New here - All over body nerve pain

I am new here and this is my story. I went on a family amusement park ride with my 3 year old on August 4, 2015. The ride spins around and the car you are in also spins you around. My 3 year old started to cry and I twisted my head a few time against the force of the ride to look at him. That same night I noticed both my legs and arms go numb while I was sleeping. I started getting electric shocks in my arms and legs and strange sensations. My hands and fingers would hurt when I would use the iPad. A week later I went to my gp and he didn't know what was going on. By this time my neck started to hurt and the neuropathy symptoms were getting worse and a week later I went to the ER and was told I had peripheral neuropathy and to go see a neurologist. I was given a prescription for gabapentin 300 mg 3x a day. The ER took a neck X-ray but I guess it looked fine. Since then I have had (2) cervical MRI's, (1) lumber MRI and (1) brain MRI, another cervical X-ray and and EMG testing on my arms. I have seen (1) orthopedic doctor (2) neurologists, a neurosurgeon, nurse practitioner that works for another neurosurgeon, and a TMS physiatrist. These are my MRI impressions. I have 2 mild bulges and 1 moderate bulge in c5/c6. I am pasting the important parts:

MRI 9/1/15
C5-C6: There is right and left paracentral annular protrusion.
Small tissue of slight higher signal adjacent to left-sided
protrusion is between the disc and the longitudinal ligament.
This suggests some possible hemorrhage or fluid and edema.
Overall moderate central spinal canal stenosis with effacement of
ventral and dorsal CSF space. Neuroforamina mildly narrowed on
the right side with slight compression of exiting right C6 nerve.
Left neuroforamina proximally narrowed with compression exiting
left C6 nerve.

IMPRESSION:
1. No compression fracture, bone edema or subluxation.
2. C5-C6 with moderate central spinal canal stenosis from
combination of annular protrusion and small adjacent edema, fluid
or perhaps blood. Bilateral exiting C6 nerve compression.


MRI 10/29/15
C5-6: There is a broad based central protrusion which touches the
cord and bilateral uncovertebral osteophytes that cause moderate
right and mild left foraminal narrowing.

IMPRESSION:
Mild multilevel degenerative changes, with associated mild to
moderate bilateral neural foraminal narrowing as above.

EMG:
Impression:
This is a mildly abnormal study. There is electrophysiological evidence of a borderline/mild left ulnar neuropathy at the elbow. There is no electrophysiological evidence of a right cervical radiculopathy. (The patient’s bilateral symptoms were worse on the right; given the normal EMG of the right arm, we elected to forgo needle studies on the left.)

My lumber and brain MRI were normal.

I have done physical therapy, acupuncture, orthogonal chiropractor who adjusted my atlas. None have helped except the physical therapy made me feel a little more energetic. I was basically told that the cervical disc should only affect arms and not legs unless there is cord compression. All the doctors have done the motor tests for spinal cord compression and I don't have that. I was basically told from the neurologists that I was over anxious and I should go on medication. The one neurosurgeon just told me if it doesn't get better than we can do surgery but he disregarded why my legs would hurt. He told me not to think about it. I am in excruciating all over body pain. I get buzzing, tingling, numbness, burning, pain, shooting pain shocks - anything considered neuropathic. I also get pelvic pain and felt like I had a uti. I could go into more detail but I am trying to keep this short. Sorry for the long post. Anyway, to sum it all up the TMS physiatrist said I have TMS. I am trying so hard to believe this but I relate everything to my neck and that amusement park ride. I was fine physically before that but I have had recent bouts of anxiety and what I am going through now has put my anxiety out of control. Any advice would help. Thanks!

 

Hi, Merilu. I am sorry you are in such pain. You have been checked out and seen a variety of doctors and the pains have not gone away. I believe the TMS psychiatrist has diagnosed you correctly. Your pains are from TMS emotions. You might also post your story at the Ask a Therapist subforum of this web site. I think you need to work on the anxiety that comes from being fearful of pain returning. There are excellent videos on Youtube about controlling anxiety. We all have it to some degree and it punches up at certain times of emotional stress. You may very well be repressing an emotion or several that are the cause of your pain. That it is in so many places is a sure sign it is TMS.

 

Thank you for the reply Walt. In my mind, I always relate this from the ride and my neck. I somehow imagine that my disc touching my spinal cord or me twisting my neck damaged my spinal cord and somehow is affecting my nervous system. I am not a doctor and don't know if that is possible. It happened overnight. The day of the amusement park I was fine and that night it all started. I hardly went on any rides and my husband felt too tired to take my 3 year old. I don't have any repressed anger from childhood. I had a fairly normal one. I have suffered from anxiety as an adult in the forms of panic attacks and Tmj pain but this is mind boggling. The Tms doctor I went to was a orthopedic physiatrist not a psychiatrist. I am thinking about seeing a therapist. I just guess I want to make sure I have nothing physiological causing this but somehow it must have initially? I don't know.

 

You're right in clearing up your concerns whether the pain is structural.
You may have worried yourself into thinking it is structural.
I do suggest you post in Ask a Therapist.

 

Welcome Merilu,

You are really going through hell, and quite fearful and anxious, understandably. To have your body be in pain and "out of control" is very scary. I am sorry for your experience. Most of us here have had to deal with some version of what you are going through, so we understand!

Your comment below sure supports that you have TMS. I am not a physician, and no one here can resolve your fears except you, and the TMS physician, which he has attempted to do.

