We all know that our bodies are full of these things called nerves, but have you ever wondered how they work to control your body?
Lets have a look at two important types of nerves in your body - the ones that tell you sensory information like touch or taste, and the ones that move your muscles and joints.
Sensory nerves are responsible for everything you feel or sense. The five senses - sight, sound, touch, taste and smell - all fall under this category.
Any awareness you have of the feeling or sensation of your body comes from the sensory nerves.
The main sub types of these nerve receptors are mechanoreceptors, chemoreceptors and thermoreceptors.
Mechanoreceptors respond to pressure and touch. When you feel muscles stretch out, or when you're aware of the chair you're sitting on, thats all thanks to mechanoreceptors.
Chemoreceptors send information about chemical changes. This could be like the warming feeling of rubbing Deep Heat over your sore shoulder, as well as internal biochemical changes, like lactic acid build up after doing a big workout.
Thermoreceptors tell us about temperature. They respond when you touch something hot or cold, and are the reason you'll quickly pull your hand away from a hot stove to avoid a serious burn.
Then we have your Motor nerves, these are the ones that control movement.
Every time you make a movement, its because these Motor nerves are sending a signal from your brain to the muscle they activate saying "Move!"
Fun fact - muscles can only ever pull, they can't push! So when you activate your biceps to bend your elbow the biceps muscle contracts and gets shorter which pulls your forearm upwards. When you want to stretch your elbow back out straight, your Motor nerves activate your triceps which then pull your forearm back down to straighten the elbow.
Everything in the body is controlled by nerve signals. The brain is like the control centre, and the nerves move out from the brain into all the tissue of your body - muscles, joints, organs, the lot.
Some nerves can be over a metre long, like the ones that send signals to and from your toes.
The nerves in your arms and hands all connect in via your neck, which is why we like to assess and treat your neck if you're having any pain, or tingling or other "nerve-y" symptoms in your hands and arms.
The same goes from the nerves for your feet and legs - they extend out through your lower back, which is why we consider your back when you come in for treatment for your foot, ankle or leg.
How can you tell if your pain or symptoms are nerve related?
If a Sensory nerve is involved in your pain it can feel like sharp, shooting pains, tingling, pins and needles, numbness, or just feeling "weird" (we call that parasthesia)
If its a Motor nerve thats involved, the muscle groups that nerve activates can be weak, or in extreme situations might not be able to activate at all.
If you think your symptoms may be nerve related, book in with your Myotherapist for a full assessment and treatment plan.
Mel is a Myotherapist based in Ferntree Gully.