23 replies to this topic

[pistol_pete]

I have trawled all the topics on the subject of spasms and can't find anythingto answer this question,
I'm hoping it is because those who don't suffer spasms obviously aren't vocal about them because they are not an issue.
I was told in rehab and by my GP ( who is a paraplegic also) that after a couple of years the spasms should ease and all but disappear, but from reading all the threads here I am getting the impression that if anything, they get worse.
I'm confused. I know everyone has a different experience. I was injured in April '08, My spasms didn't 'kick' in (pun intended) until 5 or so months post injury. I take 50 mg of Baclofen twice a day, which i assume is a pretty small dose, this keeps them pretty well under control, with a bit of tightness during the day, they're worse morning and night. They don't really impede my life but they just make life that little bit harder and the baclofen causes fatigue. stretching doesn't do much, smokin' de Ganja helps alot but I can't go around stoned all day (tried that when I was a teenager and apart from making everything incredibly funny, it's not healthy).

My question is, Did your spasms get better or worse? How many people out there with little or no spasms? How long did it take for them to fade? (alright alright thats three questions) But I am interested in clearing up the confusion with what I have been told by the medical fraternity vs what I read here. I know it's better to listen to those who are living through it , not the medicos, but the fact that my GP is living through it is adding to the confusion.

[Denny]

Pete, Check out this link explaining spasms. http://www.apparelyz...spasticity.html
I am t4 injured and I always had spasms. Spasms increases when I am not well, constipated or have anything irritating below my injury level. I generally have very strong spasm when I move after sitting still for some time like meeting or working on computer. So I am always careful when I start moving, always lean forward and hold on to frame of chair till spasm is over. Spasms make my transfers not so great, but it helped keeping my leg muscle intact. For that reason I do not take medicine to reduce spasm, and learned to live with it. I now know when most spasm occur and am prepared for it. But some times odd spasm catches me unaware, most times I manage to get hold of some thing, and very rarely I fall of chair.

[JesseB]

my spasams got worse, there not to bad though, my legs just hop up and down alot, unless im like getting dressed and pulling up
my pants then they straighten out.

but there not as bad as my ab spasams.. ab spasams are the worst..

Edited by JesseB, 09 September 2009 - 08:54 AM.

[wheeels]

8 years in and my spasms are still the same no better no worse it seems. I use Baclofen and botox to subdue them.

[Texas Angel Ang]

wheeels, on Sep 9 2009, 09:59 AM, said:

8 years in and my spasms are still the same no better no worse it seems. I use Baclofen and botox to subdue them.

what does Botox do??

My spasms are never the same, however if something is wrong illness or foot dragging and didn't notice my spasms will kick in. They also kick in when I haven't moved around a lot. I have learned to use my spasms to my advantage. I can usually feel when one is coming on and I'll use it to help move my arm or a leg if I'm uncomfortable.

I take 10 mg of dizapan in the morning and at night.

[wheelchairbarbie]

I've been injured 12 years and I never had a problem with spasms. I find I get them a little more/stronger than say, 6 years ago, but they're not bad enough to impact on my daily life.

[ButterflyInAmbr]

I am only one year post-injury, so I don't know how things will develop, but... My spasms aren't THAT bad right now, but they have gotten worse. When I was first injured I almost never noticed them, though the nurses did say they could feel my feet pushing against the floor when they transferred me. Then a couple of months after I got out of the hospital, the spasms increased to the point where it could throw me completely backward if my hip tightened up with no support behind me. Now whenever my feet brush against anything, my legs will really react. I've gotten strong enough to the point where it doesn't bother me as much any more, but it's still quite noticeable.

Edited by ButterflyInAmbr, 09 September 2009 - 11:13 PM.

[Andy p]

pistol_pete, on Sep 9 2009, 03:30 AM, said:

I have trawled all the topics on the subject of spasms and can't find anythingto answer this question,
I'm hoping it is because those who don't suffer spasms obviously aren't vocal about them because they are not an issue.
I was told in rehab and by my GP ( who is a paraplegic also) that after a couple of years the spasms should ease and all but disappear, but from reading all the threads here I am getting the impression that if anything, they get worse.
I'm confused. I know everyone has a different experience. I was injured in April '08, My spasms didn't 'kick' in (pun intended) until 5 or so months post injury. I take 50 mg of Baclofen twice a day, which i assume is a pretty small dose, this keeps them pretty well under control, with a bit of tightness during the day, they're worse morning and night. They don't really impede my life but they just make life that little bit harder and the baclofen causes fatigue. stretching doesn't do much, smokin' de Ganja helps alot but I can't go around stoned all day (tried that when I was a teenager and apart from making everything incredibly funny, it's not healthy).

