What is the Best Way to Treat Sciatica?

If you have sciatica, you’re familiar with the sharp, stabbing pain that comes from doing just about anything, from coughing to moving around. People who have sciatica often have difficulty moving due to the intense pain that shoots from their lower back down into their legs and feet. The problem can range from an annoying tingling sensation to excruciating sharp pain.

The good news is that there are ways to effectively treat sciatica so you can finally get off the couch and back to enjoying your life. Most people are able to recover from sciatica without surgery, although that is an available option if nothing else works.

The best ways to treat sciatica include stretching, resting, and working through gentle movements to ease the pressure off of your sciatic nerve.

What Causes Sciatica?

The pain we refer to as sciatica results from pressure on the sciatic nerve. The sciatic nerve is the longest in the body. It stretches from the lower back, through the rear, and down into the legs.

Sciatica is not a disease itself but rather a painful symptom of one of the conditions mentioned below. The pain associated with it often results from a compressed nerve or herniated disc in the spinal column. You can also experience sciatica due to inflammation of the nerve caused by infections, muscles, bones, or tumors. 

 You may have sciatica if you experience shooting pain anywhere along the sciatic nerve. You might also experience numbness in your leg or tingling in your feet and toes.

Best Ways to Treat Sciatica

In many cases, you can treat sciatica from home. Over the counter painkillers like ibuprofen can ease inflammation and reduce pain. You can also try doing light exercises, such as walking and gentle yoga or stretching. Many people also find relief from alternating between a hot and cold compress.

Acute sciatica can go away on its own within 4 – 6 weeks with proper treatment. Anytime you experience debilitating back pain, it is always a good idea to get a medical diagnosis or treatment to ensure that you do not cause further injury to your body.

Some people have experienced an injury that has led to chronic sciatica. In these cases, the above home remedies likely are not enough to keep the pain at bay.

Physiotherapy is an excellent option for those dealing with chronic sciatica. A physiotherapist can prescribe a set of stretching exercises that can ease your pain and loosen the tight and inflamed muscles that sit against your sciatic nerve. Your physiotherapist may also recommend a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) unit, which uses electronic waves to prevent pain signals from reaching your brain.

Try Physiotherapy for Sciatica Pain Relief

If at-home remedies are not doing enough to rid you of sciatica pain, physiotherapy may be able to help. A trained physiotherapist can help you learn safe ways to stretch and move so you can get pain relief without worsening your injury. In many cases, physiotherapy can prevent patients from needing to undergo surgery.

Schedule an appointment with a physiotherapist to learn more about how physiotherapy can help you start living a pain-free life.