Is it my spine or something else?

Posted by kelliebellie25 @kelliebellie25, 4 days ago

Hello! For the past 3 months I have been under a LOT of stress with a family member getting diagnosed with cancer but also during that time I have been suffering with these health issues:

Pain in calves (especially when standing), Muscle spasms in legs (mostly calf area), right calf atrophy, pain in back, pain in arms radiating to fingers, vibration feeling in legs, numbness, headaches, weakness in legs and hands, tongue fascinations, and lots of stress/anxiety.

I don’t know if it’s something more serious like ALS, but my neurologist sent me for MRIs of the brain and spine and here were the results:

Cervical Straightening of the cervical spine. Cervical spondylosis.

Thoracic There is minimal disc disease at T5-T6 with small posterior disc osteophyte.

Lumbar Mild disc disease of L4-L5 and L5-S1 with mild canal stenosis at L4-L5.
Tiny tears in the posterior annulus of L4-L5 and L5-S1 are present.

L4-L5: There is disc desiccation with posterior broad-based disc bulge and focal T2 hyperintensity in the posterior annulus consistent with small tear. There is minimal facet osteoarthropathy and ligamentum flavum hypertrophy. This results in mild central canal stenosis. There is minimal bilateral neural foraminal narrowing.

L5-S1: Disc desiccation with small broad-based posterior disc bulge. Focal T2 hyperintensity consistent with small tear is seen within the posterior annulus. There is minimal facet osteoarthropathy. No significant central canal stenosis. No significant neuroforaminal narrowing.

My neurologist did examine me and said there’s nothing more he can do besides look into surgery for the tiny tears in my discs but has referred me to a clinic with doctors for physical therapy and possible steroid injections.

My body just aches and twitches and “feels” weak… has anyone experience anything like this? Need to get my anxiety mind off of the worse case scenario! Thanks for any and all responses!

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gently | @gently | 3 days ago

kelliebellie25,
you could offer yourself a small kindness and see a chiropractor.
I would want to have a minimally invasive spine surgeon look at all of the disc tears and bulges. Discs can sometime self-repair. It looks like disc disease rather than any autoimmune system.
You have a good neurologist.

celia16 | @celia16 | 3 days ago

Do you have back pain?

kelliebellie25 | @kelliebellie25 | 3 days ago

In reply to @celia16 "Do you have back pain?" + (show)

I have had back pain since I had a bulging disc in 2017. Most of the time it’s not too bad but I do have the occasional flare up.

kelliebellie25 | @kelliebellie25 | 3 days ago

In reply to @gently "kelliebellie25, you could offer yourself a small kindness and see a chiropractor. I would want to..." + (show)

Thanks for the reply! I will look into seeing a chiropractor once I hear from physical therapy. And great advice, I will look into seeing a spine specialist!

celia16 | @celia16 | 3 days ago

In reply to @kelliebellie25 "I have had back pain since I had a bulging disc in 2017. Most of the..." + (show)

I see. I just wondered if you always have back pain when it's a spine issue.

cperlin | @cperlin | 2 days ago

Most people have spinal abnormalities as they get older and most have no pain. Therefore, many researchers have concluded that the spinal abnormalities are not usually the cause of pain but coincidental. Since the pain started during a period of high stress and is basically throughout your body, it is unlikely that your pain is caused by the disc abnormalities and more likely it is stress related. Please see this article about the faulty rationale for most back surgery and suggestions for alternatives: https://www.paintreatmentdirectory.com/posts/the-faulty-rationale-for-most-spinal-surgery

mcox1219 | @mcox1219 | 2 days ago

I was diagnosed with arachnoiditis over 50 years ago and didn’t realize that once the initial flareup had calmed down that I continued to have the condition. I’ve had back problems all of my life and I’m now 78. I don’t really know which of my lifelong back problems was arachnoiditis or other spinal issues. Many of my symptoms over the years have coincided with symptoms of arachnoiditis. Last month, I had a severe flare where my right leg started with a Severe muscle spasm in my calf which hours later led to a weird vibration and severe restless leg type spasm like popcorn popping and trying to escape my thigh. Eventually, the pain was gotten under control with Flexeril and Dilaudid or oxy something. I was hospitalized for three days and was given no diagnosis, but when I saw my pain medicine doctor, who has helped me more than anything else this lifetime, he said it was likely arachnoiditis. He also said that he would be treating me for my pain the same way whether it was the arachnoiditis or some other spinal problem so at this moment, why aggravate my back with further testing. I have to agree with him.