My question is, Did your spasms get better or worse? How many people out there with little or no spasms? How long did it take for them to fade? (alright alright thats three questions) But I am interested in clearing up the confusion with what I have been told by the medical fraternity vs what I read here. I know it's better to listen to those who are living through it , not the medicos, but the fact that my GP is living through it is adding to the confusion.

Hi Pistol Pete,
I am a level T4 break, accident may 2005, left the hospital in the december, my spasms started about 2 months before I left hospital, and they steadily got worse over the following 6mts, I ended up taking the max dosage of baclofen 10x10mg and 8x25mg's of dantroline which has done nothing to ease the spasms, i've now cut back to 8 bac. and 4 dant. and have stayed pretty much the same, mine also kick off first thing and are hard to settle down at night . I've also been thrown out off the chair on several occasions with the power of the spasms, it dosen't take much to set them off, opening your trousers when going to the toilet, touching your stomach, inner thighs can all trigger them off, a real pain. It sounds like you can live with them without to much hassle, so if I was you I would wait a bit longer see if they die down, also some spasms are quite good for muscle tone. If the Ganja helps just get stoned at night when the spasms kick off problem solved, I tried it it didn't work for me. Andy p

[Wynne]

My spasms have remained pretty much the same since my accident in 1989. Mainly leg tremors, with one or the other leg jumping up and down on the footplate. I control them with 6 x baclofen and 6 x dantroline daily. I find pressure relieving lifts in the chair helps, as does physically lifting up my feet from the footplate every so often, by hooking my hand under my knee and lifting a little. Smoking dope doesn't work, at least in my experience, and I did try it for a long time - around 10 years all told. When I packed in the weed my spasms remained the same.

[Tetracyclone]

Hi all,

My spasms began about 6 weeks after the accident, and I am now 18 months out. At that time I believed it was better to avoid meds, so i toughed it out for 10 days while my legs jerked up at night nearly to my chin. It was very painful and made me cry out, keeping us all awake. The result was an injury to the hip flexor muscles on the left leg that took most of a year to recover. i still suffer an imbalance right to left that turns the left foot out abnormally and puts stress on that knee. Should have started baclofen on the first night it happened.

The therapods told me that spasm activity would decrease as I became stronger. This is true, though there is quite a lag period. When I begin to exersize a muscle group that has been unused and atrophied the spasms are intense. I get spasms where I never had them before. After 2 or 3 weeks it begins to abate, but never truly go away.

Any time I sit too long spasms kick up. True when I am tired also. As so many testify, the abdominal spasms are wretched, impairing breathing and sqeezing the bladder.

It seems that "spasticity" , or general tightness of muscles, is another category. This gets bad for me whenever there is a bowel or bladder "issue", or with changes in weather. Lord, I hate the weather factor.

Taking more meds rarely changes the spasticity. I take my maintenance dosage and let it be what it is going to be. The many factors influencing spasms and spasticity make it difficult sometimes to figure out what is going on.

I can live with the level I've got, but being sick pushes me to the edge of tolerance. There is something wrong with my bladder right now (not infection) and it has upped the level of spasticity and spasms by about half again. They test next week for cancer, which would dismay me as I hate being a professional patient, but I know something is wrong.

I'd like to hear from others about the weather factor.

Pwuff

[The Black Sheep]

I'm 11 years into my injury and they've stayed the same for the passed 8 years. When I was initially paralyzed, I was on so much baclofen (120mg/day) I had hypersensitivity, but almost no spasm. I have noticed that when I exercise more, they get more spunky. I have an exercise bike with shoes bolted to the petals, and when I move the arms (it's a Swin Airodine thing), it forces the feet to go along for the ride. The spasms get really strong the next day after this and I have to let them do their stretching thing before I can even attempt to stand up, transfer or reposition myself.

Does anyone like their spasms? I've read a lot of the posts in this section and there are a lot of different ways to manage it. I was wondering if anyone actually likes them?

I was put on Baclofen a couple months ago and I got to 80 mg a day (4x20mg) and one of the big things I noticed was the atrophy in my lower legs. I can normally stand with a walker for a few minutes, but I couldn't even keep my knees straight anymore. I think I might actually be somewhat dependent on the spasms and would rather have them than not. Sleeping on my belly, it feels good when they stretch too, but then again it's just a straight stretch, and not a bouncing motion.

