Mom Injury? please help :(

jenmgo

jenmgo

Cathlete
Hello everyone. I have a one month old daughter who was a ten pounder and i find myself carrying, holding and nursing her a lot (of course!). The past week i've been having pretty bad pains in my left upper shoulder and neck area. One day i woke up and felt paralyzed on that side. I had to call for my husband to help me sit up in bed and also roll me over. It was excruciating.
It went away but came back two days later and again it was extremely painful to push myself up off of the bed and to come forward from leaning back on the couch.

Yesterday it came back worse than ever. I could not comb my hair or put a shirt over my head without yelping in pain. I thought it may be a pulled muscle but im thinking its carrying my baby a lot and having bad posture and also nursing.

most of the time i use the boppy pillow when i nurse but not always.

i gave in and took 600 mg of motrin, i figured it would be ok for a while since i was taking that after my c section. I have 2 oxycodones left but dont know if that will help muscle pain.

i applied some ice last nite but it didnt help. I finally fell asleep and when i awoke at 6 it felt great. But 30 min later the pain returned and now it hurts worse than ever

Is this a common pain/injury with a newborn? What can i do to relieve it? I'll have to contact my midwife or dr but in the meantime i wanted to see what you guys thought or if anyone else experienced this.

thanks!
 
OMG! That's like the pain I've had the last two days! Down the left side of my neck, across the trapezius (?), and back to the upper shoulder blade area. I do most of my nursing on that side. I try to switch sides but it seems to be the easier side for Emily and more comfortable for me. A couple of days ago she fell asleep in my arms and I just held her while she slept. I think that's what finally overdid it. I ended up taking a 800mg ibuprofen that was prescribed for my c-section to help with the pain. Tylenol wasn't helping at all. I was thinking I tore something in my shoulder it hurt so bad. It goes away when I sleep, but comes back when I use it again.

I'm curious about this too. Never had it with my son. Would have called the dr on Fri, but we've had a ton of snow & ice here the past two days.

Tana
 
Hi Tana! Sorry you have this as well - its excruciating isnt it? I cant even turn my neck.
I nurse on both sides equaly but i tend to carry Eva around on my left shoulder, which is where the pain is. My right side is fine, thank goodness.

The only doctor i have is my ob gyn. I wonder if they can do something or if i have to find a general practice dr (i should have one anyway, but i dont, and the wait to see one is sooo long!) and get referred to a specialist or chiropractor. I tend to avoid doctors as much as possible..

Curious to see if others have this problem and what i can do. Will making my DH Massage it help at all? Maybe i should try icing it again. I always forget what to ice and what to apply heat to. I think ice is for fresh hurting injuries and heat is for not so fresh ones, if that makes sense

my friend told me yesterday that my left side of my neck looks like a body builder lol. I guess its pretty swollen looking...a couple people noticed but my DH says he doesnt see anything (he's not very sympathetic when it comes to aches, pains and general feeling yucky-ness!)
 
jen, i would get that too in the early weeks and felt a little carpal tunnel too...
went to my chiro and the pain was gone!

hth!
 
hi kate! :) Thank you- what did your chiro do to make you feel better? anything i can do at home right now for immediate relief?
 
Oh my dear! I had this too after having my daughter. I ended up in physio for my shoulder for several months. Chiro would have helped too (but I didn't have a chiropractor at the time). The physio really helped - it turned out that my supraspinatus (part of the rotator cuff) had "turned off" and my neck & upper back muscles were trying to take it over - apparently this is quite common in new moms. I had carpal tunnel too.

It's now 6 1/2 years later and my shoulders are fine ... I'm actually in Meso #2 of STS, lifting really heavy, and I think I can say they have completely recovered.

So do see your doc, see a chiro, get some help before this gets worse. I waited too long (about a month after the symptoms first started ) and I think this delayed my recovery.

Stebby
 
I've gotten a stiff and very painful neck before but only I guess cause of how I slept (position). Never had issue when they were NBs. I'd guess if you are leaning in some uncomfy way when nursing it could strain your neck some. I never used a boppy for nursing either just a regular pillow till they were large enough to sit on my lap. I'd prop my elbow on something though.
Have you tried using a sling instead of carrying her? maybe it'll distribute the weight better and you'll also have your arms free.
I dunno otherwise. Worth asking about though.
 
jen, its plain ol' pinched nerves....he realigned my vertebrae and that takes the pressure off the nerves.
i dont ever try to fix it myself - i just RUN to chiro when it crops up!:eek:
 
Yep, sounds pretty familiar. Mine hasn't been in the upper back, but the lower back. I finally gave in and went to the chiro, and he just laughed and said "yep, it's 'mommy back'!". Apparently back issues are extremely common in new moms.


I have been going back for adjustments once a month, and they help, but don't alleviate the issue. I think the only thing that's going to fix it, for me, is not having to carry my little 20lb sack of potatoes around constantly. Thankfully, he walked for the first time yesterday, so there is a light at the end of the tunnel!

Try a chiro, napropath (I see both) or massage therapist. It sounds like a pinched nerve issue, and it's likely to continue as long as you're holding her in the way that you are. I've learned that we need to be very conscious of our posture and alignment. Sit up straight and pull your belly button into your spine. And hey, it helps with reconditioning your abs too! :)
 
Jen, you've gotten great advice! The "mommy back" term made me laugh. So very true!

I wonder if your couch is like mine. Set back really far. It's nice and deep and cushy, but when I sit on it my back doesn't reach the back of it to support me. I try putting pillows behind me, but there have been times I've been too lazy or tired to get a pillow. Probably doesn't help with the posture. = (

Tana
 
Jen,

So sorry you are going through this! Instead of ice, use heat.

A general rule is ice for joints and heat for muscle. So, if you sprain your ankle, put ice on it. If you pull a muscle, use heat.

I had some minor neck pains last month myself, but not as severe as what you are describing. Once you get your pain taken care of, try to find a carrier that both you and baby like. That will aleviate some of the weight on your neck.

Hope you feel better soon!

Becky
 
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