Should I be concerned?
Usually numbness starts gradually. Have you noticed that sometimes when you go to bed your arm goes numb? Or you may notice tingling sensations when you drive a car. Over times these symptoms get more severe or maybe they start to last longer and longer.
Why does this happen in the first place?
As a child your legs might go numb when sitting on them, or sitting cross-legged. You probably noticed when you stood up your legs were numb. This scenario had an obvious cause and after a few painful moments an obvious solution. To some extent the same thing is happening in your arms, it is just on a smaller and more gradual scale.
If your head is not centered directly over your neck, then one shoulder will become higher than the other and one shoulder will rotate forward compared to the other side. This twist may cause pain in the upper middle back or it may just cause tightness with no pain symptoms. The muscle tightness over time will restrict nerves traveling through those muscles and when nerves that carry sensory signals get restricted the symptom we experience is pins and needles.
Now the solution may be avoiding certain positions or activities that make the tingling sensations worse, but this is a temporary solution and it doesn’t fix the real problem. It also usually involves limiting activities that you may otherwise enjoy.
To truly fix the problem you must address the root cause. For many people this means getting their head centered over their neck by a trained professional. A NUCCA adjustment to the upper neck is gentle and it restores proper muscle and nerve balance. Many patients have experienced long-term relief to arm numbness by getting a NUCCA adjustment and maintaining it overtime.
If you or someone you know experiences pins and needles in one or both arms then contact Advanced Spinal Care by phone call (253-445-8181) to see if you qualify for a complimentary exam by our NUCCA specialists. NUCCA may be the lasting solution you have been looking for.