[JohnnyO]

I've had spasms in my legs for as long as I can remember and I don't take any medication for them. I think the level of spasticity has stayed constant throughout the years.

Although I do find it interesting is they tend to be very severe after eating high levels of food with sugar. One of the ways I try to manage the level of spasticity other than reduce the sugar is to stretch out my leg hamstrings. I have to do this every night for about 30 minutes or else the spasms will keep me up all night.

Johnny

[Tetracyclone]

pistol_pete, on Sep 8 2009, 09:30 PM, said:

I have trawled all the topics on the subject of spasms and can't find anythingto answer this question,
I'm hoping it is because those who don't suffer spasms obviously aren't vocal about them because they are not an issue.
I was told in rehab and by my GP ( who is a paraplegic also) that after a couple of years the spasms should ease and all but disappear, but from reading all the threads here I am getting the impression that if anything, they get worse.
I'm confused. I know everyone has a different experience. I was injured in April '08, My spasms didn't 'kick' in (pun intended) until 5 or so months post injury. I take 50 mg of Baclofen twice a day, which i assume is a pretty small dose, this keeps them pretty well under control, with a bit of tightness during the day, they're worse morning and night. They don't really impede my life but they just make life that little bit harder and the baclofen causes fatigue. stretching doesn't do much, smokin' de Ganja helps alot but I can't go around stoned all day (tried that when I was a teenager and apart from making everything incredibly funny, it's not healthy).

My question is, Did your spasms get better or worse? How many people out there with little or no spasms? How long did it take for them to fade? (alright alright thats three questions) But I am interested in clearing up the confusion with what I have been told by the medical fraternity vs what I read here. I know it's better to listen to those who are living through it , not the medicos, but the fact that my GP is living through it is adding to the confusion.

Pete: I, too, was prescribed 2 doses/day of Baclofen and had more difficulty morning and night. Then I read the word "inter-dosage withdrawal" on the internet and experimented with dividing my dosage to 3 times per day. Voilá, no more difficulty in the a.m. and less of it in the evening. My Dr. said it made no difference when I took the meds and dismissed my observations, so I think that MDs don't get much training in dosage and frequency. Maybe they listen to the manufacturer only? I mean in rehab my med schedule was purely based on the convenience of the nurses, so obviously that had nothing to do with my body's needs- then my GP just continued the instructions from rehab and never tried to reevaluate. To the Doctors' credit, both of mine encouraged me to experiment.

Maybe we need a new emoticon showing our legs jiggling.

[spot]

I just joined the forum today, precisely because I had questions about the horrible spasticity. I feel as though my ribcage is going to crack. I am only 6 months into this "wonderful" experience. I was put on Baclofen, which helped initially, but seems to be decreasing in effectiveness.

I was hoping to hear that these things went away on their own, given time. But I gather, from what I am reading, that this is not likely to happen.

I do appreciate reading about baclofen withdrawl between doses. My neurologist doesn't normally prescribe baclofen, so he has nothing to say about it. It was recommended to me by the neurosurgeon. My neurologist only grudgingly agreed to it.

Thanks.

[Tetracyclone]

Pwuff, on Nov 3 2009, 01:03 PM, said:

Hi all,

My spasms began about 6 weeks after the accident, and I am now 18 months out. At that time I believed it was better to avoid meds, so i toughed it out for 10 days while my legs jerked up at night nearly to my chin. It was very painful and made me cry out, keeping us all awake. The result was an injury to the hip flexor muscles on the left leg that took most of a year to recover. i still suffer an imbalance right to left that turns the left foot out abnormally and puts stress on that knee. Should have started baclofen on the first night it happened.

The therapods told me that spasm activity would decrease as I became stronger. This is true, though there is quite a lag period. When I begin to exersize a muscle group that has been unused and atrophied the spasms are intense. I get spasms where I never had them before. After 2 or 3 weeks it begins to abate, but never truly go away.

Any time I sit too long spasms kick up. True when I am tired also. As so many testify, the abdominal spasms are wretched, impairing breathing and sqeezing the bladder.

It seems that "spasticity" , or general tightness of muscles, is another category. This gets bad for me whenever there is a bowel or bladder "issue", or with changes in weather. Lord, I hate the weather factor.

