Today I was diagnosed with arthritis in my neck. I’m 23. Not overly thrilled about this. I’m in constant pain. I’m starting physical therapy in a week to try and manage the pain. I have a young OTTB who I am training in hunter jumpers. He loves to jump and so do I. My doctor said though the impaction of it is not helping, and making it worse. He told me of course to not stop! I am curious though as to anyone who had neck problems before? Arthritis? What to do? I thought about going strictly dressage for less impaction, but I grew up doing jumpers so I’m worried I will miss it, and so will he! Any advice is much needed. Very upset about this, as riding is a HUGE part of me.
You have many years ahead of you.
Makes good sense to slow down some now until you have your arthritis under control and PT has done it’s thing.
You can then start again and see how far your new you can go.
As Grandma used to say, “no need to borrow trouble”.
No one knows where your problems may be headed.
Work on remedying those now.
Worry about what comes of it after you give getting this sorted out a very good try.
I think that jumping is easier on your spine than dressage, other than you may be more apt to have falls jumping and falls would not be kind to you.
Now, others here will know how to help you get ahead with this problem.
Maybe some of their stories can be of help.
You are so young to have a neck problem but there are things you can do help the situation. This might be worthy of a second opinion, or two.
Do you know which vertebrae is afflicted and which part of the vertebrae has the arthritis? Have have you seen the xrays and MRI images of the arthritis and been shown which positions to avoid? Is the arthritis interfering with a nerve, disk, or both or causing numbness or tingling in your shoulders, arms, or hands? Do you have muscle spasms? Knowing the location of the arthritis, stabilizing the neck and avoiding bending the neck in that direction might be helpful. A neck brace and possibly a thoracic spine brace might also be really helpful, especially when riding. There are stores that specialize in braces for every part of the body. They’ll have several types of neck braces and multiple brands for you to try on before you purchase. Have you tried a tens unit for pain control? Platelet rich plasma injected around the painful vertebrae might help ease the pain.
Whether you can jump or not probably depends on the location of the arthritis and if you are able to do a two point position and go over a jump without causing more damage. Avoiding young and unpredictable horses might be an important part of preserving your future. Bluey gives excellent advice on slowing down, getting the pain under control and then slowing starting up again and seeing how far you can go. Take care of yourself. You’ve got the rest of your life ahead of you to enjoy!
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I had 2 car accidents when I was 17 and then 18, both I was hit and injured my neck. I was diagnosed with neck Arthritis in my early 30s and I am now 67…and have never given up riding except for a couple months when it was really, really inflamed!
PT really helps and so do many things…just keep going! The therapist will give you exercises to do everyday…do them.
Any more questions I can help with, let me know.
