arm keeps going numb

ryito1122334455

ryito1122334455

as we all know tree works takes a toll on our bodies.....i know its tree time because every year my left arm goes numb......its so bad it wakes me from my sleep and lasts for about an hour after im up and moving around.

anyone else go to the dr about this or have any advice on how to relieve it any?

dont have time to got to dr's right now. i know its gotta be from running the saw all day and the chipper.

thanks for reading.
 
I get that also. It usually starts at the finger tips and slowly works up my forearm. Do you hit your funny bone a lot? I noticed it was the worst when I was operating the bucket and slamming my elbow off the edge of the bucket constantly.
 
I don't know if it's related, but either arm will "fall asleep" in the middle of the night. I won't wake up and it will get so bad that I cannot move it, I literally have to flop it over into a different position and lay there until the blood starts rushing back. It isn't frequent, but alarming when it does happen, maybe 2-3 times a year.
 
You may want to see if you have a bulging discs at C4-5/5-6. Just a little pressure on a nerve can cause havoc. A muscle can do the same thing. Stretching really helps. One in particular that works well for me is to stand in a doorway with your arms bent out and up like a goal post and inline or lower than your shoulders. Lean forward to slowly stretch your pecs. After ten reps, move your arms above your shoulders slightly and repeat. This will relieve muscle tension where your nerves go into your arms.
The last thing you want is a blown disc. You can ask the Titanium plate in my neck how I know. Stretch!
 
i have a home neck traction device that i use whenever i get numbness in my fingers/arms. you can get them at just about any medical device store(wheel chair, etc). hang it on a door and sit for 30 min morning and evening.
 
evo said:
I don't know if it's related, but either arm will "fall asleep" in the middle of the night. I won't wake up and it will get so bad that I cannot move it, I literally have to flop it over into a different position and lay there until the blood starts rushing back. It isn't frequent, but alarming when it does happen, maybe 2-3 times a year.
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That never fails to freak me the fuck out. THE worst.

I can't even sleep with my hands on my torso, have to be at my sides.

I get arms going to sleep driving too, if one hand or the other is up on the top of the wheel for too long.

I saw Odis sisk talk last year and he was telling us about his hand/arm issues and relating a lot of it back to the fact that our hands are not designed to grip something as thin as arborist rope and pull or hold something as heavy as our asses. That the repetitive strain of this over loads the hand,then wrist, then elbow, then shoulder, then spine I would guess. His point being that the more we get away from relying on our upper body to ascend, and move around a tree for that matter, the more longevity we may have. At the time I was having elbow/ shoulder issues. With exercises and getting my lower body to take over ascent(read as: I bought a haas from Michael frankhauser) the pains I was experiencing are gone. This is not to say I don't have different, equally awful pains in other places, but it's a step in the right direction.

Odis was talking about raynauds syndrome in conjunction with all that as well, which seems like an icing on the cake sort of deal.
 
thanks for all the replies everyone! last night was another with little sleep......i need to sleep with one arm under my pillow....not happening. the only way i can get any sleep is to lay there like a stiff in a coffin.....arms at my sides and no pillow at all.....at least im not alone with this issue looks like im going to have to go to dr/ciropractor /and massage. bad timing tho...busy season and all
that raynauds runs in my family, hope i dont have it. also what is this neck traction thing ? im going to try streching too. thanks all
 
I vividly remember in my teens the first time I woke with a something on top of me - I reached up to grab it and found it warm, thick and hairy - definately someones arm and it terrified me. Only a few moments later did I realise it was my own lifeless numb limb when I tried to sit up after "throwing it away" with my good arm!

Later found that if I sleep with either arm near perpendicular to my body, or 'higher' than my shoulders, they'll "go to sleep" in short order.

For real fun, have both arms doze off in unison - wake up, and then try to move, roll over, sit up... thats very freaky too.
PS - I'm not a pro - haven't done nearly enough climbing for a few years, but done a fair bit recently and had a lot _more_ trouble with dosey limbs at night, so I dread to think what you pros live with.

EDIT: PS - I've never really worked out - is it a nerve or blood flow problem?
 
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do you sleep on your bent elbow? (I know you said during your busy time , but maybe you're extra tired)


try to mix up the way you do certain tasks so not repeat motion, thats the real killer
 
Agree w C4-6, those nerves are key and chiro can help.

Whirling the arms about like a helicopter can be very painful but breaks up junk in the shoulder.
 
A whole bundle of nerves that run to your arm go through a little tiny opening in your shoulder called the Thoracic Outlet. If anything in the neighbourhood gets inflamed, it pinches this opening causing parasthesia (the numbness) and/or pain. I get it due to previously torn rotator cuffs and scar tissue. One more thing to ask your chiro/RMT/doc about.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-...utlet-syndrome/basics/definition/con-20040509
 
I recently got diagnosed with golfers elbow. Instead of being located on the outside of the elbow (like tennis elbow), it's on the inside. Essentially it's inflation of the tendons from overuse. Like previously mentioned, I too will wake up in the middle of the night with my arms completely asleep. It usually only happens if I fall asleep with my arms bent. Stretching and the use of a brace have done wonders.
 
ryito1122334455 said:
dr said maybe carpeltunnell......ordered me hand braces and suppost to go to physical theropy
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Goggle the Ulnar nerve.... I was misdiagnosed with carpeltunnel after having the same issues as you.

I went for a second opinion, the new doc told me it was my ulnar nerve. He said to keep my arms by my sides while I sleep, and straighten them as much as I can whenever possible. These tips have helped me tremendously. It was a real bitch training myself to sleep on my back with my arms down tho!
 
I have had this problem now for so long I've become pretty good at making myself comfortable at night. But haven't come up with a solution for numbness during driving. For me climbing makes my arms feel better. I have become quite large in the chest and climbing stretches all that out. It's a downward motion as in spading that gets to me. So after a day of spading bed edges I take some advil or better yet advil pm. Nothing seems to stop the numbness but not being able to sleep is the real problem for me, so the advil helps me sleep.

I do have a prescription (cycobenzapr) or flexeril that is a real strong narcotic that I take only in extreme cases. My doctor says it's caused by the loss of tissue in the neck due to lifting and walking over the years and the nerves spasm after a day of the type of work I described. The flexeril controls the spasms I guess. Chronic pain.
 
Cyclobenzaprine or Flexorill is non-narcotic. It is a muscle relaxer that is probably releasing the tension on that nerve. Seriously powerful if overdone. I can only take it before bed because I am useless afterwards.
 
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