5 Aug, 2009 – Is My Arm Fixed?

I have now been through a couple weeks of visits to the chiropractor, maybe nine altogether.  We are now spacing the visits out farther apart.  To date, my left arm no longer has numbness in the fingertips.  My right arm with all the elbow pain feels almost completely normal.  The sessions of muscle massage therapy, while mildly painful and uncomfortable, are really having an effect.  I was able to do yard work last weekend that I had been unable to do before seeing the chiropractor, and it was uneventful.  Nothing got worse.  Nothing broke.  Nothing hurt.

I am sure that I got this way over a long time, building scar tissue and adhesions without ever having any indicators something was wrong until it was too late.  To further muddy the waters, after the pain started, I was treating the wrong thing.  This has taught me a valuable lesson.  I will be stretching more, before and after exercise, I will be using forearm braces to distribute the force more evenly over my muscles, and I will be icing my muscles after workouts.  I also intend to set up regular visits to a massage therapist (the same one that hurts my chiropractor, hehe) to make sure this never happens again.  I know, never say never, but forwarned is forearmed.

(What a horrible pun that was.  Stop me now, before I pun again.)

I expect to hit the gym soon.  I will probably work up to by doing home exercises first for a few weeks.  Plus, my schedule really works against an exercise regimen for the next couple months.

21 July, 2009 – More Good News…

Well, I went for my third visit to the chiropractor, and we were all surprised by the amount of progress that just a few visits have made.  I no longer get stiff arm and pain after a night of sleep, and I can now grip almost to full strength without any discomfort.  One of the chiropractors wanted to check things a little, and pushed on my forearms – he was surprised and said things felt much better, almost normal.   They also look much more relaxed and normal.

Now to note something from the last visit I forgot, so I do not forget again:

I remember the weakness I would have as well.  His explanation for sudden bouts of weakness made sense – that due to injury and incorrect healing, the muscles had been set in a semi-contracted state, so the full 100% I needed when lifting was now 100% plus however much my muscles were already tensed.  Or, another way, I no longer had 100% available, only whatever was left after factoring out my semi-contracted muscle state.  In short, I was trying to commit 100% to something when I only had,  say, 80%.  By attempting to overload my muscles, a protective mechanism (it has a name, but I do not remember it), like a circuit breaker, would kick in, pulling the plug on my muscles to prevent injury and resulting in a sudden weakness in the motion.

This visit was much less uncomfortable than the last one.  I personally think that they broke up adhesions that time, and that stretching has had a real affect because of it.  I am feeling pretty good about being able to start up again, slowly, in another month or two.

July 18, 2009 – Good News and Progress…

My second visit to a chiropractor was very very revealing.  My issues do not appear to be bone related, but entirely muscle-related (I figured).  No nerve weirdness from the spine either.

The bad news:  I am now feeling numbness in my LEFT hand (ring and pinky fingertips).  No pain or tingling, just loss of sensation in a small area of each.

The good news:  They think they know what is wrong and how to finally address these problems.  My right arm is doing better, but it is easy to overdo it and slide backwards.  Turns out that the muscle fibers may have something called “adhesion”.  As they explained to me, the muscle fibers are each wrapped in fascia which act as a low friction covering (among other things), permitting the fibers to smoothly slide past each other as they flex and relax.  Sometimes, muscles grow through the fascia and start to bind up with adjacent fibers, or otherwise interfere with the smooth movement of fibers.

Additionally, scar tissue from tiny injuries to the muscle can be layed down in ways that oppose and restrict motion, instead of inline (parallel) with the direction of motion.  These can combine to pull and push on the overall mass of muscles and ultimately end up exerting this force against the elbow tendons, which can then become inflamed and painful.

BINGO.

So the issue is not the tendon itself, it is the binding and sticking within my muscles that then pulls on the tendon.  Curiously, they think this is happening in my left forearm as well, even though I feel no pain.  I was told that pain is usually the last symptom to appear, and that this can be a slow and subtle process years in the making.  The chiropractor also noted that my forearms (left especially) appear to be in a constant state of flex (the big muscle that pops out over your elbow), calling it “atypical”. They think this could overall be pressing on the ulnar nerve along various parts of my forearm, which ultimately emanate from the neck via the C4 or C5 cervical vertebrae and are responsible for the “funny bone”.

The cure:  Ultrasound treatments and deep (painful) physical massage in the forearms to break up the adhesions, ice over the areas several times a day, and the use of elbow braces to redistribute forces away from my tendons (used during physical exertion).  Ice after physical exertion as well and  stretching exercises.  Not a cure really, but a way to manage this and make improvements.   They think that I can be ready in a few months to go back to the gym for light exertion, and work my way slowly back into my routines.

