Over the past few months, Teen Mom alum Jenelle Evans has been battling neck pain. On Monday, she offered up an update on her condition on both her Instagram Story and on YouTube. As The Sun noted, Evans said that doctors found a fluid-filled cyst in her spine. She said that this latest development left her “in shock.”
Evans first opened up about the news on her Instagram Story, telling her fans that she was “in shock” and “scared” to hear about her diagnosis. According to The Sun, the reality star is dealing with a rare spinal disorder called syringomyelia. The disorder is described as the development of a cyst (which is called a syrinx) in the spinal cord. The cyst can end up causing pain, weakness, and, in some cases, could lead to paralysis. The symptoms of syringomyelia include headaches, loss of reflexes, pain in the neck, arm, and back regions, and the weakening of muscles. While Evans shared her diagnosis on her Instagram Story, she went on to describe her battle with the illness on her YouTube channel.
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In her video, Evans explained that she sought out treatment after she was experiencing headaches and issues with her neck. She had been getting a series of tests done over the past five months, but it wasn’t until she recently underwent an MRI that she got an answer regarding her health struggles. The Teen Mom 2 alum got emotional as she opened up about her condition. “It’s pretty concerning. That’s not good. None of this is good,” she said. She went on to say that she received the results from her MRI over the weekend, so she has not been able to talk with her doctor about the next course of action just yet. As a result, she is trying not to “jump to conclusions” about this diagnosis.
“I do what I can. By this time, at 5 o’clock, I usually have to tap out because my neck hurts so bad. I try to get up and be happy and act like I don’t have this problem,” Evans said about the health issues that she’s been experiencing. “I have head shaking too, it’s kind of embarrassing, it feels like a tremor. My hands are not that steady and my fingertips are numb most of the time.” The reality star did address her next steps, including the possibility of having the cyst removed. She said, “Hopefully, I won’t be in pain anymore and it’ll be great.”
