If you ever faced sciatic pain, you would understand the struggle and pain it can cause to your lower back and leg. This burning sensation and pain due to sciatica can be quite debilitating.
What is sciatica & its symptoms?
Sciatic pain radiates down the leg from the buttocks and lower back caused due to compression of the sciatic nerve. There are various causes behind sciatica it can be an injury, disc-related condition, or pregnancy. Being physically active can play a significant role in easing inflammation causing sciatic pain. People suffering from sciatic nerve pain can perform gentle exercises to relieve the pain. Common sciatica symptoms may include:
- Lower back pain (moderate to severe)
- Pain in the buttock or radiating down the leg
- The pain is usually described as stabbing, burning, or electric
Home treatments for Sciatica pain relief:
If your sciatica pain flares up, there are a couple of home remedies that can you can perform. However, in case you can’t seem to find pain relief from sciatica, contact your healthcare physician. Some of the home remedies for sciatica are as follows:
· Ice or heat therapy:
Ice and heat therapy plays a significant role in helping with pain associated with sciatica. Place ice/heat pack on the lower back. Make sure that the icepack doesn’t have direct contact with your skin so you don’t give yourself frostbite. In order to apply an icepack, wrap it in a towel or cloth.
· Exercises:
Being physically active or performing exercises can help ease the inflammation causing sciatica pain. Physical inactivity can aggravate the pain and symptoms associated with the back and leg. This is why include exercises and stretches in your daily routine as they:
- Improve spinal flexibility
- Improves range of motion
- Build spinal and core strength
Following are some of the sciatica pain exercises or stretches:
– Knee-to-chest stretch:
- Lie flat on your back, knees bent, small cushion under the head, and feet flat on the floor
- Now gently bring one knee to your chest keeping the other feet flat on the floor
- Hold the position for about 10 to 30 seconds
- Slowly go back to the initial position.
- Repeat the same thing on the other knee.
– Sciatic nerve glide:
- Sit straight on a chair keeping your legs bent and feet flat on the floor.
- Gently straighten your one leg, note to push your toes towards yourself
- Stop when you start to feel a stretch in the back of your leg
- Come back to the initial position
- Repeat the same on the other leg
How to safely stretch with sciatica?
Safely stretching with sciatica is extremely important. Following are some of the tips for exercising with sciatica pain.
- Stretch only till you feel a gentle stretch in your legs and back.
- Maintain the stretch for 10 seconds initially and slowly build it up to 30.
- Breath normally, don’t hold it.
- Too hard push or pull can cause tears in the muscles, ligaments, and tendons, leading to you becoming less flexible and may even hurt you.
When to see a doctor?
If you face any of the following sciatica pain symptoms, consult your physician as soon as possible:
- Severe pain in the lower back and legs
- Weakness, numbness, tingling
- Pain gets worse even after performing the home remedies
- Loss of bowel or bladder control
KKT Orthopedic Spine Center offers a revolutionary non-surgical sciatica treatment. For booking an appointment, get in touch with us through our patient care line and one of our representatives will guide you to the best of their ability.
Phone: 0800-00-558