You may have heard friends or family members talk about “Oh, it’s just my sciatic nerve pain acting up.” Then they usually put their hand on their lower back, go about their business, and you act like you knew what they were talking about the whole time.
So what exactly is the sciatic nerve and how can it really affect our daily lives?
The sciatic nerve is a nerve that goes from your lower back and into both of your legs. Now, this pain can be caused by anything from a herniated disk to a bone spur on the spine and it is commonly referred to by medical professionals as Sciatica. Typically the pain from Sciatica only affects one side of the body even though the sciatic nerve runs down both legs, and what happens in a majority if not all patients is inflammation, pain, and usually some numbness in the affected leg(s); it all depends on where the nerve is being pinched along the spine. The good news is that the pain has been known to subside for some within a few hours or days… but with the presence of good news there is usually bad news to follow.
The bad news is that this does not mean the pain will never come back again, and sometimes (more commonly) it has been known to last for several weeks or months. You could go get a steroid injection, take some pain relievers, or even do the typical icing routine of 20 minutes on and an hour off. Wouldn’t we like to know though of a lasting solution though that is not only going to heal the Sciatica but make sure it is that much harder for our bodies to ever go through this discomfort again? Well, that is where the proven success of chiropractic work comes in.
Sciatica is unfortunately such a common occurrence that it on average affects more than 3 million people in the United States per year, and with common occurrence of an injury there comes multiple ways to deal with the pain. These alternatives can help with the pain, yes, but the long lasting benefits of chiropractic work assist in reducing nerve irritability by way of spinal adjustments; these adjustments aid in making sure there is no misaligned vertebrae and the spine is in it’s proper position.
If you feel like you have been suffering from ANY lower back pain and/or pain in your leg(s), call us as soon as possible to schedule your appointment or a free consultation with the doctor! We would love to be a part of your journey to health & wellness and answer any questions you may have.
