Sciatica - What it is, how it occurs, and how you can fix it.
What is the sciatic nerve?
The sciatic nerve is the longest and thickest nerve in your body, starting from nerve roots in your lower spine and traveling all the way down to your toes. The roots that make up the trunk of the sciatic nerve are the 4th and 5th lumbar vertebra and the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd openings in the sacrum (your butt bone). It has the largest diameter of any nerve in the body, measuring a bit wider than your pinky finger.
The sciatic nerve leaves the lower spine and pelvis just behind your hip. As it travels down the back of the leg it branches at the knee and leads into the tibial nerve going down the front of the leg, and the peroneal nerve, down the back and side of the leg. The tibial branch controls the flexor muscle of the leg and the foot, and the peroneal branch controls the extensor muscles.
What is sciatica? How does it occur?
“Sciatica” is another word for sciatic neuralgia, which is a painful weakening of the low back, the leg or the foot. In addition to pain and muscle weakness, it can also cause tingling, numbness, or other changes in sensation. The cause of this is due to physical pressure upon the sciatic nerve. Several things can be the cause of this pressure.
First and most commonly, structural misalignments of the spine can create restriction and compression on the sciatic nerve roots.
Over time, spinal misalignment will cause the cartilage disc between the misaligned bones to swell or bulge, causing disc herniation and direct pressure on the nerve roots. In severe cases, the spinal joints can become compacted or arthritic which causes a bony encroachment on the openings between the spinal bones where the nerve roots travel through.
The second way sciatica can occur is by compression from the piriformis muscle or other muscles deep in the gluteal region. The sciatic nerve passes through these muscles as it travels down into the leg, so if they are excessively tight or in spasm, then they can compress on the nerves similarly to the above scenario.
How can I fix it?
Current research and insurance industry studies have found chiropractic to be the most successful and cost effective treatment for sciatica (especially when the sciatica is being caused by the first scenario we discussed earlier).
If you’re trying to remedy at home, then the simplest thing to try is to first stretch out the piriformis, deep gluteal muscles, and other muscles surrounding the hips. Focus on the pigeon stretch as it is really effective at targeting the piriformis muscle.
If stretching doesn't seem to provide any relief, then that means the sciatic nerve is likely being compressed at the level of the nerve roots coming off the lumbar spine. In these cases, it’s best to seek out the advice of a chiropractor focused on structural correction as they will use scans, x-rays, and other forms of analysis to determine the extent of the nerve compression and where the spinal bones may be out of alignment.
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References:
https://www.spineuniverse.com/conditions/sciatica/6-leading-causes-sciatica