The nervous system is involved in virtually everything the body does. Therefore, nerve pain and nerve damage can seriously affect your quality of life. 

Damage to the motor nerves can result in weakness, muscle atrophy, and twitching. Sensory nerve damage can result in pain, burning, tingling, numbness, and sensitivity.

When we’re living with pain, weakness and other life changing symptoms, we want it to stop.

But is there a quick fix for nerve damage? Or does recovering from nerve damage take time?

Types of Nerve Damage

The peripheral nervous system can be thought of as a complex wiring system for carrying messages to and from the brain and the spinal cord. The axons, which are wrapped in a fatty substance known as myelin, are the “live wires” in the system which connect one nerve cell to another. 

Peripheral neuropathy refers to damage to the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord and can lead to weakness, numbness, and pain, most often in the hands and feet, but in other areas of the body as well

According to WebMD, some 20 million Americans suffer from peripheral nerve damage. Peripheral nerve damage becomes more common as we age, and as many as 70% of those with diabetes suffer some level of nerve damage. 

What Causes Nerve Damage

In addition to being caused by diabetes, peripheral neuropathy can result from:

• Traumatic injuries
• Infections
• Exposure to toxins
• Inherited causes
• Metabolic issues
• Autoimmune diseases such as:
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Guillain-Barre’ syndrome
  • Myasthenia gravis
  • Lupus 
  • ALS
• Nutritional deficiencies
• Compression or trauma to the nerves

Those who suffer from peripheral neuropathy typically describe the pain as “stabbing,” “burning,” or “tingling.” 

Nerve Damage Usually Progresses Over Time

Nerve damage is like a broken wire, in that there is a loss of the normal signals being sent. There are errors which distort the message being sent or there is an inappropriate signaling of messages. 

While there are many causes of nerve damage, what most of them have in common is that (other than nerve damage caused by trauma), nerve damage typically occurs slowly, over the years and gets progressively worse as time goes by. 

While symptoms of nerve damage caused by trauma will usually improve on its own, nerve damage caused by other issues can worsen gradually

Nerve Damage that Takes Time to Develop Can Take Time to Get Better

Damaged nerves will try to repair themselves by “sprouting” regenerating nerve units, which will then attempt to grow down the nerve to reinnervate muscles or skin. If the connection is successful, then recovery will commence. If those regenerating nerve fibers are unable to make a connection, no recovery can occur. 

Nerves which are attempting to regenerate do so at a rate of about one inch per month, and while sensation may be regained after long periods of time, it takes much more time for muscle reinnervation

Hope for Helping Improve Nerve Damage

Because nerve damage is often progressive, it may not always be able to completely reverse the effects. The underlying condition causing the nerve pain or nerve damage must be addressed, whether through correcting nutritional deficiencies, changing medications, regulating blood sugar levels for those with diabetes, taking medications to treat autoimmune conditions or engaging in physical therapy or surgery for nerve compression or nerve trauma.

One option is through better nutrition. Dr. Terry Wahls has found great success with her groundbreaking Wahls Protocol by literally eating her way out of MS symptoms.

A cancer study done at the University of Iowa tested nicotinamide riboside, a naturally occurring form of the B3 vitamin, found that NR increases levels of Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide (NAD+), a key coenzyme which cells depend on to fuel all basic functions.

NAD+ levels drop as we age and may drop more when cancer or other chronic diseases invade the body. The study found that increasing the levels of NAD+ can help ward off and even reverse neuropathy.  

How NAD+ & Biotin Support Better Nerve Health

Leading researchers and doctors in the field of neurology such as Dr. Ross Grant have been studying the synergy of NAD+ when combined with higher levels of D-Biotin.

Click here to read scholarly articles about NAD+ & D-Biotin.

Additionally, recent studies of patients taking Myetin®, a ground-breaking nutritional supplement combining NAD+ & D-Biotin, found significant improvement in both pain and fatigue after 120 days.

Click here to read the patient study.

It is important to understand, however, that just as your nerve damage did not occur overnight, it will take time for the body to repair itself when done naturally, from the inside out. 

It’s also a good idea to track your results any time you’re starting a new health journey. Feeling a little better each day is sometimes hard to notice, so a daily journal or symptoms tracker will help you celebrate the progress you make along the way!