[afghanhound101]

Hi everyone
I'm a 20 year old male and for the last 4-5 years I've been suffering from neck and back pain. About 5 years ago, I was involved in a car accident. My dad was driving me and my bro to my cos's house. The day before, there had been a major snow storm. We were travelling on the high way and the conditions were pretty bad. We'll to make a long story short, a car hit us from behind. I was sitting in the back seat, and since there was no head rest, I hurt my neck.
A few days later, during gym class, we were doing situps and all of a sudden I felt this sharp pain in neck and in my back, near my right shoulder blade. For the next few days, I missed school, the pain got worse and I went to the emergency room and saw my family doctor. It got so bad that I could feel the pain in my ribs and I even had difficulty breathing.
Every doctor I went to in the next few months said that I had pulled a muscle and that it would get better in a few weeks. A few months passed and the pain gradually got better. My back would feel tense after sitting for more than an hour and my neck pain got worse. Unfortunately, none of the doctors I visited told me to rehabilitate my neck and back.
So far, I've been to two chiropractors, a physical therapist and even to a masseuse. The first chiropractor I visited told me that the vertabrae in my neck were slightly compressed/damaged. He treated me for a few weeks, but I didn't find his treatments helpful. A few months later, I found a family doctor and made an appointment with him. He referred me to a physical therapist. I did therapy for about 4 months, which really helped, but it was mostly for my back and not my neck. A few months later, my neck started to hurt even more, especially after sitting in front of comp for long periods. I visited another chiropractor but after a few treatments, I actually felt worse. The man almost broke my neck with his neck "manipulations", more like some kung fu move.
Since then my neck has gradually gotten worse. Now not only does my neck hurt, but also my shoulders and collarbone. I think it has even affected my ability to swallow food and my hearing. After sitting in front of a computer for a long time, a get up feeling like a zombie and my neck is throbbing.
I would really appreciate your comments and help
Thank you

[Tommyp!972]

Sorry to hear about the pain but hopefully this may help... go get an MRI... the doctors told me the same thing for my back.. its just a pulled muscle... MRI revealed a slipped disk... ask doctor to refer you to get an MRI

[fredg]

Hi,
I agree with the answer before mine about getting an MRI.
A family doctor should have referred you to a Specialist, if he/she doesn't know much about further testing. There are also other tests, such as CT-scans or CAT scans, etc.
You really need to see a Specialist, getting some further testing results. I do wish you the best, and good luck.
Orthopedic Surgeons would be a good specialist, not saying you need surgery, but they would know what types of testing you need performed. There is probably a Specialist in your general area in which you live.
For more information; here is a link:
http://www.henryfordhealth.org/11715.cfm

[afghanhound101]

Thanks you guys for your help
Tommy, if it is a slipped disc that's causing this pain, wouldn't the pain get worse than get better, which is what happened in my case?
And what if my doctor doesn't refer me to a specialist? I've told him a few times about my neck pain but he says that an aspirin a day should take care of it. Should I tell him straight up that I want to see a specialist?
Fred, thanks for the link, it's has very helpful information