I haven't negotiated the posting thing on here yet, but felt I should share on this topic.
So sorry to hear of the PAIN!! My husband also gets bouts of cervical nerve pain (from a not very ergonomic situation at his computer) and I get sciatic pain very rarely... During those times we tend to eat a lot of FORMULA 303 natural relaxant pills filled with valerian root, passiflora and magnesium carbonate. It really helps with the muscle spasms that create / come from the nerve and then re-inflame the nerve. I think its a chicken / egg thing which comes first but with yoga stretching and formula 303 we never have to suffer more than a couple days.
I certainly hope that you can find a solution that works for you and it never comes back! Best of luck!