Sciatica Home Treatment

Do you have lower back pain radiating down through your leg and suspect it is being caused by your sciatic nerve? It may well be...

But since other conditions can appear to be symptoms of sciatica, you should talked with a trained medical professional before beginning any form of sciatica home treatment.

Once you have been diagnosed with sciatica, home remedies may be suggested. However, thetreatment recommendations can vary depending on the severity of the pain.

If you have mild sciatica, your doctor may suggest a combination of...

• Over the counter medication that reduces both pain and inflammation.
• Ice therapy for the initial 48 hours to help reduce swelling.
• Heat therapy after the initial 48 hours.
• Sciatica exercise to relieve back muscle spasms and stretch and strengthen the lower back.
• Other regular exercise such as walking and posture exercises, to be used as sciatica treatment, AND to prevent sciatica from reoccurring.

You may want to check out this Sciatica Exercise Video, provided by The Healthy Back Institute.

If you have more severe sciatica, additional sciatica home treatment may include...

• Prescription medication to help reduce pain and inflammation, and muscle relaxant medication.
• Muscle relaxer medication to relieve tight muscles.
• Bed rest until the severe pain subsides
• Physical therapy and rehabilitation to teach stretching and strengthening exercises and techniques, to alleviate and prevent sciatica pain.
• Epidural steroid injections directed at the source of pain.
• Surgery when the sciatica nerve root compression has caused bowel or bladder incontinence, considerable muscle weakness, or when the pain continues to worsen and other treatments have been ineffective.

To help compensate for lost function, sciatica home treatment might also include the use of splints, braces, orthopedic shoes, or other medical devices.

And, in addition to sciatica home treatment, alternative therapy and alternative medicine such as...

• massage therapy
• chiropractic care
• acupuncture
• herbal remedies, and
• vitamin supplements

...sometimes play a role in sciatica and treatment.

What is Sciatica?

In itself, sciatica is not a disorder. It is a symptom - a symptom of another condition that is affecting the sciatic nerve, causing what if often referred to as sciatica pain.

The sciatic nerve runs from the back, down through the buttocks, eventually running down the back side of both legs. If the nerve root becomes compressed, as can be the case with a herniated disk, it can cause considerable leg and back pain.

Although a lower back herniated disk is often a cause of sciatica pain, there are other causes as well...

• Lumbar spinal stenosis
• Spondylolisthesis
• Piriformis syndrome
• Spinal tumors
• Pelvic injury or fracture
• Sciatic nerve tumor, infection, or injury
• Unknown causes, which may be affecting the bones, joints and muscles

You may also be interested in:
Back Strengthening Exercises, Back Stretching Exercise, Extreme Lower Back Pain

Compressed Sciatic Nerve Symptoms

When the sciatic nerve becomes compressed sciatica pain can be felt anywhere along its pathway - in the back, the buttocks, and the legs - and is generally restricted to only one side of the body.

Sciatica pain often originates in the lower back and can be...

• a dull ache
• a burning sensation
• shooting or stabbing, and/or
• extreme

...and because a nerve is involved, the pain can sometimes have the sensation of an electrical current.

I have experienced the electrical current sensation in association with a compressed nerve. I must say, at first it can be very unsettling, as it feels exactly like a stream of electricity running through the muscles.

In addition to pain, other symptoms of sciatica might be...

• numbness and/or muscles weakness
• tingling sensation
• loss of bladder or bowel control

Although it may be tempting to begin a sciatica home treatment prior to seeking professional advice...

A look at the causes of sciatica and the sciatica symptoms should convince you to let a professional decide what will work best for you.