoke. They're misdiagnosing the problem

Yep. I had one of those too. I didn't have to address it out loud to the world, BUT I did have to comb it with great detail and look at all of it's implications as part of my recovery. Like most things, it was an over reaction... when we finally illuminate most of our problems , they are never as bad or as heavy as we think, but the damage (Like TMS, OCD) can literally steal your life from you....time to look under than hood and see what's making that funny noise!

 

Baseball65,

I cannot thank you enough for your reply and I have read it over multiple times. Your time and response are greatly appreciated. If you don’t mind me asking a few more questions...

I think my biggest fear is that I am going to completely disregard the pain and continue with my life and do irreversible damage if there is actually something wrong. Did you ever have that fear? I will definitely follow through with Sarno’s literature and your advice over the next few weeks. Also it appears my symptoms have gotten worse since the discovery all of this. Is this normal?

 

Multiple times... first with my back, later with my knee, shoulder... when I first got better TMS was mostly about postural muscles ('99)... LATER after treating a few thousand more people Sarno was sure that RSI and TMJ and a few other 'new' thins were TMS. As a ball player I am certain most arm surgeries are needless... I throw a few hundred pitch batting practices a few times a week and never even think about it and have been doing so my whole life, pain free (except for two short TMS episodes)

I just assumed it and worked through that fear each time... and I can throw harder and longer than ever at 54...though it felt like my arm was falling off when the TMS came. That fear is actually the most important way of distracting you and is at the core of TMS..it wouldn't be TMS without that fear.

Oh yeah bay-bay! TMS usually gets worse, like any charade it's going "No... I am real...look at me, look how bad I hurt!"
This is where courage comes into play. Courage doesn't mean no fear. It means being afraid and continuing anyways...

..and oftentimes it might move up or down, left or right. THAT change, even for worse, is usually a sign that we made the correct decision and it is trying a new strategy before giving up completely. It is actually a good sign.

peace

 

You absolutely should not ignore your pain. Your body is giving you a signal that should not be ignored. Could it be that you are playing video games to distract yourself from the real life situation that you need to deal with? If that's the case, maybe playing video games should be postponed until you deal with the situation that you do not want to discuss (which is totally understandable). Many people on this forum were able to get rid of their pain by taking their skeletons out of the closets and figuring out how to bury those skeletons peacefully.

 

How are you doing now? I'm dealing with cubital tunnel in both elbows after back, hip, shoulder injuries this year too. Mine was diagnosed with a nerve conduction test as mild slowing at the cubital tunnel. The less i think about it the better it gets i notice.

 

I read your post and felt compelled to reply with my current situation as you might find that it mirrors yours pretty closely…I currently have right forearm pain/tightness, odd finger sensations, finger numbness, elbow pain, tricep tendon pain, wrist pain. Like you I had a nerve study that found “slight” cubical tunnel and carpal tunnel. I am fighting through this with the knowledge that my right arm symptoms started after I broke my left arm and it was passed what was suppose to be the healing time frame, but it wasn’t fully healed yet. I started to get worried, like you, that it will be like this forever and I won’t get to enjoy the things that I previously had done. That’s when my right elbow started hurting and myriad other right arm pain followed. It started moving around my right arm and the tms is currently attacking an old knee surgery site as well as my arm. My symptoms have escalated significantly in the past weeks, but I still believe, as you should, that it will pass and to stay the course of doing activities and trying to get your mind focused on other things….oddly enough when I am fixing things around the house that require a great deal of focus I have no pain/tightness/numbness. Also, something that I started and is helping my to objectively view my body is wim hof breathing and cold showers. I think you are on the right path stay with it.

 

Hi Dwhite44,

I fully understand what you are going through. Having had pain and numbness in both legs as well as both arms and hands, going paralyzed was my constant worry, especially being father of two toddlers.

However, once I learned about TMS and realized it was all reduction of blood flow, I started to ignore my symptoms and systemically push forward until I had completely recovered. As long as you fear the pain, you will find it hard to recover fully. In this video I explain the three biggest mistakes that delay recovery. Hope it will help you speed up your recovery.



You can also read story of Chris Abraham of Toronto who recovered from 7 years of RSI after learning about TMS.
chris| rapidrecovery (fredamir.com)