Many people know the unpleasant feeling of a “pinched nerve”.

It often begins with a mysterious pain or discomfort and then progresses to a shooting pain that runs down the leg or arm, for example.

When you are afflicted it is a good reaction to rush to your favorite Chiropractor, Physical Therapist or Massage Therapist. If you are lucky enough to have a skilled therapist, you will likely get some relief.  However, if the expected results do not come in a timely fashion or symptoms become chronic, you may have more than a mechanical problem.

There is an unsuspected cause of pinched nerves.  While hormones are blamed for many things, it is rare they get blamed for pinched nerves, but this is a common underlying cause.

When Estrogen levels get high and Thyroid function gets inhibited, the body begins to swell and retain excess water creating a “water-logged” environment. This “wet” environment produces swelling in nerve sheathes which leads to a subsequent injury to nerves creating an invasive environment for the nerves.

Spinal Discs, in this dysfunctional moist environment, can be affected as they spread unnaturally and bulge more easily. As they move outside their normal position, they will often infringe on nerve space creating nerve irritation.  A chronic low back problem can easily be a thyroid or Adrenal insufficiency, for example.

Even cartilage, the soft spongy tissue that protects your bones from joint articulation, can become overly flexible, compressible and swollen leaving it ripe for injury or displacement.

If your therapist has been working hard to help heal your low back pain or aching knee, for example, and is having trouble generating the usual great results, consider that there may be a hormonal imbalance contributing to or causing your painful and possibly debilitating situation.