Strange feeling of pressure in armpits and neck......

[Lailoken]

I need advice.

In the past several months I have been experience some strange feelings of pressure in my neck and armpits.  It started with my neck.  I would have mild pain or uncomfortable pressure in the right front side of my throat.  Often the pain in that area would shoot up to the back of my right eye.  Now, in the past week or so I have felt a mild throbbing pressure deep in both armpits.  It is not painful, just uncomfortable.  This also start in my armpits and as it throbs I can feel it travel down to the inside of my elbows and to the back of my hands.  I have always been one to avoid having to go to the doctor mainly because I didn't want hear what they had to tell me if they had something bad to say.  I guess that is common, huh?  :)  However, I am responsible for more lives than my own now.  I would just feel more comfortable to here some feedback first.  If my symptons can easily explain something common, harmless, and requiring no treatment then I am fine with that.  :)  

[Lailoken]

Yes, I was a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne and had two deployments back to back, Afghanistan and then Iraq.  Thank you for expressing gratitude.  With a war that has so much of a negative stigma worldwide gratitude is sometimes hard to come by.  

You know, that brings something to mind.  As a paratrooper, when jumping from an airplane, my rate of descent was approximately 18 feet per second.  Would it be possible for a disc to slip on impact without me noticing it right away?  If so, that would make perfect sense.  I just assumed that if something like that happened that the pain would be instantaneous and excruciating.  I guess that would depend on the extent of the dislocation, so to speak.  

Thank you for the links.  They were very helpful in helping me understand how pressure on a nerve can radiate or "travel" to other locations in the body.  I actually believe it is musculo-skeletal now myself.  The "pressure" in my armpits did increase a little more the other night.  It isn't really painful, just uncomfortable.  It got to the point where the sensation traveled down my arms and to the back of my hands.  It even felt like my pinkie fingers were trying to curl in slightly.  I had to stand up and do some arm rotations in hopes that it would decrease the feeling of pressure.  But, I am scheduling a doctors appointment in the next week or so.  It is just difficult finding time having to work so much.  I am currently working in government security and my salary isn't the best to be the sole support of a family of four.  I often have to work quite a bit of over time.  But, as you said, if it is something minor that just seems to be worse then I would have a little more peace of mind if I knew for sure.  This constant worrying about it is beginning to take a toll on me.  :)  Good day, sir, and as always, thank you for all you help.

[kirb_dude1]

well hmmmmmm, i wouldnt worry to much about cancer, cancer is present in a lot of families...especially in mine, you sound like a pretty healthy guy(besides whats going on) ive even asked a few of my fellow students about your case and what they think, they are leaning towards musculo-skeletal(like me) and two of em think it could be vasculitis....but i really do think you should see a doctor...it is very hard to hear if they are bringing bad news, but most likely its just something very small that seems very big...especially if its related to musculo-skeletal.

heres why i think you could be experiencing a spinal subluxation(misplaced vertebral disc impeding on a nerve)http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Gray812and814.PNG

go to this website it is about dermatomes maybe it can shed some light on your situation...

take a look at this one to

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dermatoms.svg

see the nerves run out of the vertebral column(spine) as you might know, when there is a disc or any vertebrae putting pressure on a nerve, it disrupts that nerve signal and can cause extreme pain wherever that nerve(or nerves) run to.

and i would like to say thank you for defending our country sir, by any chance were you in iraq?

[Lailoken]

Wow, you sound a lot like me.  When I went to the emergency room for what was diagnosed as panic attacks, it was hard for me to accept.  I thout that there must be something else going on.  I was a paratrooper and went to war twice, I have just never been the type to panic over anything.  So, I did the same thing as you did, I searched and researched different ailments that my symptons could could fit into.  I must have considered everything form black mold to neruological disorders.  But, in the end, I had one doctor explain what a panic attack really was.  He explained them as unexplained and unprovoked releases of certain chemicals such as adrenaline, endorphins, and the such from the brain.  Before I heard them explained in that way I had the perception that I was "losing it" so to speak.  The first time I had one I was actually sitting in my vehicle and reading Harry Potter.  I was quite calm and relaxed.  What is still curious about the panic attacks is the fact that they just lasted for about a month.  Is it normal for someone to never have had them and then have them a lot for about a month just for them to completely stop?  It just seems unlikely pattern or the lack there of.  I can also identify with you as far as being a temporary hypochondriac.  I am very concious about that.  I am a firm believer in the laws of expectation and attraction and the relationship the mind has with the body.  So, I am left trying not to ignore symptons but, trying not to keep looking until I find something as well.  That is partly why I am on here trying to get answers.  

The episode I had with the pain in my back only lasted for the evening and that was about 9 or 10 years ago.  Now I have had back issues in the past before but, it was my lower back due to bad posture and muscle strain.  

