Chiropractic Care: The Ultimate Solution For A Pinched Nerve
You may have seen people around you with the complaint of a pinched nerve as it is one of the most common injuries that occur. A pinched nerve manifests clinically through various symptoms. With every case of a pinched nerve, you will find something wrong such as a nerve irritation, the nerve under compression due to inflammation, or the nerve being pinched by a vertebral body.
A pinched nerve has the potential to occur anywhere along your spine. It may also occur in any joint throughout the body. There are many relief routes that you can take to get rid of a pinched nerve but can a chiropractor fix a pinched nerve? Let’s find out!
How Do You Know If You Have A Pinched Nerve?
- Pain radiating down the spine
- Excruciating headaches or migraine attacks
- Pain radiating down one or both arms or legs
- Needles, tingling, or burning sensation in the arm, leg, and sometimes even the fingers and toes
- Pain in the neck
- Lower back pain
A pinched nerve can decrease the mobility of a person. It may also restrict you from sitting for long periods as it creates trouble. You may find yourself so immobilized that you start having trouble to stand up from that position.
In some cases, a pinched nerve can also cause your body to have problems bending, and sleeping. Whenever an irritated or pinched nerve occurs, it can also cause muscle spasms accompanied by pain.
Since the nerves control the body by transmitting signals to various internal organs and smooth muscles when someone is diagnosed with a pinched nerve their body can’t communicate within and heal from inside. Due to this, it may lead to several other health problems.
The Reasons Behind A Pinched Nerve
Some of the reasons that can cause a pinched nerve has been listed below.
- Subluxation or misalignment can result in a Pinched Nerve
- Degeneration of the disk that can occur due to various causes can result in a Pinched Nerve
- Osteoarthritis can cause a Pinched Nerve
- Disc Herniation or Protrusions can cause Pinched Nerves
It’s essential to understand that any one of these four basic causes of a pinched nerve is typically asymptomatic and clinically absent during the initial stages of the case presentation. Many people report no symptoms during the early stages which is why it’s important to make regular visits to your chiropractor so you can keep a check on the health of your spine.
Pinched nerves can result due to any of the above-mentioned conditions. All of them may happen simultaneously as well.
What Do Chiropractors Do To Treat A Pinched Nerve?
Chiropractic treatment for a pinched nerve is a therapy program design to re-align the spine so that you can bounce back to optimal health in no time. Several stress factors take place as a result of a pinched nerve. Chiropractors specialize in decreasing the stress to overcome pinched nerves as well as prevent them.
Chiropractic care is a healthy, natural, and holistic approach that allows your body to heal at its own pace. With chiropractic care, you don’t have to put yourself through unnecessary surgeries or be put on several, harmful medications. Just a few gentle adjustments to get the job done!
6 Ways To Treat A Pinched Nerve
Besides chiropractic treatment, there are a few other ways that you can use to provide yourself relief from an existing pinched nerve. These are easy steps that you can incorporate into your lifestyle so that your symptoms lessen and gradually disappear over time.
1. Give Yourself A Break
Like most injuries, giving yourself a long break is often the best solution. Start by giving the affected area or the surrounding muscles and joints a rest instead of using them. If a specific angle or movement is enhancing the pain, then avoid moving your body in that direction.
It is also important that you ensure to get enough sleep every day or maybe a greater amount of sleep than normal to speed up the healing process. Your pinched nerve symptoms should begin to reduce following the first night immediately because you are giving your body greater time to recover.
2. Fix Your Posture
You have no idea what a bad posture may be doing to your body. It is one of the biggest contributing factors towards a pinched nerve. Sitting in an awkward position or having your back hunched adds unnecessary stress to your back and neck. Most people who have desk jobs tend to have a bad posture which is why they suffer from pinched nerves.
Once you fix your posture you will see a commendable improvement in your health. Ensure to keep your back straight while you are seated. You should keep your computer monitor at eye-level so that you don’t have to look up or down for several hours at your desk.
3. Stretch
Pinched nerves can sometimes straightaway heal by simply stretching out regularly three or four times. You don’t have to become a master yogi. Just do gentle and occasional stretches in between work and you can successfully overcome the pinched nerve.
4. Ice And Heat Therapy
You can also try applying ice packs and heating pads to the areas that are injured. Using ice and heat therapy alleviates inflammation and swelling surrounding the area suffering from the consequences of a pinched nerve. It’s important to decrease any signs of inflammation because later this can interfere to add more stress and slow down the healing process.
5. Create A Standing Workstation
We already established that a bad posture can do great harm to your back. Being crouched on your desk for long hours can irritate the nerves in your back which makes your body feel worst and exhausts you overtime.
One of the leading causes of pinched nerves is sitting for long hours working at the desk. Therefore, an easy way to overcome this is to swap your desk with a standing workstation. Many experts believe it’s a great way to deal with any pinched nerves that may have arrived.
A standing workstation doesn’t only keep your back relaxed but it’s also beneficial for your overall health. It prevents you from leading a sedentary lifestyle and you can become more active while being on a standing workstation.
6. A Splint Or A Brace Helps
Pinched nerves need rest and isolation to recover fully. If you continue to use the affected nerves, muscles, and joints, you will gradually worsen your presentation. It will create more complications and result in long-term symptoms. Pinched nerves in the wrist are difficult to overcome because many of our everyday movements use the wrist and hand.
A great option to immobilize the joint is to use a splint or a brace. Even if you can control the movements, it is still tough to prevent your body from moving while you are busy with something or asleep. Therefore, a splint reduces the chance of any unnecessary movement occurring.