Whether you are a diabetic or a cancer patient undergoing chemotherapy, you probably have already experienced at least one kind of neuropathy or nerve pain during your lifetime. While it may not be a disease in itself, symptoms of nerve pain can cause too much suffering for anyone to endure.
Fortunately, there are many ways to treat neuropathy. Whether you are an advocate of alternative treatments or believe more on the side of conventional medicine, there is bound to be one or more neuropathic treatments that you can undergo without throwing away your principles while relieving the debilitating effects of the nerve damage you are suffering from.
Below are 10 popular methods for treating nerve pain.
Alternative Treatment
1. TENS
One of the recently developed treatments for nerve damage that is gaining popularity is transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation or TENS. This alternative neuropathy treatment method makes use of electrical impulses transmitted to the affected area through electrodes to alleviate symptoms like pain and muscle spasms.
2. Cryotherapy
A known pain treatment that freezes affected nerves, cryotherapy is considered an effective way of relieving neuropathy symptoms. This alternative treatment is typically used for conditions involving isolated nerve irritation, such as intercostal neuralgia, hypogastric neuromas, cluneal nerve entrapment, among others.
3. Acupuncture
This alternative medicine developed in Asia has also been considered as an effective way of treating signs of nerve damage as it targets various types of pain associated with the condition. For most cases, acupuncture is used for chronic back pain, but it has also been known to effectively relieve headaches, neck pain, and joint pain. When performed by an experienced practitioner, acupuncture is guaranteed to yield great results for neuropathy patients.
4. B-Vitamins
Nerve health is often associated with Vitamin B-Complex, so it shouldn’t be surprising to see this item included in this list. All vitamins in the B group can be used in line with other neuropathy treatments, but certain variations are more effective than others. For example, Vitamin B1 is best taken in the form of the fat-soluble benfotiamine instead of thiamine and Vitamin B-12 as methylcobalamin.
5. Alpha Lipoic Acid
Several studies have proven the efficacy of Alpha lipoic acid or ALA in treating neuropathy caused by diabetes and chemotherapy because the fatty acid has antioxidative properties that prevent oxidative stress in nerves. However, further research is needed to establish the right dosage for this supplement.
6. Magnesium
Lack of magnesium in the body has been linked to peripheral neuropathy, particularly in people with diabetes. Several studies were conducted to determine how the naturally-occurring mineral in the body helps neuropathic pain and discovered that it acts by preventing pain-related receptors that cause nerve pain.
7. Massage
Massage has been considered a useful alternative treatment for various medical conditions, including neuropathy. In fact, specific massage techniques like deep tissue massage, connective tissue massage, and sports massages have been known to effectively lessen neuropathic pain.
Conventional Treatment
8. Anti-Depressants
Anti-depression drugs have been used in treating neuropathy because of its relieving effect for chronic pain.
9. Anticonvulsants
Like anti-depressants, drugs commonly used for patients with seizures also show great potential in alleviating nerve pain. More specifically, anticonvulsant drugs that can be used for neuropathic treatment are phenobarbital, valproic acid, clonazepam, pregabalin, topiramate, and tiagabine. Based on one study, gabapentin has the highest potential because of its analgesic effect on neuropathy symptoms. However, further studies need to be made to establish a more concrete connection between nerve pain symptoms and the use of these medications.
10. Over-the-Counter Pain Killers
Over-the-counter pain relief medications such as acetaminophen and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are usually the first line of treatment for neuropathy. However, these drugs may no longer work on greater and more frequent pain.
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