I have noticed that the feeling of pressure in my armpits have subsided a bit.  But, wouldn't you know it, I just mentioned it and now I feelit in my right arm, go figure.  I have been rather lethargic as of late, as well.  But, I haven't been getting much sleep and working a lot of hours as well.  I am going to level with you.  My father smoked cigarettes for a good 35 to 40 years and was dignosed with lung cancer almost four years ago.  It was the agressive small cell type and he beat it.  As far as his doctors are concerned he should have already died a few times.  Due to the chemo and the weakened immune system he developed PML (progressive multi-focal leukoencephalopothy).  I probably spelled that wrong.  But, his doctor told him that he would be brain dead in 6 months and that was two years ago.  He is still just as cognizant as ever.  However, my uncle, his brother, was diagnosed with lung cancer about a year after my father and just deteriorated within 6 months.  My point is, with all of this, I can't help but think of the propensity I have to develop some sort of cancer due to a genetic predisposition to it.  As I said before, I have been a smoker for about 15 years now and just within that past few years I have noticed my health decline.  I used to be much more active and I had more energy.  It was very unusual for me to have any kind of chest pains or breathing problems.  I used to run ten miles every other day.  It is a joke for me to think of trying that now.  I just want to know that my symptoms don't point to anything serious enough to affect my ability to provide for my family.  I guess that is why I haven't gone to the doctor yet.  I feel like if I go to the doctor they will tell me something I don't want to hear.  The prospect of not being able to provide for my family or watch my children grow up is a very scary thing.  The human brain will do more to avoid pain than to gain pleasure, right?  lol  Anyhow, I appreciate you taking an interest in my case.  Good day, sir.

[kirb_dude1]

the way you describe the pain in your back makes me think more towards a misplaced, slipped or herniated disc. along with my med. school which i am attending now i did go to palmer college of chiropractic for about a year( ended up dropping out and going to UNSOM) but at palmer we focused on the subluxation complex, it focuses on nerves being impeded on by the vertebral discs which can disrupt nerve synapses to different body parts causing those parts to malfunction... im just trying to rule out the simplest explanation before we move on to auto-immune or other complex problems, as for the skin issues that somewhat makes me worry because vasculitis causes inflamation of vessels which can cause hematamous build ups under the skin due to incorrect circulation, i strongly advise you go see a chiropractor first just to maybe see if an adjustment can help...your doctor will probably not reccomend it(no doctors like chiropractors) but chiropractic is completely safe...

vasculitis is my largest worry, it can be treated though...lets just hope its a slipped disc, when i was seventeen i had what i thought was a heart attack, ive always been in great shape and it just did not fit in with my physical health, the doctors could not figure out what it was...so i decided to find out was wrong with me...thats what made me want to be a doctor, well after about a month of studying and reoccuring chest pain along with a huge amount of stress and hypochondrianism i finally found my answer, i had a cough three weeks before the chest pain, what this did what put extreme pressure on the costo-sternal joints around the heart and sternum(costo- refers to ribs sternal- refers to sternum) i developed something called pre-cordial catch syndrome which causes centralized pains across the chest...no doc even thought to look for musculoskeletal issues, which is why im trying to specialize in thoracic and vertebral orthopedics...in my studies so far id say about 1/3 of the complaints of chest pain is due to musculoskeletal issues...in fact 1,600,000 people a year go to the doctor reporting chest pain and it is diagnosed as a musculo issue... all im saying is there is reason to stress but you really shouldnt, i buried myself with stress and turned into a temporary hypochondriac and i would really need to look at the skin ailment for a strong diagnosis, keep in touch im very interested in your case

[Lailoken]

Pleurisy makes sense and it make me feel a little better about the outlook.  I actually thought I might have had a case of pleurisy back in '98.  A sharp pain hit me in the upper right back almost under the right shoulder blade but, a little more center.  Anyhow, it happened at work and as soon as it did I couldn't catch my breath at all.  Just to move was painful.  I left work and every slight bumb while driving was excruciating.  By the time I got home it was all I could do to crawl into my house and lay on the couch.  But, it was fine after that evening and I never had an issue with it since then.  I know if these are both cases of pleurisy they should be separately linked to separate moments of some sort of trauma to the pleural sac, right?  The only sympton I haven't really noticed in me is the joint pain.  Now the weight loss is hard to gauge because I am a smoker, which I am pretty much done with, and I have always been underweight.  I am 29 and 5'9" and I have a 29 waist and I weigh about 145.

