Constant pain in neck, shoulders, down back, tendonitis in rotator cuff.

[April2]

I don't know if this is all related or not but I've been having pain in my neck and shoulders (mostly) for years. Some days it gets really bad, some days it's more of a dull pain. I've had headaches off and on due to this, I believe.
Off and on I also have pressure and pain up against my left ribcage.
The last couple of months I noticed pain in my upper right arm and some limited motion so I went to the doctor last week and he thinks I have tendonitis in my rotator cuff and put in a referral for Physical Therapy.

Today the pain is really bad in my neck, shoulders and down the back, to the point I feel nauseous with the pain. I took 3 Motrin and am trying to take it easy but I'm getting frustrated and tired of dealing with this pain and not knowing what is causing it and why some days it gets this bad.
I didn't tell my doctor about the pressure under my left rib because that's an on and off again thing but I also have digestive issues and IBD so figured that might be it. I keep getting a pinched nerve feeling in my left shoulder, down the back too.

5 years ago I had X-Rays taken of my upper spine when the pain first started and they did notice some Degenerative Disc Disease. They said I had moderate narrowing of the C5-6 and the C6-7 disc spaces. Anterior marginal osteophyte formation was seen at these levels.
I don't know if any of that can have anything to do with all the pain I'm experiencing today. When I tried mentioning to a couple of new doctors this last year or so that they did see some DDD years ago they pretty much laughed it off and said we all get DDD as we get older and saw no reason to run X-Rays again.
I'm tired of the pain, though, and it's getting worse. I don't feel like doctors are taking me seriously and I want to feel better. Where should I go from here? Should I try the PT again? I tried it a couple of years ago and it made very little difference.

[jemma116]

Sorry to hear that your arm has got worse.

Glad to know that the doctor has referred you to Physiotherapy.  Hope you get an appointment soon.

As the doctor thinks that your problem could be tendonitis, it may well be.  I had that in both my arms and could not do my work.  I don't remember having a shoulder problem with it, it was more the fingers, hands and up the arms.  When I had a problem with the pain from the shoulder that ran down to the elbow it was found that there was a trapped nerve in the neck.

Do you do any repetitive work that may have aggravated this problem?
It sounds like you definitely could do with some massage in your shoulder and neck area.  There appears to be a lot of muscle spasms going on that need help to be loosened up.

I am surprised that the doctor didn't prescribe anything to help you to relax the tight muscles and some anti-inflammatories and pain relief.

Hope you get that appointment soon.

Best wishes.

[April2]

I wrote a response back and I don't know what happened to it, I'm so sorry.

Thank you Jenna and Silverfox for responding back to my post
. I was tested 5 years ago for rheumatoid arthritis and didn't have it.
They did not do an MRI, just a spinal x-ray where they saw the DDD at that time. I don't know if it's gotten worse but it feels like it has.
I have headaches a lot anymore and am very, very tight in my neck and shoulders and some days it's not so bad and some days I have a lot of pain, not sure why.
I'm a little more worried about my right arm right now because this is something fairly new, with the limited mobility and pain. It was just pain with sudden movements but lately I'm feeling pain even with more careful, controled movements so I think my arm has gotten worse. The doctor thinks it could be tendontits and set up a referral to go to PT so we'll see if that helps and if they decide to do another x-ray.
The pain got really bad last week and I couldn't get an appointment so left a message with the nurse asking if I could get an x-ray and she said PT can order one if they think I need one and if the pain is that bad I should go to the ER but I hate to go to the ER and don't think they could do much, anyway. I guess PT is all I've got right now so I'll give it a try.
Thanks again for helping and again I'm sorry my first response didn't seem to go through. My laptop has been acting up lately, not sure if that had anything to do with it but please excuse any possible typos. I have a tempermental computer, apparently.

[silverfox67]

Hi April2.  I also have DDD and as far as the last MRI showed, I have no discs left.  My orthopedist asked what I was taking as I should be in a wheelchair according to her.  I take lots of supplements.  Foremost I take Essiac which helped me with the DDD pain within a week. (Before that I had to pull myself to the edge of the bed and land on my knees and slowly pull myself upright.  Then I used a cane.)  I walk pretty much upright and have a slight limp - but am ambulatory.  - I also take Calcium, magnesium, Vitamin D3, Ipriflavone and ALA.  -  I have Fibromyalgia which causes me pain in the shoulders and neck - and spasms down my upper back from time to time.  Magnesium seems to help that although when it gets damp out or there are clouds nothing much seems to help.  I take Naproxen for the pain on those days - but it has a tendency to hurt my stomach as I also have IBD or IBS.  I have a Shiatzu massager which I use on my back on those days and sometimes a heating pad.  Cold really hurts.  -  I recently started walking with my friends - only a block or two and quite slowly - but exercise is very important or I'll end up bent over!  -  About once every two years or so, my doctor orders Physical Therapy - in a warm swimming pool.  That helps me "get going" again and the hot tub feels so good.  - I also use some weights (1 lb.) to exercise my arms and get the kinks out of my shoulders.  Yes, it hurts a little - but I don't do a lot either.  Maybe 5 - 10 reps of each.  -  I used to go to the chiropractor but find that most times the exercise keeps me limber and I don't need popping as much as I used to. - Just my neck from time to time. -  I can really relate as my problems are pretty much the same that you have. (Only I have heart trouble on top of all that). -  I hope this info helps you and that you stay in touch with me and Jemma and let us know how you are.

[jemma116]

All the problems you are experiencing are because of the degeneration in the neck and the osteophyte.  This is causing pinching on surrounding nerves.

Seeing a Physio Therapist won't stop the pain, but if your arm problem is because of a trapped nerve in the neck area, they can help to release it and also give you appropriate neck and arm exercised to do.  They could also try you on traction if they felt it my be of benefit.

Keep your neck warm by wearing a scarf and keep out of draughts.
If you are sitting at a computer for too long that will cause neck problems too.

I am surprised that you are not complaining of pins and needles in other parts of your body with having the narrowing of the disc spaces.

The pressure under your left rib is likely to be stomach problems.  The pancreas is on that side too.

A massage in the upper back area would help to loosen up tight muscles.

Unfortunately there is no cure for degenerative disc disease.  Did they tell you this is osteoarthritis?  You would need to have a blood test taken to find out if you have rheumatoid arthritis.  The symptoms are the same for both, but rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder and also affects all other organs in the body.

Best wishes.