A stinger is a nerve injury in the neck and shoulder that sends a sudden bolt of burning or electric pain shooting down one arm. Also called a “burner,” it happens when the bundle of nerves running from the neck into the arm, known as the brachial plexus, gets stretched or compressed during a collision or fall. Stingers are one of the most common injuries in contact sports like football and rugby, and while most resolve quickly on their own, repeated episodes or lingering symptoms can signal a more serious problem.
How a Stinger Happens
The brachial plexus is a web of nerves that exits the spinal cord at the neck, threads between muscles and bones in the shoulder, and branches out to supply feeling and movement to the entire arm. A stinger occurs when these nerves are suddenly forced beyond their normal range in one of two ways.
In a traction injury, the head gets knocked to one side while the opposite shoulder is pushed down, pulling the nerves taut like a rubber band stretched too far. This is the classic mechanism in a football tackle where the head whips sideways on impact. In a compression injury, the head is forced backward and rotated, narrowing the bony openings where nerve roots exit the spine and pinching them. A direct blow to the side of the neck or the area just above the collarbone can also jam the nerves hard enough to cause symptoms.
Regardless of the mechanism, the result is the same: the nerve’s outer insulation gets temporarily disrupted, and electrical signals can’t travel through it properly. This type of nerve damage is called neuropraxia, the mildest grade of nerve injury, and it typically recovers fully within days to weeks.
What a Stinger Feels Like
The hallmark symptom is a sharp, burning or stinging sensation that shoots from the neck or shoulder down into the arm and sometimes into the fingers, almost always on one side only. Many people describe it as feeling like an electric shock or like the arm has been set on fire. Along with the pain, you may notice immediate numbness, tingling, or a feeling of warmth spreading down the arm.
Weakness often follows. The arm may feel dead or heavy, making it difficult to lift or grip. In a mild stinger, these symptoms fade within seconds to minutes. In more moderate cases, the burning and weakness can last hours or even a few days. Strength typically returns gradually, starting at the shoulder and working its way down to the hand.
Severity Grades
Nerve injuries fall into three categories that help predict recovery. Most stingers are grade one injuries (neuropraxia), where the nerve’s protective coating is temporarily disrupted but the nerve fiber itself stays intact. Recovery is usually complete within days to weeks with no lasting damage.
A grade two injury (axonotmesis) means the nerve fibers themselves are damaged, though the surrounding connective tissue tubes remain intact. The nerve can regrow along those tubes, but recovery takes weeks to months. Grade three injuries (neurotmesis) involve severe damage to the nerve fibers and their surrounding structures. This level of injury is rare in typical stingers and may require surgical repair.
The vast majority of stingers stay in grade one territory. If your symptoms clear within minutes and full strength returns the same day, you’ve almost certainly experienced neuropraxia with no lasting consequences.
How It’s Diagnosed
Stingers are usually diagnosed based on the mechanism of injury and a physical exam. A trainer or doctor will test strength in your shoulder, arm, and hand, check sensation along the arm, and assess range of motion in the neck. One common test involves gently tilting and rotating your head while applying light downward pressure to see if it reproduces pain or tingling radiating into the arm. A positive result suggests a nerve root is being compressed.
Imaging like MRI or CT scans isn’t needed for a straightforward first-time stinger that resolves quickly. It becomes important when symptoms linger beyond several days, when weakness doesn’t improve, when there’s significant neck pain, or when you’ve had multiple stingers over time. In those cases, imaging can reveal narrowing of the spinal canal, disc herniation, or other structural issues that make the nerves more vulnerable.
When Symptoms Are More Serious
The critical distinction is between a one-sided stinger and a potential spinal cord injury. A stinger affects one arm. If burning, numbness, or weakness shows up in both arms, or if symptoms extend into the legs, the situation is fundamentally different. That pattern suggests the spinal cord itself may be involved, and it requires immediate immobilization and emergency evaluation.
Other warning signs that call for a more thorough workup include weakness that persists beyond several days, neck pain with reduced range of motion, and a history of recurrent stingers. Repeated episodes can indicate an underlying structural problem in the cervical spine that increases the risk of more serious nerve damage over time.
Recovery and Returning to Activity
For a typical stinger, recovery is straightforward. Once the burning and tingling have completely resolved and full strength has returned in the arm and hand, you’re generally safe to resume activity. There’s no standard waiting period measured in days; it’s based on whether symptoms have fully cleared. Many athletes return to play in the same game if the stinger resolves within minutes.
However, there are firm reasons to stay out. Neck pain with limited range of motion, any lingering weakness or numbness, and signs of spinal instability all rule out returning to contact activity until they’re fully evaluated. Playing through persistent symptoms risks converting a mild nerve stretch into a more significant injury, especially if the nerve gets hit again before it has healed.
For stingers that take longer to resolve, rehabilitation focuses on restoring range of motion in the neck, rebuilding strength in the shoulder and arm, and addressing any muscle imbalances that developed while favoring the injured side.
Preventing Stingers
The single most effective prevention strategy is proper technique during contact, particularly keeping the head up and leading with the shoulder rather than the crown of the helmet during tackles. Strength and balance training that targets the neck and core muscles can also reduce risk by giving the brachial plexus more muscular support and limiting how far the head can be forced to the side on impact.
Equipment modifications help as well. Football players who experience recurrent stingers often add extra protective padding around the neck and shoulders, such as neck rolls or raised shoulder pads that limit extreme lateral neck motion. Even athletes already wearing shoulder pads may benefit from additional padding tailored to restrict the specific movements that stretch or compress the brachial plexus.