As far as skin changes as a sypmton of vasculitis, I have had skin issues in the past 6 to 7 years.  I developed a sebaceaous cyst on my back.  That one I have had the longest.  More often they are small ones in my ear lobes which flare up from time to time.  Quite annoying, by the way.  I have also noticed them in my armpits but I have never had any issues from those.  One that did concern me a little was about four years ago.  It appeared on the back right side of my head.  Before it became infected it actually turned my hair black just in the spot over the cyst.  Once it got infected it was ver painful so I went to the doctor and she told me that she could lance it or I could just leave it alone and wait for it to take care of itself.  So, I chose the later option and it has not returned since then.  Another one formed on my forhead as well.  It was thankfully smaller in size but remained about three or four years.

Another skin issue I have had happening in the past 7 or 8 years is red, flaky, patches of skin on my face mainly on the sides of my nose and the area between my eyebrows.  But, like I said, it has been several years since this has been occuring.  I always assumed it was rosacea or psoriasis.

[kirb_dude1]

well i definetley know that these previous symptoms are "pertinent" for diagnosis, it almost sounds like pluerisy heres an attachment or three,
The main symptom of pleurisy is a sharp or stabbing pain in the chest that gets worse with deep breathing, coughing or sneezing. The pain may stay in one place, or it may spread to the shoulder or back. Sometimes it becomes a fairly constant dull ache.

Depending on what's causing the pleurisy, one may have other symptoms:

Shortness of breath
Cough
Fever and chills
Rapid, shallow breathing
Unexplained weight loss
Sore throat followed by pain and swelling in the joints

another possibilty is brachial plexus nerve injury heres another attachment

High-energy trauma to the upper extremity and neck can cause a variety of lesions to the brachial plexus. Most common are traction injuries, in which the head and neck are moved away violently from the ipsilateral shoulder; injuries may also be caused by compression between the clavicle and first rib, penetrating injuries, or direct blows. Recognition may be delayed by other injuries, particularly to the spinal cord and head.4, 5 Because this topic is complex, this article focuses primarily on traction injuries, the most common injuries in adults. Such injuries usually are catastrophic for the affected individual. Loss of useful function of the upper extremity is common, but early repair and reconstruction are providing far greater restoration than was possible a few years

heres one more attachment on vasculitis... tell me what you think

Skin. People may experience a variety of skin changes, including purple or red spots. The changes may look like clusters of small dots, splotches, bruises, or hives. They may be itchy or painless.
Joints. People can experience aches and arthritis if the joints are affected.
Lungs. People may experience shortness of breath or even cough up blood. On a chest x ray, lung symptoms may look like pneumonia, even though they are not.
Gastrointestinal tract. Ulcers in the mouth may be present in some types of vasculitis. Also, abdominal pain or bloody diarrhea can occur in people with vasculitis. In some severe cases, the intestines can rupture.
Sinuses, nose, and ears. People may experience sinus infections, chronic middle ear infections, ulcers in the nose, or in certain cases there may be hearing loss.
Eyes. People whose eyes are affected by vasculitis may experience a blurring or loss of vision.
Brain. People may experience headaches, confusion, changes in behavior, or strokes.
Nerves. People may experience numbness, tingling, and weakness in various parts of the body. They also may experience symptoms in their limbs, such as loss of feeling or strength in the hands and feet or shooting pains in the arms and legs.

[Lailoken]

Thank for the info.  I am 29 so, you aren't far off.  In the summer of '07 I was in a car accident.  In the accident my right arm was hit by the inside of my door pushing my elbow into the right side of my ribs.  Just a little soreness in the area for a couple days and no visible bruising.  Afew months later in November I began to experience panic attacks for about a month straight.  They just started out of the blue and it was just for that month and I haven't had one since then.  Everything was seemingly fine after that until the end of the past summer.  I stood up from sitting on the sofa one evening, walked over to my son, I leaned forward and gave him a kiss goodnight.  As I straightened back up a sharp pain struck me in the right side of my ribs.  I then started to get dizzy so I tried to make it to my bed.  I had to sit down on the way to my bed or else I would have fallen over.  After regaining some compusure, I got to my bed and immediately broke out into a very hot sweat which only lasted a minute or two.  I then got the chills because I was soaked with sweat.  After that I was fine.  I looked at another sypmton checker website and it always makes you sound like you are going to die in a week without medical attention.  I am going to schedule an appointment with my doctor soon nonetheless.  Do you think that any of these previous events ans symptons might be pertinent for a diagnosis?  

[kirb_dude1]

judging from the way you talk your a family man...which means your porobabl;y no younger than 25...your symptoms can mean a few things, see when you tell me the pain shoots up to your eye, and travels along your arms into your hands this can be signs of early heart disease or vasculitis in either way you need to get to a doctor ASAP! however you could also be experiencing fibro-myalgia(very very unlikely though) so get to a doctor...one that knows what hes talking about preferably.