Lower Back Pain and Sciatica
Sunday, April 24th, 2011If you have lower back, hip or thigh pain it may be caused by sciatica. Sciatica is the name used for pain caused by your sciatic nerve. Your sciatic nerve runs from your spinal cord, to your buttocks and all the way down your legs to your feet. Your lower back pain can be caused by a herniated disk that is applying a constant pressure on your sciatic nerve. It can cause your muscles to have spasms, numbness, sharp stinging pain, and sometimes loss of movement of your legs. It can be quite painful if you suffer from any of the listed pains. Simple everyday tasks from walking to sitting can greatly alter the pain you feel.
When walking it is important to always maintain proper posture. Walk upright with your head held upward. One way of teaching yourself the proper posture when walking is to get you back against a wall so that your head heels and your buttocks touch the wall and walk outwards maintaining that exact posture. When you sit it is good to remember to keep your thighs parallel with the floor and sit in an upward position and slouch back slightly. Sleeping is always one of the key ways to maintain a day free from lower back pain caused by sciatica. If you wake up pain free you are more likely to have a pain free day. The best way to sleep at night is by sleeping in fetal position with a pillow in between your knees.
Although as the sciatic nerve continues down the back, it branches off into both legs, it is common for only one leg to be much more symptomatic. Patients have described a sensation that is similar to feeling as though their leg is on fire. A painful sciatic nerve can create discomfort that ranges from being mildly inconvenient to becoming almost intolerable in nature. The basis of the symptoms that develop as a result of an inflamed sciatic nerve are primarily attributed to some kind of irritation to the nerve, or of the nerve being pinched or impinged upon. With even a slight injury, the sciatic nerve can become inflamed, swelling can result, thus the nerve tends to become pressed and pain results. The problem with having sciatic nerve pain can become so exacerbated that the nerves and muscles that control a persons bowel and bladder functions may become affected. In such cases, the patient should immediately seek medical attention.
Treatment for sciatica is directed towards maximizing mobility and your independence. The nerve problem should be classified and treated the right way. Some people with this need no treatment, and heal spontaneously. If there was no evidence of nerve degeneration, no history of trauma, sudden onset of the pain, no difficulty moving, then conservative treatments are the most effective.
Over the counter pain medications containing acedeminophin or aspirin are often helpful in treating sciatica. The application of ice packs over the area where the pain is the deepest can often reduce the inflammation. Some people find relief by alternating heating pads with periods of ice pack therapy. Anti-inflammatory prescription medication may be necessary if the pain proves hard to manage.
A natural supplement called Sciatol is among the latest remedies proven effective in helping alleviate the pain and discomfort of sciatica. Formulated using six powerful herbal ingredients, Sciatol Back Formula is among the most effect ways how to cure sciatica. Sciatol helps relieve the pain associated with sciatica and targets the overall healing of the sciatic nerve, the nervous system and the spine.
Learn more about help for sciatica. Stop by our site where you can find out all about Sciatica Pregnancy.