It usually starts with a dull, achy pain in your low back which then begins to radiate into your butt, then down the back of your thigh, then sometimes into your leg and sometimes even to your foot.
For some people the pain is severe, disabling and scary. For others it comes and goes and is irritating and frustrating.
I am talking about Sciatica, an irritation to the sciatic nerve, which runs down the back side of your thigh, leg and into your foot.
10-40% of people will get Sciatica at some point in their lifetime.
The most common causes of sciatica are having a spinal disc rubbing on one of the nerve roots that make up the Sciatic nerve and muscle spasm in the back or buttock.
There are of course other, less common causes of sciatica.
So, if muscle spasms and spinal discs are the most common causes of Sciatica, what things might lead to those problems?
- Aging, which tends to cause changes to the spine, like bone spurs and herniated discs.
- Diabetes
- Being overweight
- Not exercising regularly
- Wearing high-heeled shoes
- Sleeping on a mattress that is too hard or too soft
- Smoking
- Jobs that involve sitting or driving for long period of time, twisting your back or carrying heavy things.
The good news is that most cases of Sciatica respond very well to chiropractic care and gentle exercises.
The thing that muscle spasms and disc problems in the low back have in common is that they usually involve some level of misalignment of the pelvis and segmental immobility of the Lumbar vertebra.
Think of segmental immobility like a kink in a bicycle chain.
Improving mobility and misalignment is essentially what a chiropractic adjustment does and relief can come rather quickly too.
I guess you could say that a chiropractic adjustment is a “de-kinker” of your spine.
Anyway . . . the whole point of all of this is to get YOU back to doing your favorite activities and putting a smile back on your face!
God Bless,
Dr. Tim
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This information should not be substituted for medical or chiropractic advice. Any and all health care concerns, decisions, and actions must be done through the advice and counsel of a health care professional who is familiar with your updated medical history.