MRI Result Confusion -help?

[LollipopGrl]

I recently got my lumbar region done, and last weekend I did the cervical.

Here's a bit of background. I was having a decent amount of pain in my lower back (I weigh much more than I should -though I'm working on it) along with hip pain, leg/foot weakness, and the occasional pins and needles.

When I started my exercise regimen, it is believe that I pulled a muscle (along with possible RSI issues from working 14 hours a day on a computer) along my neck/shoulder. This resulted in my shoulder rising/swelling and that was over 7 weeks ago, leaving my shoulders uneven.

The pain in my upper back has increased and I feel a bit of a "knot" under my neck. I saw a neurologist (he ordered the cervical) but he believes it's all muscle related. But admittedly, I believe the injury that started this were neck stretches. My primary doctor believes I overdid it without properly warming up, and that resulted in my waking up with a raised shoulder and pain throughout my upper back (though she acknowledged that I had a LOT of tension knots already).

My doctor told me I had muscle spasms, ordered the MRI, and sent  me to physical therapy. Well, PT didn't help very much and it turns out that my MRI was only done on my lumbar region. Now my PT is telling me that she thinks I have mild scoliosis along with a lot of muscle tension all around my back.

Needless to say, I'm very nervous. I should get my cerival results in a few days, but for now, I'd like an interpretation of my lumbar MRI in hopes that will shed some light on my issue. I know that I have 2 herniated discs, but that's about all I understood:

Transitional vertebare lumbosacral junction.
Straighted lumbar lordosis.
Bilateral SI joint disease.
Deep Lumbar fascitis.
L4-L5 and L5-S1 central disc herniations measuring 2mm with central spinal stenosis.

If anyone can shed some light on this report, I'd appreciate it.

[mike1105]

yes to the deep tissue massage.... the exercises are in the books and on Jolie Bookspan's website. dont assume your posture is good-- i thought mine was too and i was very closed in/rounded--- have it checked by a pro

[LollipopGrl]

Thank you very much for responding. I had a second MRI done 2 weeks ago for cervical and got the results today:

Sagittal T1/T2 axial gradient echo T2 images were obtained. There is normal curvature. There is no cord compression or abnormal spinal cord signal. No significant degenrative changes are seen. The posterior fossa structures visualized are unremarkable. There is no intraspinal mass. Impression: No significant fings.

Since it will be some time before I see my neurologist again (Nov.) I'm assuming that my spine is okay. He did, however, tell me that he thought my issue was muscular. I will definitely check out these books you've recommended. I'm not hunched forward or anything, but I definitely know I have lots and lots of tension in my shoulders and upper back that I need to work out.

In your opinion, along with the books, should I look into deep tissue massage? Are there any exercises I should be doing to combat this?

Again, many, many thanks!

[mike1105]

FOR NOW I WOULD ASSUME YOUR PAIN IS MUSCULAR-- GET YOUR BODY BACK INTO SHAPE-- CORRECT YOUR POSTURE  (MOST LIKELY YOU HAVE A WEAK CORE AND A FORWARD TILT OF THE PELVIS FROM ALL THAT COMPUTER WORK--THIS CAUSES TIGHT HIP FLEXORS = PAIN PAIN PAIN.)).. THE KNOT IN YOUR NECK MOST LIKELY IS A TRIGGER POINT IN THE UPPER TRAP, SCM,OR SCALENE MUSCLE--ALL OF WHICH CAN GET TIGHT AND SHORT AND CAUSE ALL KINDS OF POSTURAL PROBLEMS IN PEOPLE --USUALLY THOSE WHO WORK ON THE COMPUTER ALOT. 2 BOOKS AND A WEBSITE: BOOKS ARE TRIGGER POINT MANUAL BY CLAIR DAVIES, A POSTURE BOOK BY PAUL D'AREZZO, AND A WEBSITE BY JOLIE BOOKSPAN--YOU MAY WANT TO ORDER HER BOOK "THE AB REVOLUTION" AND/OR "HOW TO FIX YOUR BACK PAIN WITHOUT DRUGS OR SURGERY".. THIS STUFF SAVED MY LIFE AND I AM PAIN FREE NOW--AND BELIEVE ME I WAS WORSE THAN YOU.