Question
I was involved in a car accident 2 years ago.
I was knocked out and was taking to the ER.
I suffered a CSF leak, beniegn postional vertigo, extreme neck/back/shoulder pain.
Everything is happening on the left side.
A MRI takin 6 months after the accident showed some bright spots on the outside edges of the t1-t2.
I had a nerve test done and it was found that a possible brachial plexus injury was the culprit.
They labeled my fracture on my spine as a old injury. I had noproblems before that though.
What I am left with is a numb pinky finger,ringing in my right ear that intensifies if I move my neck to the left. I can not sleep on my left shoulder, I have a burning sensation over my c-8-c-9, a deep pain at t1-2-3, jerking neck and arms, night sweats, and only a 50% range in motion in my neck.
I can go a week or two with just normal pain and then out of nowhere I feel a stabbing pain followed by a burning sensation and then the pain and stiffness go to my neck and shoulder.
I have been told these are permanent and PT caused me a lot of pain.
I am a 33 year old, contractor that was in the shape of his life.
The MRI showed DDD at c2,c3,c4,c5,c6,c7. and slightly bulged disc's but not protruding into the spinal cord.
They have dismissed the mri results as old injuries and left me with a brachial plexius diagnosis.
Does any of this seem odd?
My therapists told me that it is just whiplash and  I have shifted vertabrae due to muscles acting like a fusion to stop the bones from moving.
For the first year my neck was puffed up twice as big like I had mumps or something and now it's just every other week some pain shoots up my arm,shoulder,neck and midback and within 24 hours I have nearly zero movement in my neck and my shoulder radiates and throbs.
The headaches are full helmet feeling and the ringing in my right ear is enough to drive me nutty.


Answer
Dear Jason,

Your therapists have, in my view, identified the situation: "... shifted vertabrae due to muscles acting like a fusion to stop the bones from moving."  Contracted muscles produce the whole range of effects, except for the CSF leak, which results from shifted intracranial pressure.  Tight neck muscles compress the brachial plexus, leading to numbness in the hand; they also give the neck the appearance of thickness and underlie cervicogenic vertigo.  The neck is moved by muscles that coordinate all the way down the spine.

Despite the pain and array of symptoms, the situation is relatively simple:  improve your control of the tension of your neck muscles, to the degree of relaxation.

You are the kind of client I would expect to see for a few sessions.  You might be able to get some improvement with self-help instruction (see somatics.com), but I think private sessions would serve you better (speed and degree of change).

Sorry to hear of your suffering.  With a correct approach, it can be over fairly quickly.

with regard,
Lawrence Gold