Photo Credit: Mark Zamora
If you have been dealing with sciatic nerve pain, you know that it can be a long-term struggle. Thankfully, it doesn’t have to be. You can actually find long-term relief naturally and prevent the pain from coming back.
Let’s back up a little bit. What does sciatic pain look like and why do we experience it in the first place?
The sciatica or the sciatic nerve is one of the largest nerves in the body. It is located in your low back. When the nerve gets irritated, you may experience the following symptoms: pain in the butt extending to the leg, numbness, tingling, or weakness in your leg or foot. All of these symptoms typically come and go. But for many people, they are never truly resolved.
So, what causes these issues? There are a few reasons, some of which may surprise you.
1. Irritated spinal discs - when spinal discs are unhealthy, they leave their proper place and put pressure on spinal nerves (sciatic nerve to be precise) which can cause the symptoms above.
2. Muscle imbalance – sciatic pain may not be related to the disc at all. Instead, it could be caused from a muscle imbalance. If your muscles are improperly putting tension on the nerve due to weakness, tightness etc., it may result in pain and irritation of the sciatic nerve.
3. Gut health - I write all about how to naturally address the gut here. For a lot of ailments in your body, the gut can actually be the cause. This surprises a lot of my patients, but it is true. To give you a general idea, if you have low grade chronic (long standing) gut irritation, you might also experience joint or nerve pain. Addressing the gut has allowed my patients to be pain free AND to continue to STAY pain free. Addressing the gut not only requires a modification of diet (which is very important), but can be aided by supplements/herbs (when necessary). At my office we also provide gut-related treatments, address specific mineral deficiencies, evaluate any underlying infections, viruses, parasites, or heavy metals which could be irritating the gut. We also help to naturally support stress levels, etc.
4. Addressing chronic inflammation – inflammation can be attributed to a variety of issues including hormone imbalance, autoimmune, poor diet, lack of hydration, high stress levels, lack of sleep, improper gut health, etc. However, if this component is not addressed or regulated, you very well might not only be having back pain, but also other issues related to increased inflammation.
5. Getting adjusted - if the joints of your spine are not aligned properly you will also tend to put pressure and stress on the spinal nerves. Caveat: if you keep getting adjusted and at first you feel better, but then your back pain/sciatica comes back, you likely will need to apply the tips from numbers 1-4 to get full resolution.
It’s important to remember that the organs and systems of the body are interrelated and a holistic approach, outlined in the five points above, will help you resolve your issues naturally. There is hope! I see these issues permanently resolved often. Lifestyle matters. Improve it, and you can put your pain behind you and get your life back.
If you are interested in further addressing this topic, please feel free to reach out and schedule an appointment. Dr. V is a Chiropractor and Functional Medicine Doctor in Elmhurst, Illinois who evaluates patients from the inside out, focusing on areas including hormone imbalance, digestive health, anxiety/depression, autoimmune disease, and many others.