Natural Ways to Relieve Nerve Pain

Introduction

Nerve pain is a classic symptom of neuropathy. Neuropathy refers to dysfunctionality in one or more nerves. The symptoms include numbness, muscle pain, tingling sensation, muscle weakness, and pain. Aside from conventional medicine prescribed by doctors, there are many natural ways to manage nerve-pain. For example, Nerve Renew Advanced Nerve Support is a product that uses all-natural ingredients.

Besides, physical exercise, supplements, massages, creams, and the use of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) can help relieve nerve pain. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation is the application of electric current to stimulate nerves for therapeutic purposes.

Causes of Nerve Pain

1. Lack of physical exercise can result in muscle pain, swelling, numbness, and stiffness. Lack of exercise also leads to poor blood circulation, which causes poor nerve coordination.
2. Diseases such as diabetes and sclerosis can have an impact on how your nerves work. For example, diabetes causes numbness, burning sensations, and stinging, especially in the limbs. In severe cases, the limbs may require amputation. In these diseases, the nerves can send wrong signals to muscle tissues and joints.
3. Mechanical injuries to the muscle tissues may damage nerves that may not heal or take time to repair. Injuries to the backbone can result in spinal cord injuries which may cause severe neuropathic pain.

Other causes that are rare but not negligible include:

1. Vitamin B deficiency may result in muscle inflammation.
2. Contraction of syphilis and shingles. The causative agent of the disease Shingles is the varicella-zoster virus, a virus that also causes chickenpox. Thus, the reactivation of chickenpox is also a possible cause of nerve pain
3. Arthritis in the spine also causes nerve pain.

Natural Remedies for Nerve Pain

Various natural remedies can help to relieve nerve pain. Here’s a list of some of the most common ones:

Physical Exercise

Conducting regular physical exercise helps prevent many diseases and conditions. The aim is to stay fit, improve circulation, improve bowel movements, and strengthen body muscles. Exercising muscles also reduce stiffness, swelling, and numbness. Exercise is particularly important for diabetes or sclerosis patients. Their symptoms include loss of feeling and numbness. Exercising the limbs helps to maintain muscle strength and reduce pain.

Physical therapy involves the application of pressure to stiff and weak muscles. By the end of the process, one can move with ease. The exercises may involve the use of machines and dumbbells to strengthen the muscles. Other exercises, like stretches, don’t need supervision. One may also try static stretching which involves stretching specific muscles and holding them in position for about fifteen seconds.

Massages

Massages involve manipulating the soft tissues of your body, such as tissue muscles, connective tissues, tendons, and ligaments. Massages involve the application of pressure on the muscles and moving them by various degrees. For instance, feet massages concentrate on the feet’s pressure points, providing relief to the limb’s muscles.

The benefits of massage include reducing muscle stress, muscle tension, and relieving pain. Massages are also enjoyable, and they provide feelings of caring, comfort, and connection for most people.

NOTE: Massages shouldn’t replace physical exercise. They are also off-limits for patients with deep vein thrombosis, bleeding problems, or burning wounds.

Supplements

Supplements are a treatment for nerve pain arising from neuropathy. Various supplements, such as Vitamin B-1, Vitamin B-12, Vitamin B-6, Alpha-lipoic acid, Acetyl-L-carnitine, and N-Acetyl cysteine can make a significant difference in reducing nerve pains. Foods that contain these vitamins include poultry, fish, seafood, eggs, fortified cereals, and vegetables.

Alpha-lipoic acid is an antioxidant that lowers blood sugar levels and improves nerve function. Alpha-lipoic acid also aids in reducing pain, itchiness, tingling, burning sensations, and numbness. Food sources rich in acid include red meat, liver, broccoli, and spinach. Acetyl-L-carnitine is both an amino acid and antioxidant found in fish, poultry, and dairy products. It’s important for the creation of healthy nerve cells and the reduction of pain. You can choose the foods to include in your diet based on your personal preference. For example, those who don’t eat meat can focus on vegetarian alternatives.

However, you must use supplements as an addition to your diet and not as a replacement for food. Further, it’s advisable to take a balanced diet as a preventive measure.

Creams and Ointments

Applying medicated creams and lotions to the skin helps to relieve pain. These are used mainly for nerve pain resulting from infections such as shingles or chickenpox reactivation. Lidocaine is an active ingredient that acts as a pain reliever or an anti-inflammatory agent. It reduces irritation, soreness, swelling, and burns. Apply the cream on the affected area to relieve pain.

In other instances, the ointments work by moisturizing the skin to prevent dry skin. For example, colloidal oatmeal cream has ingredients that soften keratin. It prevents dry skin, itchiness, and irritable skin.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)

TENS is a pain treatment method that uses a gadget called transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation unit. The gadget uses electric currents to send pain signals. It’s a small battery-operated gadget with two electrodes that carry current to the skin. The gadget easily attaches to a belt or is carried on-body. It’s commonly used for pain management and as a remedy for short term pain relief.

TENS treats osteoarthritis (a disease of the joints), fibromyalgia, low back pain, tendinitis, bursitis, labour pain, diabetic neuropathy, and hardening of the arteries.

However, it can’t be used in the case of infected tissues or wounds because it may result in the spread of infections. It’s also not usable on itching skin, over eyes or mouth, on the neck or head, and reproductive organs or genitals.

NOTE: Persons with mental impairment cannot provide feedback to ensure the safe use of TENS. Therefore, TENS should be avoided in such patients.

Conclusion

Nerve pain can take a while to treat depending on the severity, body reaction towards the treatment, and type of nerve pain.

The upside in using natural remedies is that they have fewer side effects as compared to allopathic medicines prescribed by doctors.

The important aspect to keep in mind for natural ways of relieving natural pain is consistency. So, follow the methods mentioned above to get relief from nerve pain naturally.

About Theresa Duncan

Originally from Detroit, MI, Theresa has been offering health and fitness advice for the last 30 years while working as an engineer. She decided to turn her passion into a profession, and finds nothing more satisfying than helping others reach their health and fitness goals.