If you happen to have a pain on your buttocks that goes down to your thighs, then legs and also to your foot, you might have what doctors call sciatica nerve pain. You might want to read along if you are experiencing this kind of pain. Know the different sciatica nerve pain symptoms, causes and treatments that can relieve your pain.
Causes?
Most doctors and therapists agree that the common cause of sciatica nerve pain is a herniated disk. This happens when a disk develops a tear/crack and it bulges into the spinal canal. This pinches the sciatic nerve. Usually the symptoms clear up for about 6 weeks, but for some people who have the sciatica nerve pain, it can last longer than 6 weeks and can be very irritating.
Common Types of Pain along the Sciatic Nerve
The pain can be traced to where the injured/irritated nerve originates. Most common sciatica nerve pain symptoms include:
- Sciatica from L4 nerve root: It originates in the L3-L4 level (the lower spine). You might feel pain/numbness on your medial lower leg and foot; you might feel weak in this area which may include you being unable to bring your the foot upwards. Symptoms also include reduced knee-jerk reflex.
- Sciatica from L5 nerve root: It originates in the L4-L5 segment. You may feel weakness in extension of the big toe. You also might have what they doctors call foot drop or weakness in the ankle. Symptoms may include: pain/numbness at the top of the foot, between the big toe and the second toe.
- Sciatica from S1 nerve root: Symptoms at this L5-S1 level includes pain/numbness to the lateral area or outside of your foot; you may feel weak and have difficulty in raising your heel off the ground. It might be also hard for you to tiptoe. Symptoms also include reduced ankle-jerk reflex.
These are just some of the most common sciatica nerve pain symptoms. What’s irritating about this condition is that it can affect your whole leg starting from the buttocks to the toe. But do not worry, this can be remedied with just some simple management techniques.
Managing Sciatica Nerve Pain
- Yoga – Yoga promotes good posture. You do not necessarily have to do complicated poses to be able to manage your sciatica nerve pain. Basic yoga positions can correct your condition. Basic poses done on a regular basis will promote better posture.
- Stretching – Do stretching for the lower part of the body. Stretching the muscles from hip down will not just promote joint and muscle articulation but also helps with the pain management of sciatica nerve pain. 5-10 minutes of specific stretching for the pain will reduce the numbness significantly.
- Exercises – Generally, movement can promote the ends of the spine to re-align. But not all exercises are recommended as a sciatica nerve pain treatment. Running, walking and a little bit of your favorite sports will help your muscles relax and your joints function better.
- Massage – There is a specific massage that is for sciatica nerve pain. Along with it there is also a specific massage for the buttocks, thighs and the legs if you have this condition. This helps relieve pain, correct the sciatica and relax your muscles.
- Physical Therapy – A more professional sciatica nerve pain treatment is physical therapy. The therapists will guide you through a series of stretching exercises which should be done on a regular basis. The therapists will surely be able to guide you through your progress.
- Topical Agents – Certain pain soothers include topical agents that give that soothing sensation. Please do not rely on this though to remedy the pain. Topical agents only give a soothing effect but do not address correcting the sciatica nerve pain. But it will certainly feel good if you apply it in the affected area.
- Acupuncture – Acupuncture is believed to work miracles for people with nerve problems. Acupuncture targets nerves directly and a couple of sessions may permanently correct the situation.
For managing sciatica nerve pain, Doctors will recommend that you also rest. For certain sciatica nerve pain conditions, rest is the best solution. The body has a natural way of healing itself but you have to change something in your lifestyle which might further agitate the condition: like putting your wallet on your back pocket while driving. If you think this actually does nothing to your pain, it actually does. The nerve connections are very sensitive and a simple alignment problem of the L4, L5 and S1 might cause you sciatica nerve pain.
Make sure you consult a doctor to better address the pain that you feel.
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