Neck Pain And Worsening Pots Symptoms

[babettess]

Hi All,

I'm wondering if anyone else has this issue. I have almost constant severe neck pain due to several car wrecks, EDS and bone spurs. Whenever my neck pain is worse I feel like my POTS symptoms are too. I fell on the ice last week and messed up both my shoulders and my neck as I caught myself on the porch handrail..(I fell to my bottom but my hands were still holding onto the handrail. ) The resulting pain across my sholders, chest and in the back, sides and front of my neck is really taking it's toll on me. I've been much physically weaker, shakier, and my fatigue has been much worse. My heartrate is going up with the smallest amount of exertion. My neck feels like it's too tiny and weak to hold up head up. (It feels like my neck is a toothpick and my head is a cantaloupe!) My neck is visabley swollen in the front. I look like I have a bodybuilders neck because the muscles are all defined. I probably have twenty different triggerpoints where I can push and cause pain.

I had been doing a little better and was actually thinking I was gradually getting better. Now I know I'm not, as I feel as bad as I used to feel.

Any ideas on how the neck pain and POTS symptoms are related? My physical therapist says they are related in several ways but I would like to hear from you guys. And for those with EDS - does this sound like a normal EDS reaction to an injury??

I haven't been on the forum much until lately due to a computer problem. I'm so glad to be able to interact and ask questions again.

Thanks,

Babette

[juliegee]

Yes, I most definitely see a connection. When my neck flares, my autonomic stuff (and hypoglycemia) are at their worst. I can't explain why.

I have noticed that many here, including me (with several severe car accidents) and my son (with several cervical subluxations) have had severe neck issues. There is definitely a correlation.

Julie

[erickamcc0523]

I, too, have horrible neck pain, and that when it's really bad, so is the POTS. Sometimes it hurts to even drive (as I have to look around, especially when I'm making a lane change), and when I do something to make the pain flare up, then usually my heart rate goes up too. Though I haven't been diagnosed with EDS, I suspect that I have it (especially with alot of the symptoms I've been having), and will be making an appointment with a geneticist soon. I pop my neck (and about 20 other joints) quite a bit... I know that isn't the best thing to do, but it relieves that pain somewhat... from excrutiation to just severe.

[samannran]

I was told my neck/shoulder pain is due to a lack of blood flow to the area. If you suffer from orthostatic intolerance or hypotension, this could be the problem. It gets better when I lie down. If I sit up for very long, the pain is awful.

[tinkerbella]

I was told all pain issues and infections and illness MUST BE UNDER CONTROL to keep Pots at it's best... So I must at all times follow up with many doctors to keep this all under control. They all raise BP and HR.

bellamia~

[erickamcc0523]

I have been told, too, that chronic severe pain can lead to depression, as it leads to a depletion of the seretonin levels in the brain.

[Notgivinup]

Yes, I often have neck stiffness and shoulder pain. I feel worse when they hurt. More POTsy. When I don't have that pain, or I finally take some pain medicine, it's all much better.

[erickamcc0523]

Sinus headache along with the neck pain (or just the sinus headache by itself) makes the POTS much worse... I am fighting off a sinus infection right now, and I can barely stand up without feeling like I'm about ready to go back down.

[Broken_Shell]

Wow - I could have written this... "Yes, I most definitely see a connection. When my neck flares, my autonomic stuff and hypoglycemia are at their worst." The physical therapist I see feels they are all related. There are so many nerves that pass through the neck muscles. I wish I could explain why this connection exists, especially to my doctors!