nerve damage

[Teazymaid]

I’m waiting for an MRI on my lower back as I still have weakness in my legs and arms don’t have the same grip power… the legs have improved a bit over the 3 years but the more I’ve been able to do after the second shoulder op I think my legs have had to work harder and I now have very bad pain in the hip/hips .. X-ray is normal ware and tear but not causing the pain as I’m very flexible from yoga / palates/ti -ch but the strength just isn’t there when moving in certain directions 🫤 know I struggle to get up my stairs and get in and out of car etc .. has anyone had nerve damage cause weakness or has it come from actual damage from brain damage ??? A very confused sue 🙃

[Emeraldgal]

Hi, I had a MRI in November and it showed up spine, vertebrae damage which has been affecting my left arm, shoulder and neck. It is now affecting the right hand side neck, should and arm too. It's been a gradual thing. I never had any problems with my legs before but I am getting a tingling down both legs and especially around the feet in the last fortnight. I am to see a physio in about a fortnight also I need to see a vestibular physio as I am lightheaded constantly. When is your MRI appointment?

[Teazymaid in reply to Emeraldgal]

12th feb so hopefully they may see something but unsure if they can see if there is nerve damage .. I also have balance problems which has been terrible at times .. I’ve had Epley manoeuvre done a couple of times and it certainly helps with the extreme dizziness but I still get lightheaded and fall backwards but only enough that I step back not fall over .. it’s all so complicated as it could be head , could be spine , could be just impact damage .. after 10months neuro physio thought I may have mild spasticity in one leg . After 2 years I at last get a scan done in that leg to find out I tore my hamstring 🫤 but still no idea why my leg muscles are so weak like I can bend down but can’t stand up 🙃🙃🙃 so will wait and see what the MRI says … your issues with your legs are now getting worse .. do they know why ? Same as me the legs and hips bow are really not good at all .. Sue 🫤

[Emeraldgal in reply to Teazymaid]

Hi Sue, my legs have only just started, I have a physio appointment on 17th January and will let them know then. I have serious balance issues too so it probably is related to the TBI.

[pinkvision]

I've been referred to a spinal specialist at a private hospital after having a full body scan that found loads of damage to my cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine. I've got scoliosis, damaged discs, nerve entrapments, arthritis and abnormal bone growth. My legs turn to jelly sometimes, my gastric system stops working and the muscles in my torso get affected. It's weird because I've had these issues since my accident in 2017 and only recently they have been checked out properly.

The last time I saw a spinal specialist they only scanned my neck and found the twitching in my right arm and hand is caused by the damage to my cervical spine but the muscle wastage and spastic like clamping in my left arm and hand is caused by dystonia. The specialist said my brain has wired up the 'wrong way' when I was recovering.

I have recovered all my cognitive functions and 90% of my sensory processing.

The other thing not yet sorted is aphasic narcolepsy, basically my mind falls asleep three or four times a day but I am still conscious inside. I actually like this because it's like tripping on psychedelics. Until recently I was told it was fatigue, but I kept saying it was not because the fatigue stopped when I recovered my cognition and sensory processing.

There's a lot more to these injuries than brain damage and I think it takes a while for medical people to listen to what you are saying. I think they are only taking me seriously because I recovered the brain functions and can now communicate properly and put my point across.

Keep going, never give up, tick off the issues, hope you get sorted.

[sethbovey]

Hi. I had a brain bleed 5 years ago and since then i have had weakness in my left arm and two fingers which had spread to my right arm but not as intense. After my operation I couldn't shampoo my hair without intense tingling in my arms or whenever I raised them above my head. My balance is also worse . I have had a series of tests that have thrown up arthritis, age etc but this has happened since my operation. Xrays are not conclusive. It's really annoying.

I have bought a hand strengthener which is helping a bit but I feel quite a bit weaker than I used to be.

