Back Pain: The Real Problem With Sciatica

So this last week or so my clinic has been flooded with people suffering from back pain.

But not just any old type of back pain – the most severe of all in my humble opinion, “sciatica”.

There’s only one word to describe the pain that people suffer at the hands of sciatica and that’s “horrendous”!

In case you’re not familiar with what it is – you’d recognize it by having a severe pain running right down the back of your leg and into your toes.

Common Cause of Sciatica

And it’s often made much worse when you sit.

And there’s the real, true, underlying cause of most peoples trouble: sitting.

How much of it have you been doing lately?

Summer has come to an end and Fall is here and with the ending of the summer typically comes more time spent inside sitting.

But the problem is the increase the sitting that you do, which adds pressure to your back and so onto your sciatic nerve, eventually, a disc at the bottom of your back will give up and the fluid inside it touches the nerve which runs down your leg – AKA sciatica.

For easy at-home sciatica self test watch this video:

Symptoms of Sciatica

It can cause pins and needles in your foot, numbness, and a cold sensation as well as the pain – and unfortunately, it’s often so painful that nothing in the way of medication – Morphine included, can ease it.

And despite what a few local general practitioners seem to think these days, there are things that can be done other than rest and painkillers, just hoping for it to go away.

How To End Sciatica Pain

Physical therapy can help. It often makes it worse before it gets better – but it does get better. Specific exercises are needed too. Again, they are painful at first, but if you persist, the pain begins to drop.

More: Limiting the amount of time you spend sitting can help too. And there’s something to note – I see a lot of people sitting on my couch in my clinic with back pain and they tell me that “sitting doesn’t make it worse” – but what they’re doing is sitting in a modified or slouched way that means they’re just avoiding the pain – making the whole thing last longer and often leaving the person with an awkward looking posture long after the back trouble has gone.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Form & Function Physical Therapy (@formfunctionpt)

If you are experiencing a lack of progress in physical therapy, don’t get discouraged.

Get a second opinion from another PT office.

Or if you want to read our other blog posts, click HERE to visit the Blog Page.

Finally, if you already feel like you have enough information and you’re ready to get help from providers that take the time and attention you deserve, then click HERE to request a $35 Discovery Visit with one of our expert physical therapists.