If you are experiencing pain that radiates from your lower back and goes down to your buttocks and down one or both of your legs, you are probably dealing with sciatic pain. This type of pain comes from your sciatic nerve, which runs along this area of your body. When the nerve is stretched or irritated, it can lead to a radiating pain, along with numbness and tingling. Here are some ways to relieve pain associated with the sciatic nerve.
Yoga
The first method you can try for relieving the pain is with yoga. Yoga provides an excellent way to stretch the different muscles in your body, which could help you find relief from your sciatica pain. When choosing yoga for sciatic pain, make sure you go with the gentler forms. There are some forms of yoga that might stretch your back or legs too severely and actually hurt more than help. Let the yoga teacher know you are trying to get help with sciatic nerve pain, and they will give you variations on traditional exercises that will be useful.
Steroid Injections
If you see your doctor for sciatica, they might recommend taking pain relief medications or getting epidural steroid injections. These injections are administered into your lower back where the sciatic nerve is located. It doesn't go directly into the nerve, but as close as possible. After a few weeks, the injection will start to reduce inflammation of the nerve and help you find relief. You can only get a few shots a year, so you might need to combine the injections with other pain relief methods.
Chiropractic Care
Another common treatment for sciatica pain is chiropractic care. Chiropractors provide a variety of different treatments for sciatic pain, particularly with spinal manipulation. This method of treatment helps to manipulate the vertebrae and discs in your spine to reduce inflammation and relieve pain. You will also get better mobility after you see your chiropractor a few times. Chiropractic care for sciatica purposes is an ongoing treatment, so expect to get these adjustments more than once a week for several weeks.
Acupuncture
Lastly, you can try acupuncture for the sciatic pain. Like chiropractors, acupuncturists believe in helping to heal the entire body. They want to encourage your body to heal itself, which is done by placing needles in different pressure points of your body. There are certain pressure points that can help you find healing and pain relief for each part of your body, including your sciatica. You should get multiple sessions of acupuncture to feel the full effects.
For more information on which treatment is best for you, talk to a professional like Action Chiropractic.
Share29 May 2015
Do you remember the first day you woke up with back pain? If you are like most folks, you probably tried to write off the problem until you realized that the issue was impacting your mobility. Back pain is serious, but not everyone takes the issue seriously at first. Not only can a little back spasm make it hard to shower, walk, or even sit comfortably, but back pain can also be a symptom of a deeper problem. The goal of my blog is to educate the public about back pain, so that you know how to tell when you are really in trouble.