Only the second visit, but I kinda feel better already.  They expect little to no further improvement after 6 to 8 visits, so this hopefully won’t take long.

Medical readers:  Please don’t beat me up too much – I am regurgitating much of this just to remember it (too important to forget).

June 5, 2009 – Update

Getting better, little by little.  Hope I didn’t just jinx it.

March 31, 2009 – Injury Report….

Physical therapy is over.  It did not help.  I think it made things worse.  I let the therapist know and he told me to stop any exercises (which I had done), so it wasn’t like they overworked me – I dunno what happened to make things worse.

Yesterday I had a follow-up visit with the sports medicine doc, and he gave me cortisone shot number 2.  It didn’t hurt much, and has made a huge difference in my pain.  He says I have severe tendinitis, but the second shot usually clears it up.  He also put me on  a strong anti-inflammatory for 30 days, after which I see him again.

This is turning into an injury blog.  I am daydreaming about getting back into the gym, but I know when I do, I have a long climb ahead of me.  It will suck.

I cannot wait.

Anyway, my arm does not hurt when I sleep anymore, and I can close my fist with some strength now without pain.   I am hopeful this is the fix.

Six year plan.  Six year plan.  Six year plan…..

(Because a six month plan just ain’t gonna happen.)

Feb 2009 – 1st Session of Physical Therapy

I went to my first of six sessions today.  My arm is feeling better, but, ok.  It wasn’t bad – they just moved my arms around to see the range of motion and strength.   They also did an ultrasound on my forearm, right near my elbow – treatment, not imaging.  I don’t feel any difference.

I’ll do my exercises like I am supposed to, and hopefully I can safely start back up in the gym in another four weeks.

Fingers crossed.

Feb 2009 – Physical Therapy

I have six sessions of physical therapy, starting after next week. I did not have to get a shot (Doc and I both agreed to save that for worse times).

This stinks. Here’s why:

I felt good today, then had to move something bulky but not heavy. I felt my forearm all day after that – one simple thing turned it from fine to sore. Shaking hands was painful after that.

The thing is, you don’t know when you are healed. You feel fine, and start thinking, “Maybe I’m ok now….”
Then the smallest thing brings it right back into sharp relief – and you know you are not healed. You don’t know how far you can push it, and can’t trust your gut anymore. You start getting worried over doing the smallest things – worried that you will worsen the injury and drag it out longer.

It’s crazy. It sucks. I am still not back in the gym. At least I am not getting used to this – if I did, I would worry that I would not want to go back.

Oh well, chin up, and all that jazz. Looking at it through a six year window helps.

I *know* I’ll be rockin’ six years from now.

Jan 2009 – More Bad News

Well, I messed up my elbow doing very minor chores around the house, so I guess it was not going to last anyway. While holding a pair of pliers, I heard a pop and felt a snap, like a rubber band, in my forearm (near my elbow). It felt weird and hurt a little, but suddenly my right hand was so weak I could hardly pour a cup of coffee without substantial pain. Unzipping my fly or buttoning a shirt became very painful ordeals.
So, I am set up to go back in to the doctor at the end of this month, hopefully to get another shot. We will see. I am expecting a longer layoff from the gym now. I will keep eating healthy, and am using my left hand as much as I can.

It was really depressing to think of being out for months at a time, but over the course of 3 or 4 years, this is just a small speedbump in a parking lot. I’ll get back on the freeway even if it takes a year, because I know that three or four years from now, I can be better than I ever thought possible. I have to just think long term, not short term, and that is why I am in this anyway.

So it still sucks, but not as bad as it did at first.

(But it is important to know that it still sucks. A lot.)

Welcome to 2009! I am still not back in the gym!

Going nuts? I’ve been there and back four times. I went to a doctor, got a cortisone shot in the elbow (didn’t hurt that bad, but it felt really weird), and was told to take at least two weeks before heading back. That was a few days ago.
Sadly, I have a class in early February that will eat all my time, so realistically, I will be out until mid-February now.

Yay.

The only thing that feels good from this is my elbow – it is finally feeling much better. Otherwise, I have no energy, no motivation, no enthusiasm, and a crappy attitude to boot. I am still eating right and taking my vitamin supplements, but I need to exercise.

Seriously, I am so tired all the time.  I don’t even want to blog anymore, so this post is a real effort on my part.

I cannot wait to get started again.

December 2008 – Off For Recovery

I am taking December off completely (as if that wasn’t obvious already) to recover. I’ll start again probably mid-January, depending. Don’t worry – this is a good thing. I am feeling much better.