Question
I over did some yard work.  I suffered for weeks.  My hands tingled and would go numb.  I was very sore from one hand across my chest to the other. I went to a chiropractor for the first time last week and he did a set of x rays.  I was told I had military neck.  He adjusted me and I did feel relief in my hands.  I'm about to go for my fourth visit and I am very concerned because while my original symptoms are better, I am having very strange sensations in the tendons in my throat and chest.  This sensation comes and goes but is very peculiar.  If I were to describe my symptoms now, it is very scary because this pain makes me think I'm having a heart attack or a stroke.  I'm in good health otherwise but am beginning to panic, which I'm sure makes things worse.  The day after a treatment I feel pretty good, the next day I start to feel terrible and am freaking out.  Do you think I'm having a heart attack, panic attack, stroke or am I reawakening nerves that have been cut off due to my military neck?

Answer
Dear Libby,

First of all, "military neck" simply describes the posture of your neck. In my mind, it does not describe why you are having symptoms. A loss of the normal curve in the neck could cause, over time, altered mechanical function that can result in disc damage or degenerative changes, which then could cause you some nerve compression, that could cause you to have numbness and tingling that radiates from the neck and into the arms.  

The very same condition could cause muscle spasm and tightness in the neck and upper mid back pain.

To answer your question:  If you have any thought that you might be having a heart attack, get away from your computer right now and go to urgent care or the ER.  They are the only ones that can help you to know if you are having a heart attack.  You should also coordinate your chiropractic care with a good medical doctor. He/she would evaluate you, as needed, to help you to know if you are having coronary artery issues that would lead to a heart attack, or other conditions that you might not be aware of.

Throat and chest symptoms could be the result of tightness of the muscles of the neck and chest... but why would you risk trying to justify the symptoms if they are bad enough to scare you?

Go to your MD, Urgent Care, or Emergency Room (in order from routine to emergency treatment), depending on how concerned you are and how bad the symptoms are. Don't mess with chest symptoms. Always check them out to make sure nothing bad is happening.

Keith Biggs, DC
http://www.eastmesachiropractor.com