Anyway, greetings from NZ. Sorry I haven't been here for a while but I feel so many people have suffered a lot more than I did as my TBI was moderate and I had a super quick initial recovery

[twice]

Please be aware that your spinal cord runs through the center of all of your vertebrae and your neck is the most flexible part of your spine, the spinal cord is about the same diameter as your little finger and has the same consistency as jelly, therefore it's easy to damage it after a TBI, its also prone to damage from so called wear and tear in your neck, anything that puts pressure on the spinal cord in the neck can cause a condition called cervical myelopathy and its incredibly misunderstood in the medical profession, doctors may tell you its just age related wear and tear because they have know knowledge of cervical myelopathy, first of all I am not trying to worry you but you need to be aware of this and I will advise you to ask for a copy of your MRI report and images when you have one done. Cervical myelopathy is the most common cause of spinal cord injury in the world but yet its the most misunderstood. I know this because I have it and mine was caused by my TBI in 2016 and it was not detected for years . I sincerely hope that this is not what's causing your physical issues but you need to be aware of it because i was also told that my MRI scans of my neck were just wear and tear but for me unfortunately it wasn't and it wasn't until I got copies of my scans and started to find out exactly what that wear and tear was it became apparent I had cervical myelopathy.

[skydivesurvivor]

I broke my femur, fractured my pelvis etc. 20 years later got all the metal work taken out. No pain now in hip/ thigh. Still have a big toe that pokes up constantly. Pain in knee constant. Aware now no hip pain reason operation took so long fathers heart attack when letter to remove the metal work was received. At least the brain rewires?!!

[Leaf100]

Hi TeazyThese things are complicated, so please remember to be kind to yourself - you are doing great and I know that because you are still interested in doing what you can for self.

For me I had bits and pieces that just didn't work in certain ways after the accident. I had to hold up my left arm for instance and more or less drag myself around. Some excercises, like the clam shell at physio...looked like me doing nothing. I was doing whatever you do to move, it just didn't work. So I would assume the position for exercises best I could.and kind of...hmm...imagine doing them. After awhile I could feel a little zot, and then after that, things did start to move again. But good golly Miss Molly, did it ever do a number on my brain. Turning a door knob still is a mind game, though I look more proficient when I do - I used to have to stand sideways and kind of roll my hand over the knob and hope for the best.

It took me about 2 years to get an MRI and they only looked at my head. It showed nothing unusual but a physcologist did a test with those little sensors on my head and it had a lot of red on it and a lot if blue - so either way too active or way too underactive. Luckily, enough green to keep going.

Three years isn't that long and I feel surgeries take longer to really heal than they tell you. And it takes longer for the sedation etc to really leave you than they think, too.

It took me 10 years before I didn't need a walker or wheelchair to go pretty much everywhere - still can use them sometimes, but only certain circumstances.

So I'd say, pretend like you can sometimes , even if it's when settled in bed and pretend you are dancing, or whatever does it for you..

Cause your brain and your nerves may just figure it out....and in the meanwhile you may just have had some fun. (Or run through those excercise routines.)

As for whether the brain causes weakness..I think they don't really know. The way the brain communicates with the rest and how signals get passed is at a very fine level and I don't feel they really have that figured out yet.

My left hand would just let go of things sometimes, not that I wanted that, it just would randomly kind of forget to grip what I was holding. It's improved over time with me basically doing the functional activities of life like stirring, dishes, door knobs, etc etc.

Stuff can still rebuild and reconnect from where you are. It's worth it to keep trying and nit pick away at doing things you want.

I still have some issues and I am also 1000 times better than where I was, and you doing all those exercises will help. I would also.ask your pharmacist about vit B 6 supplements, I took those for some months and feel it helped, though if I were doing it now I would take a more broad B mix, as B1 etc is also critical to some functions.. and brain injury can mess with your gut flora which is what makes your vit B supplies.

Maybe not quite on target and hope something will resonate with you as useful for you..we can be so different despite having so many similarities.

Leaf

[Teazymaid]

thank you all so much for your reply’s .. just hearing that others have strange things that no one knows about is reassuring .. I will look into all the possible this I might have and I’m certainly not giving up finding out what has actually happened to me / spine / brain .. you all help me not feel so alone in this very strange world . Sue x

[Letsrock]

Hi sue, yes mri was all clear just aged related apparently. I have been diagnosed with Functional neurological disorder which is nerve damage caused by the brain going through trauma and stress after my head bump and physical attack by boss.

I am dizzy and off balance, loss of vision which I have got back after doing eye movement exercises and jumping leg. Personal physio is teaching me to relax but easier said then done. Basically brain is struggling ti send messages to body due to nerve damage but a bit of brain rehabilitation exercises is key or you can see a specialist neuro physio that deals with FND but none on my area so self help. Good luck

[Teazymaid]

I will see what happens with the MRI scan and go from there .. all the replies I have had helps me realise I’m not alone .. Sue 🙃