Neck and shoulder pain and tingling thumb and twitches

[twofloorsup]

Hi there.
I've been suffering with what I thought was stiff back neck and shoulders for about a week. I've tried deep heat and massage but not noticed any difference.

Today the pain has moved more to my shoulder blade, and my arm keeps twitching. I've also had numbness/ tingling in the pad of my thumb for the last two days.

Does this sound like something to be concerned about ?

I'm mid 40s in reasonable health but slightly overweight.
I don't go to the doctor unless I absolutely have to and an appointment is usually a months wait so I don't want to go unless totally necessary.

Thanks if you got to the end

See a doc. Sounds like disc prolapse at worst, at best a muscle sprain...

I would try a chiropractor or osteopath. I have had issues with my upper spine and when it’s bad I get tingling down my arm and into my hand.

It sounds spinal to me.

Thanks I will try to get an appointment then.

I'll be honest the twitching was making me worry about stroke or heart attack so your replies are extremely reassuring

It sounds like there’s a good chance it’s a muscle and joint problem, with some nerve root irritation. Disc problems can cause shoulder blade pain but so can tight muscles and joints. I agree a Chiro/Osteo would be a good start. In the meantime ice your neck and shoulder on the affected side.

It may be your shoulder, I had similar symptoms, but you really need to get it checked by your GP before anything else, I wouldn't see a chiro or osteopath before you have a medical diagnosis. I would rest it as much as you can. You can ring 111 for advice which may put your mind at rest.

Pinched nerve? Take some inbuprofen and see a physio

Ive got a shoulder issue (tore a muscle 13 years ago and it healed with scar tissue). This tends to flare up intermittently and cause my index finger to tingle. It’s impacting on the nerves. Thankfully my DP is excellent at massaging it and t feels better for a while then the cycle starts again.

I had terrible stiffness in my neck and shoulders about 18 months ago. Spent a fortune on osteopath and massage. Turned out it was because of my posture at work and using bi-focals to work on a computer screen. Adjusted screen and chair at work and bought computer / work glasses which have made a huge differance.

Thank you all for replying.
My shoulder is actually now the main source of pain right at the front of the blade.
I will see how I go this week and if it doesn't ease by itself I'll make an appointment at the GP.
You've all set my mind at rest though so thanks again

Ibuprofen gel can help the pain and bring down inflammation perhaps try that if it doesn’t improve see GP. Tingling and numbness should always be investigated if it’s ongoing.

I do have some of that so I'll give it a go as deep heat feels nice but does nothing !

I've had it and it was a trapped/pinches nerve - you need to see a GP and/or head straight to a Physio (bypass GP)

I don't think a physio will do much until you see a doctor, I had a very stiff and painful shoulder, upper arm, tingling in my little finger and gp referred me to physio for exercises but sadly they didn't work and I ended up having adhesions removed. Hopefully this won't be the case for you but it is frustrating and can be pretty painful.

Frustrating is most definitely the right word !
I've just booked a GP appointment for next week which is a miracle in itself.

I have been getting this for about a week now, though it's getting slightly better. I'm pretty sure it's the unsuitable computer chair which is causing it.

wormery that’s my problem also, adhesions. When you say removed do you mean sugically?

It sounds like a disc issue. Probably around C4.

Hope you can make sense of what I posted, don't know what happened, the GP thought it was just a pulled muscle and surgeon thought it might need redoing which it didn't. I have 3 teeny scars . Are you having surgery.

Sleep, this sun is making my posts disappear. Yes I had keyhole surgery after 18 months of pain, stiff dominant shoulder, burning in my upper arm and tingling in little finger. My GP thought it was just muscle pain, x-ray was normal, I pushed for orthopaedic referral and mRI I which I eventually had. The physio saw me about 6 times but saw no improvement so I just rested it until surgery. I was in hospital 2 nights, have 3 teeny scars and the pain went almost immediately, you have to persevere with the exercises. I had adhesions and a subacromial decompression. I was working in the nhs so had excellent sick pay and time off but it was bloody miserable at the time.

What are adhesions ?
I've never heard that term before.

Oooh very interesting. I thought they just needed breaking down through massage to allow the muscle to repair again correctly.

I’ve had the pain and tingling for 13 years would you believe. I went to the doctor in the early days and they referred me to a physio. That made no difference so I never went back. I had no idea you could actually have surgery for it!!

I'm useless at trying to post references and try not to use wiki too much but this time I found it quite helpful, I looked up adhesive capsulitis and impingment syndrome , I think there is also a shoulder pain website, hope it helps.

@wormery that's scary stuff !!

I know, have you read it. It might not be that so see what GP says, hope you get it sorted out soon. I did play a lot of tennis and swimming plus I had a physicial job so my shoulder must have taken some beating over the years.