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Off-Topic Anyone dealt with loss of strength due to pinched nerve (cervical radiculopathy)

Update:

I’ve visited the neurosurgeon twice (before and after MRI). My condition is due to a small herniated disk and some other minor issues in my cervical, but they do not require surgery or any major treatment. I was recommended some sessions of physical therapy for strengthening the area and prescribed painkillers while the problem resolves itself. He told me I can go back to normal exercises as long as I can withstand discomfort. I have this doctor’s opinion in high regard since he is an accomplished lifter himself. So, good news in general. I have been diligently doing my traction and flexibility exercises I learned last time, and they do help overcome the pain.

Do you guys have a preference regarding sleeping (on your back, side, etc). Is there a safer position for people who suffer from neck problems? Do you recommend a specific type of pillow?

Thanks a lot
 
Liberty Prime said:
Is the neck supported? Is it hard, soft, memory foam?

Thanks
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Its just a half bolster, top is memory foam with a base layer of a more dense foam. Regular pillow is poly foam fill, fairly thin. Pic shows on the left how I sleep if on my stomach, right is on my side.




Sleeping on my back destroys my neck and jacks up my lower back as well.
 
Man am I happy with mixed emotions to have found this thread… stuck at a crossroads. In Aug 2024 did a somewhat vigorous back day with some violent kipping pull-ups (stupid stupid stupid) always told people they were stupid but wanted to get a muscle up at age 47. Then proceeded to a 4hour surf session the next day. Pretty much my core broak down toward the end and I kept paddling with an arched neck. Plus I have been doing a lot of BJJ over the years.

Woke up in two days middle night with pain that imagine some people would kill themselves over if it lasted forever. Thought it was torn rotator… nope.

MRIs, xrays, electric shock tests later … diagnosis. C6/7 pinched nerve. Move to PT…

Tricep shrunk to nothing… couldn't do even 2 pushups after being able to bang out 70 straight.

Now 7 months later… after PT 3 times a week, massage, stretching, manual traction… this is where my tricep is…. A little bit of nothing, but slowly coming back. I can do 10 pushups now.

Surgeon said to get artificial disk and relive nerve pinch… but after reading a study where on aberahe most people my age would show a disk herniation and no symtoms… Im thinking go hard PT and work triceps for atleast a month.

Going to run a Decca cycle and see if that helps. I ah e read some studies on it increasing netve regeneration and helping relieve inflammation while regenerating.

One image bad tricep, one my good tricep and mri

Thoughts.
 

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My thinking would run like this:

- pain receeding, function improving, neural activation of motor units is where/what it is and surgery will have no immediate benefit. Physical therapy and work on dragging in quiescent motor units via nearby motor unit activation and reawakening stunned nerves. This can take a few but in reality is not much different from recovering after a longish duration immobilizing injury.

or

- neural path to quiescent motor units is being actively obstructed due to disc collapse, chunk impinging on nerve, narrowing of foramen etc etc, I'd be seriously considering surgery to arrest any further decline and/or direct effects of said issues - following a 2nd opinion of course!
 
Yeah… you see my problem. Thing is, there is definitely bone spur growth and that could be impinging, but then all this came on from a sports related injury … so it wasn’t like a slow onset and decline. Just paranoid about long term outcome of have a disk replaced and if that will ever lead to more surgeries.
 
PopularIT.net said:
Man am I happy with mixed emotions to have found this thread… stuck at a crossroads. In Aug 2024 did a somewhat vigorous back day with some violent kipping pull-ups (stupid stupid stupid) always told people they were stupid but wanted to get a muscle up at age 47. Then proceeded to a 4hour surf session the next day. Pretty much my core broak down toward the end and I kept paddling with an arched neck. Plus I have been doing a lot of BJJ over the years.

Woke up in two days middle night with pain that imagine some people would kill themselves over if it lasted forever. Thought it was torn rotator… nope.

MRIs, xrays, electric shock tests later … diagnosis. C6/7 pinched nerve. Move to PT…

Tricep shrunk to nothing… couldn't do even 2 pushups after being able to bang out 70 straight.

Now 7 months later… after PT 3 times a week, massage, stretching, manual traction… this is where my tricep is…. A little bit of nothing, but slowly coming back. I can do 10 pushups now.

Surgeon said to get artificial disk and relive nerve pinch… but after reading a study where on aberahe most people my age would show a disk herniation and no symtoms… Im thinking go hard PT and work triceps for atleast a month.

Going to run a Decca cycle and see if that helps. I ah e read some studies on it increasing netve regeneration and helping relieve inflammation while regenerating.

One image bad tricep, one my good tricep and mri

Thoughts.
Click to expand...
I had a very similar thing happen to me about 2 years back. c6-7 herniation. Left tricep became extremely weak and shrunk. Had to give up BJJ and any heavy training. I put off the disc replacement for a long time and made progress with PT but never enough progress and the nerve pain got better, but I had to take NSAIDS all the time.

After about a year I got the disc replacement and the nerve pain got better immediately. I also was able to start gaining strength in my tricep that actually stuck around. Now I'm working my way back to simple before I start BJJ again.

Not trying to sell you on the surgery. You know how you are progressing and feeling right now. I just wanted to let you know that at least for me, the surgery was a really easy thing to go through and worked.
 
PopularIT.net said:
Yeah… you see my problem. Thing is, there is definitely bone spur growth and that could be impinging, but then all this came on from a sports related injury … so it wasn’t like a slow onset and decline. Just paranoid about long term outcome of have a disk replaced and if that will ever lead to more surgeries.
Click to expand...

Its a tough decision, def get a second opinion. Additional factor is the longer a nerve a has been impinged the more permanent the reduction becomes, or so I was told by my neurologist. Instead of disc replacement perhaps the opening can be widened etc - 2nd opinion. I'm biased and probably naive as I've had several surgeries and come out the other side better off, every time. I'm thinking "how long to try rehabbing the existing injury vs rehabbing post surgery.

For me another consideration is that I currently have great health ins and might not in a few years, so if I think it'll come to that, get me on the schedule now rather than later.

Plenty of people have recovered without surgery though, and success is not 100%. Is a tough call...
 
I don't want to give anybody false hope but there's a YouTube channel run by 2 chiropractors called The Nerve Doctors - they do a decent job with professional script writing, audio and video to cover nutrient treatments and light therapy for nerve pain. Although they sell supplements, there's no requirement to buy the ones they sell ( you can source your own) but the basic point is that peripheral neuropathy may not be irreversible. Give it a try and see what you think.

Three things I've tried and recommended: Red/IR light therapy, R Alpha Lipoic Acid, Benfotiamine.

As always, YMMV.
 
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