Taking more meds rarely changes the spasticity. I take my maintenance dosage and let it be what it is going to be. The many factors influencing spasms and spasticity make it difficult sometimes to figure out what is going on.

I can live with the level I've got, but being sick pushes me to the edge of tolerance. There is something wrong with my bladder right now (not infection) and it has upped the level of spasticity and spasms by about half again. They test next week for cancer, which would dismay me as I hate being a professional patient, but I know something is wrong.

I'd like to hear from others about the weather factor.

Pwuff

No serious abnormality. Seems it takes a very long time to get over aftereffects of UTI

spot, on Dec 9 2009, 12:09 AM, said:

I just joined the forum today, precisely because I had questions about the horrible spasticity. I feel as though my ribcage is going to crack. I am only 6 months into this "wonderful" experience. I was put on Baclofen, which helped initially, but seems to be decreasing in effectiveness.

I was hoping to hear that these things went away on their own, given time. But I gather, from what I am reading, that this is not likely to happen.

I do appreciate reading about baclofen withdrawl between doses. My neurologist doesn't normally prescribe baclofen, so he has nothing to say about it. It was recommended to me by the neurosurgeon. My neurologist only grudgingly agreed to it.

Thanks.

SPOT,
my rib cage and abdominal spasms kicked in when i started to strengthen the trunk muscles. they have become quit manageable most days since the trunk got pretty strong. i wish a like result for you. relief is the greatest pleasure.

[bobm]

Pwuff, on Nov 3 2009, 06:03 PM, said:

Hi all,

It seems that "spasticity" , or general tightness of muscles, is another category. This gets bad for me whenever there is a bowel or bladder "issue", or with changes in weather. Lord, I hate the weather factor.

Taking more meds rarely changes the spasticity. I take my maintenance dosage and let it be what it is going to be. The many factors influencing spasms and spasticity make it difficult sometimes to figure out what is going on.

I can live with the level I've got, but being sick pushes me to the edge of tolerance. There is something wrong with my bladder right now (not infection) and it has upped the level of spasticity and spasms by about half again. They test next week for cancer, which would dismay me as I hate being a professional patient, but I know something is wrong.

I'd like to hear from others about the weather factor.

Pwuff

Pwuff THE WEATHER FACTOR

I don't have a problem with spasms but am "challenged' by spasticity from my lower rib-cage to my toes...and it is very weather-sensitive;

I count my blessings as I shuffle about, but get uncomprehending looks from medics as I describe the feeling of being tied up in multiple, cold rubber bands. I keep thinking back to the last hot days of August..

Hope you get sorted out.

[sanman]

I am 4 years 3 mnths post injury. For the first 4 months after my injury my body was "relaxed" then after a severe UTI my spasms /spacticity started. For me it's a constant thightness /"squeezing " from my abs down, this coupled to severe neuro pain restricts my chair time to around 4 hours after which I have to surrender to bed. I am currently on 30mg baclufen 3times a day plus 300mg neurontin 3 times a day. I also take a pain tab called TRAMACET this is the only one that gives me any relief and dulls it from severe to at best strong discomfort. I use this spareingly , generally only every other day, as I am scared it might loose it's a effectiveness.

bobm, on Dec 9 2009, 06:28 PM, said:

Pwuff, on Nov 3 2009, 06:03 PM, said:

Hi all,

It seems that "spasticity" , or general tightness of muscles, is another category. This gets bad for me whenever there is a bowel or bladder "issue", or with changes in weather. Lord, I hate the weather factor.

Taking more meds rarely changes the spasticity. I take my maintenance dosage and let it be what it is going to be. The many factors influencing spasms and spasticity make it difficult sometimes to figure out what is going on.

I can live with the level I've got, but being sick pushes me to the edge of tolerance.
I'd like to hear from others about the weather factor.

Pwuff

Pwuff THE WEATHER FACTOR

I don't have a problem with spasms but am "challenged' by spasticity from my lower rib-cage to my toes...and it is very weather-sensitive;

I count my blessings as I shuffle about, but get uncomprehending looks from medics as I describe the feeling of being tied up in multiple, cold rubber bands. I keep thinking back to the last hot days of August..

Hope you get sorted out.

^^^^^ + 1000
You guys have described my condition exactly.
@ Bob :I sometimes feel like I'm wearing a corset thats too tight and someones using it as a method of slow torturing me. I have given up 'moaning' to my Doc as he also can't seem to comprehend my pain.

