It’s a Pain in the Neck

I had a pain in my left shoulder/neck–technically at the pressure point –for more than a month. I’m not talking just a sore, dull pain. My muscles were tightening daily around my nerves and making my arm numb. Sometimes all the way down to my fingers. It has been incredibly uncomfortable to sit at my desk every day and even worse to sleep at night. I’d love to tell you I was sore from working out, but let’s be real. I am not currently working out. Just typing that made me realize the lack of working out could very well be part of the reason I’ve been suffering from this pain. I’ve allowed stress to build up without any kind of release.

Over the years, I’ve always felt my stress on the right side, so the left side is something new. I wondered if I need to see an acupuncturist. My massage therapist has been working on it since April. Some days I felt it was getting better and other days, it felt worse. It had gotten to the point where every night was a rough night’s sleep. I’d lie awake most of the night tossing and turning. What could be on my mind that is making me so restless?

When I had my physical this month, we discovered it’s not just one thing, but I’m struggling with mild depression. It’s been manifesting as pain in my shoulder, neck, and arm. I had always heard that depression could be painful, but I never took that into consideration when I was trying to diagnose the pain. Two days on zoloft and that pain completely disappeared. Gone, zip, nothing. Not a twinge. It’s been almost two weeks now and I am starting to balance out. I’m amazed at how much better I feel. I am grateful for such a wonderful physician who guided me to this diagnosis.

If you aren’t feeling yourself of if you’re feeling blue and don’t know why, I strongly encourage you to see your doctor. Have a question for me? Feel free to leave a message here to contact me directly. It’s so important to take care of yourself, so make YOU a priority!