Why does my upper thigh get numb?

Do you ever feel like your upper thigh is playing a practical joke on you? Suddenly, out of nowhere, it goes numb and leaves you feeling helpless. Well, fear not my friend! We’re here to uncover the mystery behind the tingling sensation and provide some relief.

Anatomy 101: Understanding Your Nerves

To understand why your upper thigh might be going sawdust (that’s numb in our language), let’s take a trip down memory lane back to anatomy class. Our nerves run throughout our body transporting messages from our brain to different parts of the body telling them what they should do. In simpler terms – imagine wires that carry electricity signals.

There are various types of nerves responsible for relaying different messages including sensory and motor nerves. Sensory fibers send information from body organs & tissues, whilst motor fibers control muscle movement. Some important ones include:

  • Sciatic nerve
  • Femoral nerve
  • Lateral femoral cutaneous nerve

So where does this all tie-in to your tingling thighs?

Tingling Thighs: What Could Be The Cause?

Child Pose

First things first, identify when and how often these numb moments occur? If the only time it happens is when you’re sitting at an angle that would shame even contortionists then we can safely assume that it’s a circulatory issue caused by compression.

Bulging Discs

Alternatively if lower back pain is also apart of your life , then bulging discs could be applying pressure onto…you guessed it…your sciatic nerve! This pressure or herniation on/around the area results in radiating pain across several regions like L4-L5, L5-S1…catching my drift?!

Pinched Nerves (nerve impingements)

Who needs nomads when we’ve got nerve impingements right?!, Basically you may have irritated, trapped or compressed a nerve stopping the messages it carries from getting to their destinations. And that my friend’s could be causing your thigh numbness.

Meralgia Paresthetica

Fancy-sounding term for sure! – This sudden onset of discomfort is caused by pressure on a bundle of nerves in your groin called (the femoral cutaneous). It’s usually brought about through tighter clothing, weight gain/loss, exercising & injury. So throw out those tight knickers and opt for something comfortable like these:

comfy pants

How You Can Help Yourself Through The Pain

Now that we’ve covered potential causes let’s discuss ways you can give yourself relief when this happens:

Exercise

Just as keeping active would stimulate blood flow throughout the body, it will also help reduce pressure around the areas where nerves are being compressed. Activities such as yoga/pilates build core strength which helps with posture and alignment preventing compression on important structures.

Get Up From Your Seat!

Working remotely has taken over our lives but it has not been kind to us when it comes to physical activity especially now more than ever before with lockdowns forcing us indoors…BUTTTT IT’S TIME TO GRAB LIFE BY THE HORNS AND BREAK FREE FROM YOUR OFFICE!!!! Not literally tho’, unless really necessary…The point is most people do both work/play seated.When relaxed situations cause issues then taking breaks at intervals gives relief..Makes sense? Yes. Next…

Use Heat / Cold Therapy

Using ice packs aids inflammation reduction while heat loosens muscles in preparation for movement or stretching routines.Have left-over veg lying around?, fill zip-lock bags seal them up(!), microwave/bin in the freezer & you have an ice pack/hot bag in less than 5 minutes.

Adopt Healthier Lifestyle Choices

This is pretty self-explanatory really but all in all, eat healthier and always stay hydrated. Hydrated people don’t just quench their thirst; they reduce inflammation around nerve endings and keep messengers flowing freely.

When To Seek Medical Attention

If most of your life has been spent running through grassy fields like Julie Andrews in The Sound Of Music then it’s probably good to check-in with Doc Mc-something about possible underlying problems – because this certainly doesn’t seem normal behavior at her age!

In conclusion your body lets you know when things are not okay so give it the attention it deserves instead of bulldozing through symptoms that assume will disappear by themselves…like that one time my cousin tried out his first marathon training event without consulting! Seriously?!?

Good luck amigo-tingle-free journeys ahead!

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