@Pwaaf: Yes the weather... I am also extremely weather sensitive, it sends my spasms/spasticity to max levels. Sometimes the cold but mainly just before rain. So I assume it might be related to atmospheric pressure.
I too am at peace with my paralysis, it's the spasticity and neuro pain that gets me.
San

[MxDisasterGrl]

what's up pistol....i have different sort of news than the others. My spasms HAVE gotten better over the course of time. I know i have a different level of injury though, and we all ARE different, that's for sure, but still mine have gotten better. Mine started just a week or two after my injury and surgery. They were HORRIBLE. My feet would point straight down like i was a ballerina on stage. Sometimes they would stay longer than others. I was taking lyrica for a long time for the spasms and then my doc here gave me the baclofen. However, i ONLY took 10 mg BID/twice a day. Mine are def. their worse at night and in the morning it's bad. I thought the only way i could sleep at night was to take my baclofen. When you're taking that small of a dose you don't really have to worry about the groggy part either. However, wanting to be done w/ all meds i just recently took to getting off my baclofen. Thinking there was a chance i wouldn't really be able to handle it. But actually, i'm doing better completely off the baclofen than i was when i was on it. Weird, i know. But i think that when it was getting time for me to take my baclofen at night, my legs would start in on their spasms. Then after knowing it wasn't coming, it seems as if on their own, they worked something out. Can't really explain it very well. I kind of like what spasms i have now. Simply because it makes me "feel" my legs and muscles when they flex. Without the spasms i wouldn't remember what my calves and feet feel like anymore. And sometimes i can use them to my own advantage. Meaning i can actually "feel" my toes when they spasm and i focus on trying to move them. When i'm trying to walk though, every now and then if it's really early or really late, i will spasm a little and i have to stop, because it may be so strong that it lifts me up on my toes. But honestly overall i've gotten much much better. The weather right now, i do believe, is playing a very key factor in how bad i'm feeling. I do also have my left oblique to thank for the "ab" spasms. And no LIE, that crap hurts!! Definitely don't like that one. But just wanted you to know that a lot of people are still on the baclofen, and i'm someone who is 1 1/2 post injury that has gotten off of the baclofen and i've seen good results. Results may vary!!! But i did want to give you some hope that it's possible it could get better.

Pretty much now in the morning, i wake up and my feet are pointing straight, but they don't hurt and it seems all they really need is to be stretched for just a few seconds and i'm good to go. At night, it's the same thing. Although thru the night some nights i'm not as comfortable as i could be w/ the baclofen. But all in all i'm happy w/ my results. The last real doc appointment i had was Nov '08 and i'm doin' just fine!!

[spot]

JohnnyO, on Nov 5 2009, 10:12 AM, said:

I've had spasms in my legs for as long as I can remember and I don't take any medication for them. I think the level of spasticity has stayed constant throughout the years.

Although I do find it interesting is they tend to be very severe after eating high levels of food with sugar. One of the ways I try to manage the level of spasticity other than reduce the sugar is to stretch out my leg hamstrings. I have to do this every night for about 30 minutes or else the spasms will keep me up all night.

Johnny

Interesting you mention sugar as a trigger for spasms. I have found the same thing. I don't know whether or not I am glad I am not alone.

[spot]

Pwuff, on Dec 9 2009, 07:54 AM, said:

Pwuff, on Nov 3 2009, 01:03 PM, said:

Hi all,

My spasms began about 6 weeks after the accident, and I am now 18 months out. At that time I believed it was better to avoid meds, so i toughed it out for 10 days while my legs jerked up at night nearly to my chin. It was very painful and made me cry out, keeping us all awake. The result was an injury to the hip flexor muscles on the left leg that took most of a year to recover. i still suffer an imbalance right to left that turns the left foot out abnormally and puts stress on that knee. Should have started baclofen on the first night it happened.

The therapods told me that spasm activity would decrease as I became stronger. This is true, though there is quite a lag period. When I begin to exersize a muscle group that has been unused and atrophied the spasms are intense. I get spasms where I never had them before. After 2 or 3 weeks it begins to abate, but never truly go away.

Any time I sit too long spasms kick up. True when I am tired also. As so many testify, the abdominal spasms are wretched, impairing breathing and sqeezing the bladder.

It seems that "spasticity" , or general tightness of muscles, is another category. This gets bad for me whenever there is a bowel or bladder "issue", or with changes in weather. Lord, I hate the weather factor.

Taking more meds rarely changes the spasticity. I take my maintenance dosage and let it be what it is going to be. The many factors influencing spasms and spasticity make it difficult sometimes to figure out what is going on.

