How To Manage Sciatica Pain

By Peter Johnson

 Sciatica pain occurs when the sciatic nerve gets irritated or inflamed. Sciatica is characterized by pain and sometimes weakness, tenderness or numbness from lower part of the back down to the thighs, legs and feet. Sciatica pain normally starts from the buttocks or sometimes, from the lower back going downward along the flow of the sciatic nerve.

A herniated disc or a bulging in the lower lumbar disc is the primary cause of sciatica.  The damaged disc will then press on the nerve roots irritating the sciatic nerve.  At times when the irritation gets so severe, thus, resulting in a burning pain that may involve the entire nerve.  Take for example an irritated or pinched nerve near your knee.  From this, you may experience pain in your hip or buttock area. This often throws the patient as the pain is not necessary localized to the problematic area.

Another stimulating factor for sciatica pain is called Piriformis syndrome. The Piriformis muscle runs from the sacrum side, to the upper thigh bone at hip joint.  It passes over the sciatic nerve.  If a tight or short piriformis is stretched out, it can condense the sciatic nerve.  Since the piriformis muscle serves for the leg to rotate outwardly, those who keep on standing on their toes are prone to developing the Piriformis syndrome- ironically this can often occur in people who have issues with their height, same with cyclists and runners.  These two athletes tend to over stretch and use their piriformis muscle, due to the nature of their exercise.

Sciatica pain is the typical sign of a herniated disc.  It is best manifested by an extreme pain in the thigh area, then the lower leg and foot, rather than being localized to the lower back region. For this reason it is essential to see a physician as ‘working thorugh it’ will only cause further damage.  Simple motions or routine such as lifting, bending over, straining, standing up, or sitting down may aggravate sciatica pain and must be avoided at all costs. Rest is the immediate requirement on the path to healing and treating Sciatica pain.

Sciatica pain is best treated with rest, giving the nerve some time to reduce its swelling.  For some cases where pain is almost too much to bear, medical prescriptions are then given to alleviate the pain somehow-.  Such medicinal drugs can be muscle relaxants and analgesics.  Anesthetic agents may also be injected in some areas within the spinal cord.  For serious cases that do not react to whatever form of non-invasive treatments, surgery is the option- however always the last resort.

With the rise of medical technology, new surgical methods and techniques are now being practiced in favor for relieving sciatica pain related conditions.  Critical procedures include microsurgery, percutaneous disc fragment removal.  So far, the outcomes have been  mostly successful, and offer a quicker fix for such conditions.  However, not everybody suffering from sciatica pain can get just any type of medical treatment they wish- such medical procedures are usually reserved fro elite athletes who depend on being able to recover in the shortest amount of time as possible. Physicians are trained to examine the patient thoroughly first before doing any treatments or diagnosis to avoid more serious complications.

Sciatica homeopathy remedies have been proven to help a lot of sufferers of a herniated disc. Homeopathy is essentially based on the principle that you encourage the body to heal itself, thus it is very effective when combined with physical therapie for a herniated disc.

Physical therapy techniques are often used by others to be able to cope with the distress of sciatica pain- and are often the most effective way to combat the issue long term.  But this is done with careful supervision of a medical professional or with your doctor’s consent.  Many sciatica patients are advised to develop their core muscles to easily overcome the painful effects of a herniated or ruptured disc. These core muscles are referred to a group of four muscles found in the waist area Often your physician will set a list of basic exercises to be performed daily which if adhered to will gradually strengthen the problem areas, and help to re-align the lumbar spine thus reducing the future occurrence of Sciatica and a herniated disc.