When a pinched nerve needs more than patience
Nearly all of this settles. A small number of presentations do not wait, and they are worth knowing by name.
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This page exists because the honest version of nerve advice has to include the part where you should not be reading a website.
The signs below are uncommon. If one of them describes you, act on it today rather than booking anything.
Go to an emergency department
Today, not at an appointment
These point to pressure on the bundle of nerves at the base of the spinal cord. Treated quickly the outlook is good. Delayed, it may not be reversible.
Bladder or bowel control has changed
Unable to pass urine, unable to tell when the bladder is full, or incontinence that is new. This is the single most important sign on this page.
Numbness around the saddle area
Loss of feeling in the inner thighs, the buttocks or the genital area. The area that would contact a saddle, hence the name.
Weakness in both legs
Especially if it is getting worse over hours or days, and especially alongside either of the above.
Severe pain after a significant fall or impact
Particularly over the age of fifty, with osteoporosis, or on long term steroid medication.
Be seen promptly
Within days, by someone who examines you
Not emergencies, but not things to spend six weeks waiting out either.
Weakness that is increasing
A foot that catches on steps, a leg that gives way, a grip that has changed. Pain is irritation. Weakness is loss of function, and the window for it matters.
Numbness that keeps spreading
An area of dead feeling that is growing rather than holding steady.
Fever, night sweats or unexplained weight loss alongside the pain
Pain with these needs a different kind of look, because the cause may not be mechanical at all.
A history of cancer and new spinal pain
Worth being direct about. Mention it to whoever sees you rather than waiting to be asked.
Pain that is unrelenting at night
Mechanical pain usually eases in some position. Pain that will not settle in any position, and wakes you every night, is a different pattern.
What people want to know
Is a pinched nerve serious?
Usually not. The large majority settle with time and appropriate care and leave nothing behind.
The exceptions are on this page, and they are worth reading once properly so you know what you are looking for. Having read them, you can stop worrying about the rest.
Can a pinched nerve cause dizziness?
A nerve root in the neck does not cause dizziness directly, but neck problems and dizziness genuinely do travel together. Cervicogenic dizziness is a recognised pattern: a feeling of unsteadiness or floating that tracks with neck stiffness and neck movement.
Dizziness has many causes that have nothing to do with the neck, including inner ear problems, blood pressure and medication. Sudden severe dizziness with slurred speech, double vision, facial weakness or difficulty swallowing is an emergency and needs calling 911 rather than a clinic.
Can pinched nerves cause headaches?
Irritation of the upper cervical nerves can produce a headache, usually starting at the base of the skull and spreading forward over one side. It often comes with a stiff neck and tends to be provoked by holding one position.
A headache that is the worst of your life and came on suddenly, or one with fever and a stiff neck, or one after a head injury, is an emergency rather than a neck problem.
Next step
If none of the above applies
Then you are in the ordinary group, where an examination and conservative care is the sensible next step rather than a scan and a wait.
- Red flags screened at the first visit as a matter of course
- A doctor does the examination, either Dr. Martin or Dr. More
- Referred on immediately if anything on this page turns up
Speak to a doctor first. Nothing is booked on this page.