I can live with the level I've got, but being sick pushes me to the edge of tolerance. There is something wrong with my bladder right now (not infection) and it has upped the level of spasticity and spasms by about half again. They test next week for cancer, which would dismay me as I hate being a professional patient, but I know something is wrong.

I'd like to hear from others about the weather factor.

Pwuff

No serious abnormality. Seems it takes a very long time to get over aftereffects of UTI

spot, on Dec 9 2009, 12:09 AM, said:

I just joined the forum today, precisely because I had questions about the horrible spasticity. I feel as though my ribcage is going to crack. I am only 6 months into this "wonderful" experience. I was put on Baclofen, which helped initially, but seems to be decreasing in effectiveness.

I was hoping to hear that these things went away on their own, given time. But I gather, from what I am reading, that this is not likely to happen.

I do appreciate reading about baclofen withdrawl between doses. My neurologist doesn't normally prescribe baclofen, so he has nothing to say about it. It was recommended to me by the neurosurgeon. My neurologist only grudgingly agreed to it.

Thanks.

SPOT,
my rib cage and abdominal spasms kicked in when i started to strengthen the trunk muscles. they have become quit manageable most days since the trunk got pretty strong. i wish a like result for you. relief is the greatest pleasure.

Pwuff,
How do you strenthen truck muscles? I don't go to physical therapy or have any training in handling the problems. My local doctors don't believe that I am having any trouble - the assumption is that it is all in my mind. My neurologist doesn't usually handle people like me. The neurosurgeon doesn't believe that c1/c2 injuries lead to spasticity. He claims it is the sign of a thoracic injury. So no one listens. I've tried making up some exercises, but wonder if what I come up with is doing anything. I am wondering what my next step should be. I'll come up with something. Fussing at the neurologist may help.
Spot

[Wheelsonfire]

Into my 18th year in the chair, spasms have increased rather than diminished, I too use them to my advantage, but they can be a complete pain in the arse at the wrong time....you know when your pushing at high speed and you see a woman looking at you, and your thinking "that's it, watch me go" and then of course you look like a tool because you end up nearly taking your head off with your knee. Or getting in and out of the car, doing an Irish jig at the wrong time.. Over time you will be happy to have some spasm but too much can slow you down or hamper events that you might want to try...

[a_bomb199]

i've been an incomplete quad since june of 2006 i take 90mg baclofen and it does not help my leg spasms at all.. i've been told to get the baclofen pump but i cant afford to be in bed for 2-4 weeks to recover from surgery..... my spasms have gotten worse so the doctor raised me from the original 30 mg baclofen to the currenrt 90mg.....

[Tetracyclone]

a_bomb199, on Jan 4 2010, 05:23 PM, said:

i've been an incomplete quad since june of 2006 i take 90mg baclofen and it does not help my leg spasms at all.. i've been told to get the baclofen pump but i cant afford to be in bed for 2-4 weeks to recover from surgery..... my spasms have gotten worse so the doctor raised me from the original 30 mg baclofen to the currenrt 90mg.....

does the baclofen ease other spasms, or are you only concerned with leg spasms?

If you do not take it, do the spasms get worse?

[Tetracyclone]

Spot,

You said "Pwuff, How do you strenthen truck muscles? I don't go to physical therapy or have any training in handling the problems. My local doctors don't believe that I am having any trouble - the assumption is that it is all in my mind. My neurologist doesn't usually handle people like me. The neurosurgeon doesn't believe that c1/c2 injuries lead to spasticity. He claims it is the sign of a thoracic injury. So no one listens. I've tried making up some exercises, but wonder if what I come up with is doing anything. I am wondering what my next step should be. I'll come up with something. Fussing at the neurologist may help."

How comforting that your Dr. relies on belief rather than the information in front of him. If spasms were only thoracic a lot of us here with cervical injuries would be much happier. Anyway, I'm sorry you are dealing with medical people would don't know and don't want to learn. Agreed- fussing may help. You might also cut and paste some testimonies and information from this site about spasms and cervical injuries. Or you could visit a Dr. who works with a big rehab center somewhere far away.

It would help if you would fill out your profile some and let us know generally where you live. What are you able to do? Can you get out of bed by yourself? Sit up? What is your arm use?> Without knowing those things I cannot think about exercises with you. Anything you come up with will be good for you.

Edited by Pwuff, 05 January 2010 - 12:41 AM.