Pinched Nerves are a pain in the…

Many of us have experienced the pain from a pinched nerve at one time or another.  Pinched nerve pain comes in a number of different varieties:

  • Perhaps the most popular is often referred to as sciatica.  Named after the sciatic nerve, this rope-like pain that radiates down the back of our leg to your toes.
  • There is a similar rope-like pain that radiates through your arms into our hands or fingers.
  • There is also numbness of the hand or fingers that comes from a pinched nerve.

 

The common thread with most, but not all, pinched nerves is that they originate at the spine.  The pinch occurs as the Spinal Nerve (or Nerve Root) exits between two vertebrae.

How Do Pinched Nerves Happen?

The pinch can occur from a number of different ways:

  • Most common are the pinched nerves that occur from a bulge in the intervertebral disc.  This is commonly referred to as a bulging or herniated disc.

(Side note:  Sometimes this is incorrectly called a slipped disc.  It is incorrect because discs do not slip; they are firmly attached to the bone.  That information is completely free and for your education.)

  • A very severe pinch occurs when the disc ruptures and a jelly-like material oozes out.  This is a case that typically requires surgery.
  • Arthritic spurs can also pinch a spinal nerve.
  • Inflammation in the surrounding muscles and ligaments can also pinch a spinal nerve and cause symptoms.

 

Are There Other Symptoms That Can Be Caused By A Pinched Nerve?

What nerves are there contained within the Spinal Nerve?  As a tail off the back of our brain, the spinal cord runs through a canal within our spinal column.  The spinal cord contains hair-like fibers from our brain that go to every single part of our body.  Fibers that go to our muscles, ligaments, joints and skin are used to convey pain, (along with other functions).  There are also nerve fibers that go to our organs and glands to control their functions.

So here’s the answer…

Yes.  If the Spinal Nerve can be pinched causing pain and/or weakness in our leg, and if the Spinal Nerve contains fibers that also go to our organs and glands, doesn’t it stand to reason that a pinched nerve can also affect the communication with our organs causing a malfunction?  Couldn’t this lack of communication take the form of symptoms or disease?  Perhaps it would look like a weakened immune system or asthma, or heart disease, or indigestion or ulcers.

In fact, research has shown that the pressure from the weight of a dime, if left on a nerve for 3-minutes can reduce how that nerve communicates up to 60%.  If that were the nerve that goes to the lining of your stomach and was responsible for controlling the production of acid, do you think this person might develop an ulcer?

Think of all the functions controlled by our Spinal Nerves, oh yeah… every one of them.

Chiropractic care helps your whole body to work better.  This is why we say…

 

Chiropractic adds years to your life &

Life to your years.

 

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