Sciatica Nerve Pain: What It Is And How To Treat It
One of the most common reasons for why patients receive chiropractic treatment is sciatica. This is a condition that results from an impingement of the sciatic nerve. If the chiropractor is able to reduce the nerve impingement by improving your skeletal biomechanics, you will experience less nerve compression and pain that results.
The Symptoms
When you are suffering from sciatica, you will experience pain in your legs. This pain will be even worse when sitting. You may also suffer difficulty when moving your leg or foot and your lower extremities might feel numb. One side of your rear will usually experience constant pain.
Your Diagnosis
Before the treatment begins, your chiropractor will need to diagnose you with sciatica. This is accomplished by looking at your family history and by examining your body to try to pinpoint where your sensation of pain is coming from. After the diagnosis, there are treatments that the chiropractor can perform in the clinic and treatments you can perform yourself at home.
How A Chiropractor Can Help
Chiropractors are able to break up the restrictive adhesion, restore flexibility and increase your range of movement to help alleviate this form of pain. The treatment is similar to receiving a massage. Chiropractors are also able to identify the muscles that are compensating for sciatica and that are also contributing to the pain that you experience. These muscles are treated as well.
Treatments You Can Perform Yourself
There are other treatments you may wish to try to provide yourself with temporary relief. Spending more time resting will usually alleviate the pain associated with sciatica. Also, ice and heat therapy can numb the pain and increase circulation to the part of the body causing the pain, helping to reduce inflammation.
The problem with these treatments is that they do not treat the muscular dysfunction that leads to the problem in the first place. Also, the nerve compression leads to the formation of scar tissue, which isn't corrected through ice and heat therapy. More effective approaches, such as exercises, stretching and joint manipulation, treat the underlying cause of this problem.
Exercises That Are Helpful
Exercises that can help with this condition include a knee-to-chest exercise where you lay on your back and pull one of your knees to your chest. Leg raises can help treat the condition. Also, laying on your stomach and raising your upper body up, while arching your back, can help. However, do not perform these exercises without supervision from a chiropractor. While the exercises do not always work on their own, they can be successful when combined with joint manipulations.
For more information about how to treat your sciatica, contact a chiropractor like Dils Chiropractic.