Neck-Tongue Syndrome?

[gnatrea]

From time to time when I turn my head I get a sharp pain in my neck/head.  The pain is usually behind my right ear right where my head meets my neck.  Seconds later my tongue goes numb.  From doing a little research online I discovered this is probably Neck-Tongue Syndrome.  However, no one ever says if this a serious problem that should be looked at or not.  It only happens a handful of times a year and after I stand still with my head down for a minute I am fine.  Could someone please supply me with some more information.

Thanks!

[goldie804]

I also have the horrible neck-tongue pain.  It can go for a month and the sharp pain doesn't come, but when it does come, it is horrible - very quick.  I am so thankful for this internet to find there truly are others with this syndrom - which I just got on line and discovered this.

Today I have had approximately 12 episodes and the last one was the worst.  I am hurting very badly on my left behind my ear and on my left shoulder.  I also have lower back problems and I am to see a neurologist soon.  You can be sure that I am going to mention this diagnosis to him.  

Thank you so very much everyone for sharing your info and allowing light to my very dark tunnel.

God Bless Each and Every One of YOU.

Goldie

[salli1210]

Wow,, now I dont feel so alone. I can't believe I found this! I;se had this as long as I can remember and have also had MRI's that didn't show anything. I also have degenerative joint & degenerative disk disease. Ant the instability in my cervical spine has caused bone spurs to form.I also experience hypermobility in just about all joints in my body which has caused arthritis and issues. I'm only 28 and this has gone on as long as I can remember. But it is so comforting to find others that can describe this wierd 'attack' perfectly. Let's me know there are others and I'm not crazy!

[sofieB]

have constant neck and tongue spasms.   Jaw is also affected. My  chiro today said i have extreme tightness at c1-2.  He stretched me and i am worse tonight.  HAd some relief at the time but he pulled my head quite hard.  Dont know where to go for help anymore I am exhausted.  

[pembygirl]

I have also had these attacks.Turning my head too quickly.  Burst of pain at the base of my head and a paralyzed tongue. I really feel paralyzed for the 10-20 seconds of pain. I cannot move my head at all . My tongue feels inflated but STIFF and hard unable to move. It is a very scary situation that previously seemed to happen with sports. Yesterday it happened while gardening. I believe my first attack was 9ish. Now 36, I have probably had 20 episodes in my life.  Not quite once a year. But when it does happen it is a scary feeling. What if I was driving etc.
Am I  actually paralyzed?  Dr's don't seem to help. I have found Acupuncture helpful. But with episodes not even once a year, it is hard to tell.
Thank goodness I have found others with the same symptoms and I am not crazy. Thanks for this forum

[bri89]

Hi, I'm 20, and I have also suffered from this since I was about 7 or 8, where i'd turn my head, and get the sharp blinding throbbing pain up the right side of the back of my head & neck, and the left side of my tongue goes numb, and feels swollen. It probably doesn't swell it just feels like it does because it's numb i guess. Anyway, I found the neck-tongue syndrome articles online, took them to my osteopath, and he found them interesting, but knew nothing about it. I mentioned it to my GP, and he basically laughed it off, like, don't believe everything you read, even though it explains my symptoms EXACTLY, and said it's probably a pinched nerve or something, and never got further into it. After reading a few of these posts, I'm a lil worried that it could cause serious problems later on! Do any of you also suffer from frequent headaches, including migraines? Because I do, and they also seem to be unexplainable, so frustrating!!

[rivens]

I've also suffered from neck-tongue syndrome since i was a child and thought it was normal - i assumed it was what people called "a crick in the neck". It was only as i got older that i realised - due to the alarmed reaction of a friend who witnesses one of these episodes - that this acute pain (it feels like an axe striking my head, followed by a fizzing sensation) and the numbness in my tongue was something different. Soon after i got referred to my local hospital and was lucky enough to see a doctor who'd just read one of the few medical papers on this syndrome. I had an MRI scan like sooners85 and there was no apparent abnormality. I dread it happening when I'm driving as my head always falls forward (or that's what i do to relieve the pain) but so far so good. Otherwise i'm in perfect health in my early 40s (i've run marathons) and think it's just one of those things.