Nerve pain is usually caused when your joint bones or cartilage either pinch a nerve or exert too much pressure on certain nerves. Sometimes the passageway between bones, where nerves are often located, is too narrow. This condition is called stenosis and it is the major cause of conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome and spinal stenosis. Arthritis and tendonitis can cause nerve pain as can strained muscles. Consequently, most nerve pain is best treated by finding a remedy for your underlying cause of the pain. Fortunately, treatments are pretty standard for both the conditions and nerve pain.

The first thing you must do to start recovering from nerve pain is rest. Stop all physical activity and workouts as well. While you are taking it easy, you should consider wearing a joint brace or device that immobilizes the area in which you have nerve pain. This can help alleviate both inflammation and pain. Secondly, take a couple ibuprofen or naproxen every 4-6 hours. These anti-inflammatory medications help reduce inflammation and pain by limiting the effects of Cox-2 enzymes on prostaglandins (body chemicals). This is the body’s natural response to the irritation of a nerve. You should also ice the area where you have nerve pain. Ice will keep blood and lymph fluid to a minimum as they can exacerbate any inflammation and swelling during the early stages of nerve pain. Once the initial swelling and inflammation are reduced, you can use heat to increase the flow of blood to your nerves and soft tissues. The blood carries oxygen and nutrients (i.e. vitamins A & C) which are essential for healing nerve pain.

When your inflammation and pain are somewhat under control, gently massage your nerve. Massage can help relax nerve endings and diminish pain. You should also start doing some basic stretching exercises for muscles surrounding the nerve. Stretch the joint, tendon or muscle in one direction and hold that position for about a half minute. Stretch in the other direction and do the same thing. It also helps to build adjacent muscle groups as these additional muscles will add stability to the joint and relieve nerve pressure. Do massage and stretching exercises daily. Continue to do all of these treatments consistently and you will notice a marked improvement in your nerve pain. Over time, your nerve pain will disappear. Most importantly, do not get discouraged.

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