Is It REALLY A Pinched Nerve?
There is a serious pain in the back of your neck or in your lower back and you can barely move as a result.
A well-meaning friend may tell you “You have a pinched nerve” and suggest ways of dealing with the problem.
But is the nerve REALLY pinched? Or does it just feel that way?
No, it’s not really pinched as the word ‘pinched’ implies a mechanical pressure directly on the nerve (like two fingers directly pinching your arm).
In my experience, x-rays often show degenerative changes of the joints of the spine in the area where that person is feeling the “pinching” feeling. In the absence of those findings, we always find areas of misalignment there too.
So, can degenerative changes or misalignments cause a nerve to be ACTUALLY pinched? Yes, they can but typically this occurs at an advanced stage of degeneration which takes forty or more years to create.
So, why does it FEEL like a nerve is being pinched?
Subluxation, or misalignment, of a spinal bone puts tension on the joint capsule and increases the pressure of the fluid inside that capsule. This CAN put pressure on the nerve but the pain signal and “locked up” feeling come from the joint capsule problem, not the pressure on the nerve.
If you have experienced this “pinched nerve” sensation, you know it’s no walk in the park.
You have trouble sleeping, you can’t do much athletically, and pretty much everything is affected by the pain.
Whether you’re feeling that in the neck or in the lower back, gentle stretching, ice and later heat, can help you reduce the pain somewhat.
In the long run though, EVERY symptom in the body should be understood to be just that – a symptom of a deeper problem. Simply covering the pain won’t fix the underlying problem and will virtually guarantee that you’re going to experience this again in the future AND that the underlying problem will get worse over time.
A simple and affordable chiropractic exam including x-rays often helps uncover the underlying problem and can open up options for correcting them.
Thank you for being part of our mission. As always. With love,
Dr. Colin