Hand/Arm Numbness often?

The last few weeks I have been having serious numbness in both my hands and my arms. It happens while I am sleeping waking me up, while I am sitting in the car driving, or even just sitting in a chair. I have had back aches also as well as tingling in my lower back and leg(I was diagnosed with Sciatica(spelling?) when I was 17 after an injury that happened at work) I went to the docs where they said I was too tense, gave me muscle relaxors, and sent me on my way.. It seems to get worse as each day passes. I am only 22 and I don't understand what could possibly be wrong.. anyone have really any ideas on possible issues or even something I can bring up to a doctor so I can get this taken care of?

Update: To Angela.. I had my circulation checked out when I went to the doc. He said my circulation was great absolutely no issues

There are two apparent reasons for this: poor circulation and pressure on nerves.Poor circulation can to some extent improved by massage and aerobics.In order to see that nerves going to arms are not compressed you have to do some yogic exercises and if you don't have too much of fascination for it then do some physiotherapic exercises.Consult an expert on yoga to find out the particular exercises that alleviate this problem. Also make sure that your diet is rich in vitamins,,proteins and minerals. Make sure you take adequate vitamin B12.

I have sciatica also.
i know what you mean about the pins and needles.
Its to do with poor circulation.
I find a trip to my chirpractor relieves the problem.
Although I realise a chiropractor is not for everyone.
I hope you find a solution :)

carpel tunnel symdrome wakes you up with numbness in the first 3 fingers, thumb and index, middle fingers...sometimes it involves your arm aching as well. do a search and see....lots of things can cause it. like computers and repetitive motions.

Hi, Have you had an M.R.I. ???? I was having similar problems, but mainly right arm/hand ended up was herniated discs in my neck. I had anterior cervical surgery, 4 levels w/ fusion, & cadaver bone inserted.......the surgurey has been a nightmare....3 months post-op and I still can't swallow anything but liquids....to do this surgurey they basically slit your throat, move things around to get to the area involved (back of neck) they can't cut the back of neck as your spinal cord is right there. Good luck....

Hi. You did not mention what line of work you do on a daily basis. Possibly you may be irritating or reinjuring yourself daily without realizing it. Sciatica = lower extremities. Upper back/neck injury = arms/hands/fingers. For quite some time I endured your same symptoms. I don't like taking medication but I ended up on some highpower pain pills due to the severity of the pain that I could no longer tolerate. My GP referred me to a Surgical Neurologist and God bless him because I feel no pain or numbness now. He performed a "NCV without F-Wave", "NCV Sensory or Mixed", and "H-Reflex Study". Based on the results of his tests and exam I underwent a procedure on two separate occations (14 days apart) as an outpatient where he injected my neck and upper back using "fluoroscopic guidance and localization" (big x-ray machine). That way he knew exactly where he was placing the needle. Also ice to reduce inflammation helps. One thing I hope you DONT do is go to a chiropractor, please, please, please don't. Unfortunately for idiot me, because I didn't know any better and I hurt so bad, I went to a chiropractor first (before my GP) and all that did for me was cause MORE INJURY..... I felt worse after being adjusted because it just aggravated my condition. Now since I have gone through all this I have learned that chiropractic causes more injury when the involved area is inflammed. My specialist said that no one should be manipulated when they are hurting. Sounds contradictory but it's true. I will never go again. I have changed my line of work out of necessity (the factory where I worked moved to Mexico in 2005) and now work as a phlebotomist -- no more heavy lifting. I hope this info helps and I hope you feel better soon!!!!