I would not let your "lack of traumatic childhood" deter your belief that you have TMS. I was raised in a loving family, but could hardly walk from severe pain in my feet for over three years. I had 8 physicians at different times willing and ready, and recommending to do surgery. Now I ski around Crater Lake, and climb mountains again. This was with the help of a TMS physician Dr. Sopher, and a Life Coach Ken Malloy. Here is a blog post I made about exploring doubts. Each person's doubts are a little different.

I connected my symptoms with my own Inner Critic, and the feelings of the Inner Child. This tense dynamic occurs in everyone. Dr. Sarno said that "personality trumps life history or recent events." So what I am encouraging you to contemplate is the moment to moment relationships you have in you. Is there pressure? Is there perfectionism? Is there pushing and expectations? Can you feel the attacks of the Inner Critic? How might your Inner Child feel about this?

I hope you do the SEP and Alan Gordon's program at the Wiki, if you are not already deep into another TMS doctor's recommended workbook or program. Try to clear the doubts as best you can, and then begin to work methodically. And try to be patient.

Also, you might start a new thread under Support, asking for proven ways of dealing with anxiety. "What helped you with Anxiety?" could be a good title. And search the Wiki?

Andy B.

 

Check out the H/R scale, it might help convince you it's TMS:

THE HOLMES-RAHE STRESS SCALE:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holmes_and_Rahe_stress_scale

 

Thank you for the replies Andy B. and Tennis Tom.
I think most of my recent anxiety relates to my almost 4 year old's health condition and the fact that I'm a worry wort. I have started SEP and am looking into psychotherapy or tms therapy.

 

Sorry about your pain and present situation. I can relate as I have had a prickly sensation in both legs on and off (has been 'on' for a long time) and it began after a flu. I kept trying to tie my symptoms to that, but all my test results came back normal. The last bout started after a prolonged period of stress and that is when I thought there could possibly be a psychological link. A couple of doctors feel it could be psychological and some have no comment other than my results are all normal. Take comfort in the fact that a lot of people heal from extreme pain. Best wishes.

 

Thank you tgirl. I am hoping at this point it is psychological for me and that I can heal from it. The last couple of days my neck and upper back feel much better but I am still getting the neuropathy sensations in my feet, legs, arms, hands. At my worst, I also get pelvic pain and a sciatic type pain down my right leg. I'm on a low dose of gabapentin but I still feel pain and I am trying to wean off slowly. Sometimes when my pain gets really bad, I take Hyland's homeopathic hypericum perforatum and it seems to take the edge off. Best wishes to you also.

 

Were you told by any of the doctors that they thought it could be psychological? Have you been under stress etc?

 

The two neurologists that I saw felt that I was overanxious about my symptoms and wanted to put me on anxiety medicine but I took it as though that they didn't believe that I was in so much pain and I was actually mad at them. I have been under some kind of stress/anxiety since my youngest was born. He is almost 4. When he was 2 months old he developed bad eczema where his skin and scalp would weep. Even though it was distressing to me to see him that way, he was still a happy baby. At 5 months old he had a fever and his pediatrician said it was just a virus, he actually had a uti that developed into a kidney infection. He could have been on antibiotics about a week earlier if she checked for a uti. He was diagnosed with a condition called VUR - urine reflux and was put on a daily low dose antibiotic. So for the next few years, I was always anxious every time he would get a fever and was obsessive about it because another UTI could cause kidney scarring/damage. This past January, at 3 years old, he had an ultrasound that showed his kidneys were small for his age and not much bigger than they were as an infant so I don't know if the initial UTI caused any damage. To check for damage, I would have to put him under another invasive test, which I really don't want to do. The urologist didn't seem too concerned and we should just follow up every year with an ultrasound but me the worry wort thinks of the worst so I had very bad anxiety the early part of 2015 but by the summer, I put it out of my mind and I thought I was feeling good until that day I went on the amusement ride. I have never been under this kind of pain before. And I thought my tmj was bad. Initially I assumed my bulging disc was causing all my pain so I was under stress to get better with the physical therapy, acupuncture, chiropractor, massage. I thought I was going to be paralyzed because of the pain in my legs and I thought I was heading for a cervical spinal fusion. So of course I looked and sounded like a crazy person, when I would describe my symptoms to the doctors. I started looking into nerve pain as being psychosomatic after I saw the second neurologist and came across Dr. Sarno and TMS. I really hope this is TMS, because I don't want to live like this the rest of my life.

 

Yes, really focus on the psychological aspect of this. Stress related pain can show up after the actual stressful event. I know how depressing the doctor circuit can be- I've been on it. Your son sounds like he will be just fine. Best of luck to us both.

 

Yes nerve pain is terrible i have mainly in my lower legs with burning sensations all over . I had the same issues with my children they will be fine dont worry.

Did those dr offer u any meds to help u ease the pain

 

Marco sorry to hear you have nerve pain too. If you don't mind, when did this start and do you know why? Has it ever gone away?

 

Its started about 5 yrs ago after suffering terrible stomach pain for 6 months i had a bad marriage my father was dying i had a sick son. Things where bad. Went to hospital to get my stomach scoped when i got home the pain left and the numbness began and turned to burning stabbing pain in my feet mainly

 

Did the doctors ever give you an explanation and does it ever go away? It just seems so bizarre doesn't it?

 

Dr dont have a clue they called regional pain syndrome to idiopathic neuropathy ...basically they dont know

 

Are you following the TMS course? Are you finding that it helps?

 

I believe in the tms process without any doubt and i found this site to be very helpful with a lot of caring people....some whack jobs and crazies mixed in but overhaul very helpful. But the sep and other programs did help me be more aware of emotions i still not able to turn the corner on healing granted i am going threw a divorce and we are still living together...i am finding dr hanscom approach to tms very helpful

 

Good luck with everything!