Muscle pain in arm/back

Drakeon

Hey all, I've been having some issues with pain in my right arm for a while now and recently it got worse, to the point where I need to find a way to fix it. Essentially the catalyst for it was playing too much Diablo 3, I think, but then I made sure to lay off my computer time by a lot for at least several weeks on end. Then I had an issue at work that got a knot in my back and now I seem to be getting recurring arm and back pain with no way to resolve them indefinitely. I've made an effort to spend a lot less time gaming either on the computer or on xbox/ps3 and also even limited my use of my phone (scrolling with it on my right hand). However pain persists while doing anything with my right arm (for example: driving) and since I'm right handed, I can't really just stop using my right arm.

The first thing that jumped to my mind was carpel tunnel syndrome, but I'd of thought laying off the activity for several weeks would at least help clear it up. Anyone have any experience with something like this?

Rastan9

Back when I played WoW, I used to get something that seems pretty similar. My back would be painful and knot up near my left shoulder blade and the pain would radiate up into my neck. Any task where i had to hold my arm up would be painful, sometimes to an extreme level. I worked in a gym at the time, and got one of the trainers to take a look at me, and it turned out the main issue was a muscle imbalance from holding my arm up on the keyboard for too many hours at a time. Basically my chest and front part of my shoulder were over developed and causing strain in my back and neck. Doing high-rows on a cable machine helped a ton for my specific problem. In my completely non-medical opinion, I'd suggest applying heat to the painful areas to help relax the muscles and massaging the area(tennis ball between your back and the wall if no one is available to help) then I'd suggest stretching out the muscles in your chest/shoulder and strengthening your mid/upper back muscles. If it is at all an option, seeing a doctor/physical therapist would be the best thing to do, though I know that isn't viable for everyone. Hopefully that helps, if you need any specific info on stretches/workouts let me know and I'll try to answer.

Thanatos

Have you tried switching to an ergonomic keyboard and/or mouse?

I started having wrist pain a few years ago, and switching to an ergo keyboard at work fixed it right off the bat (I was already using one at home).

Drakeon

I just set up an appointment for a Dr actually, wanted to see a physical therapist, but I need a referral.

I've been doing heat/cold, helping some. I've been trying the tennis ball trick too to some success.

Tube

Tendinitis won't clear up after a few weeks. The best things you can do now are the things that probably would have prevented it, such as getting a better keyboard, chair and a wrist rest for your mouse. You might want to try some diclofenac variant to see if it helps the inflammation, although I never used it when I had tendinitis. If that's what it is (and it sounds like it) all you can really do is improve your habits and wait for it to get better.

In my case it was weightlifting that eased my symptoms, but to this day I can't play electric guitar for long periods of time (the cause of the problem) without pain.

supabeast

Do lots of weightlifting standing up and cut back on the gaming. Also, it doesn’t hurt to switch input devices when things get sore—I usually use a trackball, but I have a collection of mice I can swap through if I have trouble.

Also, watch this and start doing the stretches at least once a day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUyMNyrOHJQ

Drakeon

Weightlifting standing up? I typically do Pushups/pullups/squats, but thats about it. What kind of weightlifting could help ease my symptoms?

Drakeon

So, I went to the doctor and the physical therapist and they seemed to think all I had was inflamed muscles. The physical therapist gave me some stretches to do and told me to ice it several times a day.