Sciatic nerve pain, also known as a condition called sciatica, is an illness that when left untreated can become painful and overwhelming, and actually degrade your quality of life.Sciatica stretching exercises can offer relief to your pain, but it is important to first understand the potential causes of sciatica.
Essentially, sciatica is nerve damage that has been triggered by either stress, or tight muscles pinching the nerve.Because the sciatic nerve begins in your lower back, and travels down, all the way through the back of your leg and hamstrings, overly tight muscles can create a pinch, which can cause pain.
Most of the time, these overly tight muscles indicate the weakness of the surrounding muscles, and this is thought to be the most common cause of sciatic pain. Sciatica exercisescan really help to combat this, and ease your numbing nerve pain.
Sciatic nerve damage can also be triggered by job stressors such as truck driving for a prolonged period. The constant bouncing puts stress on the sciatic nerve. A herniated lumbar disc can also cause sciatica, which then it would be better to avoid sciatica stretches without consulting your doctor first, as this could end up harming your sciatic nerve further.
Try one of these simple exercises to help you determinethe type of sciatica you may be suffering from. Sitting upright in a chair, stretch your leg that you are having pain in, straight out.If your pain increases, most likely true sciatica is to blame, and you have a herniated disk.The 2nd test you can perform is pulling your knee on your painful side slowly, up to the shoulder on the same side. Then gently pull the same knee to the opposite shoulder, and gauge the pain. If it is more painful pulling to the opposite shoulder, then most likely you are suffering from sciatica caused by tight muscles.
Here are two simple Sciatica stretchesyou can do for sciatic pain relief: Lying flat on your back, pull your knee up to each shoulder.This can help to stretch out overly tight hamstring muscle. Be careful though, because if you suffer from a herniated disc than this exercise can aggravate it.
The second sciatica stretchesyou can do is a yoga move, where you lie flat on your tummy, and proper yourself up on your elbows while looking up slightly. The slight curve this creates in your back helps to relieve pressure and pain. However again, be careful as this can exacerbate a facet problem that could be inducing your sciatica.
Also, sometimes this may increase your pain temporarily, but it usually improves with repetition, and it is best to get up and move around for a bit in between repetitions, and take a break. These sciatica exercises are meant to help you, but always use good judgment and caution when performing them.
Another thing to remember is that sciatica can be caused by various factors at once. Herniated disc’s, facet syndrome which I mentioned briefly before, tight muscles. Facet syndrome involves rear joints at the base of
your spine, and extending your back like the yoga exercise from before can actually increase your pain and worsenyour symptoms. In that case it is normally recommended to lie on your back and hug your knees. However if you are also suffering from a herniated disc, then hugging your knees isn’t recommended. Therefore, to visit your physician before embarking on any Sciatica stretching exercises, and find out precisely where the cause of the pain is originating from, is the safest and smartest path to take.You can then be referred to a medical officer who can demonstrate the proper exercises and sciatica stretches you should be attempting.
Tags: exercise for low back pain, lumbar pain, lower back pain exercises, cause of back pain, chronic back pain, lower back pain relief
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