Upper Arm Muscle Pain

If you ask what are the most common areas where pain is experienced by us, one of them has to be the arm. There too, it is the upper arm where most of the time pain is experienced. There is nothing shocking or surprising about this fact, considering the amount of strain our arms have to withstand consciously or unconsciously. Be it lugging the grocery, to exercising or any physical activity or pushing or pulling something that is very heavy. The reasons do not stop here.

Symptoms

It is important to make one thing clear here. The given symptoms may differ or vary slightly depending on the severity of the injury or the cause. Nevertheless, there are some common symptoms to affirm, if there is pain in our upper arm muscles. Coming back to symptoms though, to start off, obviously there is pain. It can range from a dull ache to a sharp, burning sensation. This lasts for at least 2 days. Another symptom is that the arm swells and if there is a injury, the bruises might become prominent. To add to this, difficulty in flexing or moving your arm. Finally, this pain is persistent and worsens if you try and lift anything or exercise. There can be a distinct loss of strength too. If the pain is in the left arm and is coupled with shortness of breath and chest pain, it could be a heart attack.

Causes

Exercise: Indulging excessively in exercise that strain your arms, can lead to soreness, and severe pain. Or if you do not warm up properly before playing a sport that focuses on hands and arms, it could lead to a muscle pull and sometimes lead to ligament and muscle tear.

Injury: Falling on your arm or getting hit by something, can definitely cause muscle pain. In addition to that if you lift something really heavy, it can lead to injury. Fractures for instance, cause pain for several months in spite of healing.

Muscle Disorders: Tendonitis, myalgia, and a few other problems can surely lead to arm pain. In some cases, peripheral neuropathy, brachial plexus injury and heartburn can lead to upper right arm pain. Let's look at the treatment of this problem now.

Treatment

Higher and Higher: Elevating your upper arm will do the trick. While you are resting it, raise it to the level of your chest. Prop up your hand on a couple of fluffy pillows if you are sitting on a couch.

Cool it: For any kind of muscle or joint pain, ice compress always works and so does a heating pad. Apply an ice pack and keep it on the injured area for around 10 to 15 minutes. Do this through the day, at regular intervals.

Go Slow: You obviously cannot stop all the activities but you can surely spread the task out. Take breaks in between and do not give too much strain to your arm.

Rest: If there is no deformity and the pain is not severe, just resting that arm will do the needful. This is the easiest treatment that works, unless the discomfort is too severe.

After reading all these reasons, I am sure you would be able to deal with this problem in a better way! If the need arises, do consult your physician for pain relieving medication. Take care!