Mixed Signals - Autonomic Dysreflexia

As I've said before, I never lost all sensation after the accident. The majority of people with spinal cord injuries lose all sensation below their level of injury, so technically I shouldn't have any sensation below my chest. However, my injury is incomplete, meaning my spinal cord was not completely severed. In my case, that means I still have sensation throughout my whole body, but it's imperfect. I don't feel pain at all on my left side (below my chest) and only a nominal amount on my right. I can tell if someone is touching me, no problem, but not if someone is pricking me with a pin on my left foot. I have no sensation of hot or cold on my left side, and an odd, mildly painful perception of it on my right.

So, that doesn't sound so bad, right? Smack your leg into a wall and feel no pain. Get an ingrown toenail, but feel no discomfort. Except for...

(Dun-dun-DUUUUUUNNNNN)

Autonomic Dysreflexia

Turns out that even a paralyzed, desensitized body is a pretty astute thing. It can tell that something is wrong, even though it can't identify what it is. But it REALLY doesn't like not knowing what's wrong. So, for instance, I had an ingrown toenail at one point and I put my sneakers on -- my body FLIPPED. THE HECK. OUT.

Dysreflexia can come on in a variety of ways. With the ingrown toenail, it was intense nausea. At other times it's been an insane pounding headache that aches in waves across my head and the bones of my face, loud ringing in my ears, a flushed face, and strong tingling all through my arms, legs, hands, and feet; often a combination of 2 or more of those at once. The one thing it always does is skyrocket blood pressure.

My blood pressure has always been below 120/80, but since the accident it's been much lower. Spinal cord injury generally lowers blood pressure for a while, but then it will stabilize after a few months. Mine never has stabilized, and I continue to need medicine to raise my blood pressure before I get up in the morning. (I was curious the other day and took my blood pressure before I took the meds. 85/58, no joke. I've had a doctor suggest I ADD salt to my diet.)

ANYWAY, all that to put this into perspective: the last time I was dysreflexic, my blood pressure was 185/130. 

Dysreflexia can happen when there's anything "wrong" that your body can't identify, most commonly a full bladder or bowel issues. Big things can set it off, of course, like spilling boiling water on your legs; but, small things can do it too. For someone with a complete injury who has no sensation at all, even a wrinkle in the fabric of their shirt that their body doesn't like can get it going. Once it's started, it's then up to you to figure out what's causing it and fix the problem; as soon as you do, the dysrelexia subsides in moments. In the case of my ingrown toenail, as soon as I took off my shoe and sock, the nausea completely disappeared in about 30 seconds and my BP was normal again. It's pretty trippy.

So next time you stub your toe, try to be a little grateful for the pain! Your brain and body know exactly where and why you're hurting and are making sure you know too. It's a blessing in disguise. 😉