Can you be paralyzed from nerve damage in your legs?

Question

I was in a car wreck a year and about 6 months ago. I went to the doctor and he told me that I had nerve damage in my left leg and it cannot be treated. My mother and my whole family told me the same thing. I have a lot of trouble walking, I'm always in pain, my leg always goes into the right on its own, its not straight and my hip is always hurting. I would just like to know if my leg will be paralyzed from nerve damage. Thank you!

Answer 1

Your terminology is little skewed. Paralysis generally implies damage to the spinal cord or to a group of nerves (such as the cervical or lumbar plexus). Damage to a single nerve will cause problems along the areas where that nerve innervates leading to numbness and weakness. If you can move your leg than you are not "paralysed" per se just weak. As far as the pain is concerned, try to see an interventional pain managment specialist. He may be able to help you with a combinations of the appropriate medications, injections, and physical therapy.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

2

Answer 4

You can't be paralyzed from the nerve damage in your leg. It has to be done to your spinal cord in order for you to receive any type of paralyzing effects. I have nerve damage in my leg, and I also do have Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (which is related to nerves and nerve damage). There isn't much you can do for it besides let it see if it heals, and maybe nerve medications if your doctor thinks they may help. There are different types of braces that you can use for you leg or hip area that can help keep things in place better so you can cut down on some pain, but otherwise you just live with it. One thing that you could look into is something called a Spinal Cord Stimulator. It is an implanted device in your spine that helps block some of the pain, and help you get back some of your life. It does sound kind of scary, but for me it has been a lifesaver. You should talk to some different doctors about it, and the website of the manufacture of mine is www.ans-medical.com and you can check it out and see if there is any doctors in your state who would be able to check one of these out and see if they could do anything for you. My Spinal Cord Stimulator has been incredible. Hope you feel better!

Answer 5

Nerves regrow. While modern medicine can not treat them there is most definately hope.

Go to a chiropractor (Md's know less about getting us back to normal) to get your body back into the shape it should be. It will take several visits because a good one will not want to make too many changes at a time because of the accident.

Pain help below
Much pain is from muscles below is an example of what may help (based on headaches).
Begin with a couple swigs of molasses or a couple of bananas daily - magnesium (which regulates many things in the body) and potassium (a needed building block for muscles).
Drink at least 1/2 gallons of water per day. Running a body low on water is like running a car low on oil is the analogy the head of neurology at UCDavis told my husband about 10 years ago.

Now to the cause - muscles - your back, neck shoulders and head have tender spots. They are knots in the fibers of the muscles called trigger points. It makes the muscles tight which makes them press on nerves and other things causing the pain.

The cure - start with a professional massage, you will also want to go back over any place you can get to 6-12 times per session up to 6 times per day rubbing (or lightly scratching on your head) every where that is tender until the knots go away. The place where the skull connects to the spine press up under the edge of the skull (to get to those muscles).

For more information read The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook by Davies. It teaches what to do and where the pain comes from.

Answer 6

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Can you be paralyzed from nerve damage in your legs?
I was in a car wreck a year and about 6 months ago. I went to the doctor and he told me that I had nerve damage in my left leg and it cannot be treated. My mother and my whole family told me the same thing. I have a lot of trouble walking, I'm always in pain, my leg always goes into the right...

Answer 7

When you think about one wrong move paralysing you for life; keep in mind the benefits versus the risks. Though paralysis is a possibility in any spinal surgery, the frequency of it is fairly low. I have degerative spinal disease in my cervical spine (neck) but I also suffer occasional sciatica due to DSD in my low back. When my low back flares up it makes my neck pain feel like nothing at all. Has your doctor tried syeroid epidural injections? Also radio frequency nerve ablation is another option for extreme pain symdromes coming from the spinal nerves. Also sometimes an anti-convulsant (such as neurontin or topamax) can help relieve the burning nerve sensation. Lyrica is another medication that can help with the nerve pain, as opiate painkillers generally don't cut the mustard with nerve pains. Another possible option is an SCS implant - Spinal Cord Stimulator. They usually won't go that route however until many of the more common treatments (including surgery) have been tried, as SCS just masks the pain. The only real 'cure' for pains from discs is to have the problem fixed eithr via surgery or a PT plan that works well enough with your body to encourage and allow it to heal. Best of luck.

Answer 8

I would suggest you get a qualified massage therapist to help you address this issue.

If you have nerve damage and are worried about being paralyzed, it depends which nerves and how severe.

Nerves have less blood supply than other tissues and take very long to heal. Physical therapy and massage may help you.

If your motor nerves are damaged the massage will potentially help prevent atrophy of the muscles affected.

Massage is passive exercise.

Answer 9

It is a fact that no one condition reflects sciatica and it would be prudent to refer to it as a generic medical term encompassing lots of symptoms that taken together describe a lower back pain that a patient suffers from. When someone complains of severe back pain that passes down to legs through his buttocks, even down to his feet and toes, doctors suspect him to be suffering from sciatica. Often sciatica presents itself as numbness or a tingling sensation that may not be anything like the severe pain commonly associated with sciatica. This tingling or numbness may be felt by the person when he engages in some activities.


On this site you can find very good tips on how to treat your sciatica: http://curesciatica.toptips.org

Answer 10

No your leg will not be paralyzed. It may hurt like the devil. I have had the same experience on a school bus. I use icy hot and exercise it frequently.
Best of luck to you.