My Brachial Plexus Injury Story

I ruptured my C5 and C6 nerves - from what I have been told, these are the usual nerves affected in motorcycle accidents. C7 was initially damaged as the MRI reported, but luckily it was just a pull and quickly recovered. My C5 is supposed to be post ganglionic, but the supraspinatus nerve was affected as well. I lost elbow flexion and arm abduction. This is, I couldn't move the arm but I could move my wrist and fingers. Sensation, however not as before, remained in the respective areas. Some doctors believe some fibers survived hence I conserved sensitivity, others mentioned sensory nerves can sometimes be innervated by different nerves. Pain wise, it was excruciating. C7 nerve pain while reconnecting wouldn't let me sleep. C6 sensory area was like having your skin on fire. This lasted for about 2 months, then the pain was more manageable. MRI done 1.5 months after the accident was very clear about the damage. Electromyography and nerve conduction studies performed 1 and 2 mon

Reaching the 9th month life quality gets improved a lot. Elbow flexion is pretty good at this point. I was able to do 5 KG weights easily for biceps, and 3 KG weights for brachiallis. Arm abduction was not close to M3, but a good range of motion was achieved. A slight increase in muscle density could be felt in the deltoid. By the 8th month I started cycling again. Not on a road bike like before, but on a comfortable, stable and more upright city bike. Swimming became an everyday thing for me since the 7th month. I believe it helps with the recovery, since in the water you can easily move the arm it is more practical to get the muscles going. I developed a set of exercises that will be shared in a separate post. Long walks of more than 10 KM with minimal arm support were comfortable. The affected arm becomes of use for the day to day. At that time I opened doors with it, carried light objects, used it to get dressed etc. I was occasionally able to snack and reposition my specs with it.

The 6th month is usually the review point with your doctor. Results at this point may vary depending on individuals. This is just how it went down for me. Elbow flexion started to be functional since around 4.5 months. This is, for example, I was able to raise a small bottle of water (not to my mouth, but to pick it up from the table i.e.). It would get much better over months to come. Flexion after supination of the forearm wasn't good until around the 9th month, but at 6th month it started to get a decent range of motion while making a fist. This means I couldn't wash my hands following the old usual motions but it was a start. I could supinate and raise the forearm while making a fist, but not with an open hand.  At this point I was doing exercises with 1-2kg weights for elbow flexion. For arm abduction, I started to have some tiny movements while standing. Laying down was easier and I could sometimes raise my arm. It was around this time that I ditched the arm sling around