QuestionI was knocked off my motorcycle some 17 years ago and although I had no broken bones did suffer soft tissue injuries which took some years of regular visits to a chiropractor to stabilise. I have since paid visits to my chiropractor for 'maintenance' on my back and neck.
Last year I started to experience numbness around my right hip and down my right thigh, both feet and toes, both arms, hands and fingers. The numbness/tingling moves around and I don't experienced it in all areas at any one time. I also experience excruciating pain at times upon movement, again this comes and goes but sometimes I can be doubled over in pain for several days.
I was referred to a back specialist last year who examined me and listened to my symptoms and said this was not related to my back however I should consider seeing a neurologist.
I have just received the results back from MRI scans. My consultant reported the following:
"...MRI of whole spine showed minor spondylotic changes in the cervical spine at C4/5 and C5/6 and also some mild degenerative changes in the lumbar spine with a mild right parasaggital disc bulge at L4/5 and a small central disc bulge at L5/S1"
Could you tell me please if the MRI findings are the reason I have the symptoms stated above and if so what I can do to improve things.
Many thanks.
Answer
Lawrence Gold Somatics 
steps
Hi, Helen,
It's easy to get lost in all the MRI details, not "seeing the forest, for seeing the trees."
You didn't have a soft-tissue injury that took so long to stabilise, and healed tissue doesn't need maintenance. You had a soft-tissue INSULT, which shows up in and as muscular contraction patterns maintained by the muscle/movement memories imprinted at the time of injury and that commonly last indefinitely unless addressed through means that alter muscle/movement memory.
Muscular contraction patterns cause muscular pain and also nerve entrapment (numbness). That's what you've got.
So the MRI findings are not the reason you have the symptoms you have. They are the SIGN of muscular contractions, which ARE the reason you have those symptoms.
Please see my pieces, Completing Recovery from an Injury | http://somatics.com/recovery_from_injury.htm
and
Ending Chronic Back Pain | exercises for the back | http://somatics.com/wordpress/chronic-back-pain/
To precisely identify the contraction patterns you are in and to get control of them is necessary to your recovery.
Therein lies your relief.
