Are shooting pains getting on your nerves?

 

Ever had that moment where you bend down to grab something, and when you stand up, it feels like you are in another body? 🤔 That shooting pain that seems to come from your lower back, through your buttocks, down your leg and sometimes into your foot? It may even cause you to start limping around or battling to stand up straight. That is the dreaded sciatica 😖

Harvard University says that 40% of people will experience this type of pain in their lifetime. That’s the same amount of people who have smartphones worldwide! For something that is so widely experienced, there are still so many misconceptions attached to it. And to truly beat something, well, you have to understand it. So, whether you have had sciatic pain before, right now or want to spot it in case it comes up in the future – here is Inspired Health’s low-down on everything sciatica 👌🏻

You can’t HAVE sciatica?

 

Yes, you read that right 👇🏻

One of the biggest misconceptions of sciatica is that it’s a diagnosis in itself – it’s actually a symptom. Just like a throbbing toe is a symptom of kicking your foot against the bed, sciatica is a symptom of something pressing on the sciatic nerve 😲

In order to treat sciatica pain, we need to treat the thing that is causing it. And while every case is different, there are a few causes that we regularly take care of at the Inspired Health Chiropractic Centre ❤️

 

1)   Herniated Disc

This is about as painful as it sounds! A herniated disc is often referred to as a slipped disc, and is the bulging of the soft centre of the disc, that lies between your spinal vertebrae. When this happens, the area becomes inflamed and can irritate or trap nerves leading to your sciatica nerve. The result of which can be sciatic pain, burning, numbness and/or tingling in your buttocks, leg, and foot 👎🏻

 

2)   Piriformis Syndrome

Now this one is a pain in the bum! 🚷 Literally, it is a pain that comes from your buttocks. The sciatic nerve travels under or sometimes through the piriformis, and when the muscles get tight or spasm, they pinch the sciatic nerve.

 

3)   Lower Back Trauma

Lower back trauma can take the form of a car accident, sports injury or a fall that injures your lower back area or the nerves directly. Sometimes, hip or pelvic injuries can also cause sciatic pain through inflammation and irritation of the area 😤

 

So, how can we help?

 

The first step we take is finding the root cause of your pain and what is compressing or irritating the nerve through a thorough examination.

Depending on the root cause, we approach each patients’ sciatic pain treatment differently. Generally, we combine chiropractic adjustments and massage 🤲🏻 to treat the problem and the referring pain.

By gently 🐨 adjusting the spine, we assist in taking some of the pressure off the sciatic nerve and start the process of releasing any trapped or compressed nerves. Massaging the piriformis muscle assists in easing spasms and inflammation, again, helping move the pressure off of your nerves. These two treatments together can allow your body to heal from the cause problem more quickly.

 Whatever you do, don’t feel that you have to live through the pain. Pain is your body’s way of asking for help – and that’s exactly what we are here for 💃🏼 🕺🏼

 

If you suspect you may be experiencing sciatic pain, contact us on 01245699152 and let us help you through it ☎️