Pinched Nerve

[shawnsegler]

So, last week I ended up falling asleep in an akward angle by my sons bed and woke up with a left leg and foot that are all numb. It's a week later, and some of the numbness has gone away but it's still uncomfortable to walk very far. I'm thinking it's a pinched nerve and I've been massaging the leg all the time I'm not sure what else to do. It's a super serious drag.

I've got an appt to see someone this week, but I'm curious if anyone else has any ideas.

Best,

S

[Brady]

What position were you sleeping in?
How far up your leg does numbness go? Is it usually in a specific region (see this chart: http://www.backpain-guide.com/Chapter_F ... pathy.html)
What makes it worse/better? Ex, extended sitting, flexing the spine, etc.
Is the numbness continuous or does it come on with certain activities?
Do you have any low back pain (especially left sided) since the event?

Also, lie down on your back and lift your leg straight up in air like a hamstring stretch, see what angle approximately brings on the numbness.

Trying to figure out if its a nerve pinched at the spine or lower, or something else altogether.
-Brady

[shawnsegler]

The numbness is mostly in the front pad of the foot and leading to a little numbness in the heel and up kind of in the center and the back of the calf.

I was sitting in a chair. Wearing shoes and walking excessively has made it worse. I can flex my toes which I couldn't do initially, but still not all the way.

It feels best at the highest point of being stretched.

Thanks.

S

[nianfong]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sciatica

[cerebus]

Do you do Yoga at all? Sometimes a nice, relaxed Yoga session (not the "power" or "strengthening" poses, just the relaxed stretches) can release the problem.

[shawnsegler]

I'm going to yoga tonight in just that hope.

[nianfong]

try this:
find a wall that you can sit up against
put your legs up, parallel to the wall, so your butt is touching the base of the wall, and your back is lying flat on the ground. the easiest way to do this is to lie down on your side next to the wall in an L-shaped position. then rotate your legs up.

just lie there and relax for like 20-30 mins. that puts your back in traction, and relieves most lower back pain. sounds like sciatica to me, so the problem should be in your lower spine.

[GrahamB]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sciatica

I get the occasional twinge of sciatica if I pull/twist something wrong in my lower back, but it's more like a sharp pain than the numbness Shawn is reporting, but I guess it could be.

Shawn, if you can feel where it's originating from in your back (probably lower back?) then I've found that a hot ginger compress works wonders (boil up some raw ginger in a pan- actually I used powdered ginger last time and that worked fine - , pop in a cloth and let it soak it up, then press the cloth on the effected area as hot as you can stand) Really simple and works a treat.

[Brady]

Sounds like you could have gotten your L5 nerve root a bit at the spine, although its hard to guess via a few questions online. I'd be a bit careful with exercise if walking bugs it, if you herniated a disc it'll take a while to dry up.
Could also be a lot of other things though, so don't mean to be alarmist

[nianfong]

an alternate way to put traction on your spine is similar to the one I posted above, except instead of an L shape, you lie on your back, and put your feet on the wall, letting your lower leg, thigh, and torso form a tetris piece shape (this one: )

but I find the L-shaped one to be more effective.

[nianfong]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sciatica

I get the occasional twinge of sciatica if I pull/twist something wrong in my lower back, but it's more like a sharp pain than the numbness Shawn is reporting, but I guess it could be.

from the wiki entry:

Sciatica (or sciatic neuritis)[1] is a set of symptoms including pain that may be caused by general compression and/or irritation of one of five nerve roots that give rise to the sciatic nerve, or by compression or irritation of the sciatic nerve itself. The pain is felt in the lower back, buttock, and/or various parts of the leg and foot. In addition to pain, which is sometimes severe, there may be numbness, muscular weakness, pins and needles or tingling and difficulty in moving or controlling the leg. Typically, the symptoms are only felt on one side of the body.

and as for ginger, I don't think that's a good idea. tiger balm type stuff would be better--ie menthol and camphor.

[Brady]

sciatica is a vague term. If it is anything nerve root related, its likely specific to L5 based on Shawn's complaint.

Does reaching down to touch your toes hurt? Did you try that straight leg raise test I posted earlier? Those are pretty good ways to see if it may be disc related, which would change the way you'd want to go about handling it.

[GrahamB]

and as for ginger, I don't think that's a good idea.

Why?

[cerebus]

and as for ginger, I don't think that's a good idea.

Why?

I'm guessing because ginger is considered "heating" and might therefore inflame and irritate it, whereas mentol & camphor are "cooling" and might soothe it more? Just a wild guess on my part though.

[GrahamB]

The Gods of Wikipedia say Ginger can be used to treat inflammation. You can't mess with wikipedia, man.

If you look up "ginger compress" on Google you'll find some interesting links. Here's one:

http://home.iae.nl/users/lightnet/healt ... inger.html

Like I said, its works for me and costs virtually nothing.

The Purpose and the Way of Action of a Ginger Compress: The main purpose of a ginger compress is to strongly increase blood circulation and body fluids at areas where stagnation exists. This stagnation usually manifests itself in the form of pain, inflammation, swelling or stiffness.

It additionally helps to actively disperse stagnated energy, and to re-establish a good energy exchange between the body and the environment. The application of a rubber or vinyl sheet on top of a compress would hinder this energy exchange. It could even lead to a worsen the condition instead of relieving it.! In this case, the heat of the compress activates the local energy, but its exchange with the environment is on the contrary hindered by the rubber or vinyl sheet. The active factors in a ginger compress are:

STRONG HEAT. Strong heat will dilate the blood vessels and thereby it will activate the movement of stagnated fluids. Strong heat will also melt or soften mucus stagnations and fatty accumulations and will tend to break up mineral crystallisations. Strong heat has the further advantage of penetrating deeply into the body. Thus a ginger compress can exert its influence deep inside the body, even within solid organs such as the kidneys and liver, or within the lungs.
GINGER. Due to its nature, ginger easily penetrates into the body. (We sometimes noticed a ginger smell in the breath of a person who had been treated with ginger compresses on the kidneys.) Because of its penetrating nature, ginger will also disperse stagnated yin substances such as mucus and fat accumulations. Ginger will further increase local circulation because it opens the blood vessels.
As a result of this double effect, thick liquids in the body start to liquify, heavy deposits start to dissolve, stagnated liquids begin to move again, and gradually all treated tissues become cleansed and nourished with fresh blood. That is to say, tissues will gradually rejuvenate, soften and revitalize.

...

Indications-Specific Situations in which We can Use Ginger Compress:

Many types of acute or chronic pains can be relieved by ginger compresses, such as rheumatism, arthritis, backaches, cramps (intestinal cramps, menstrual cramps, etc.), kidney stone attacks, toothaches, stiff neck, and similar problems. If the pain worsens during the treatment, you should discontinue the compresses. Painful conditions in which a ginger compress is definitely not recommended are described a little further on.
Ginger compresses can speed up the improvement from a variety of inflammatory conditions: for instance bronchitis, acute or chronic liver inflammation, kidney inflammation, prostate infection, bladder inflammation, intestinal inflammations (but never in the case of appendicitis), boils and abscesses.
To relieve congestive conditions such as asthma. In case of an asthma attack the compresses can be continued for a long period, even for hours.
Ginger compresses can be extremely useful to dissolve hardened accumulations of fats, proteins or minerals. Examples of these are kidney stones, gallbladder stones, cysts (breast cysts, ovarian cysts) and benign tumors such as uterine fibroids.
To dissolve muscle tensions.
When tissues have been damaged, ginger compresses can speed up the regeneration of the damaged area. We noticed for instance tremendous benefits of ginger compress in the after-treatment of broken bones.