Weird numb tingling sensation in arm?

Every now and then i will feel my arm tighten up, that's when i know the tingling is about to happen. So my arm tightens up for about a minute then suddenly i will get a painful tingling all on my left side extending from midway down my spine up to my shoulders. This lasts about 2 minutes then the area that was tingling will then go numb for a few minutes. After that my arm goes back to normal but will continue to feel slightly tight and there is a dull pain for a while after. Any idea what could be happening? Thanks