If you’re like me, you know first-hand how painful sciatica can be to deal with. This is what actually start me on my own search for a cure for sciatica. Maybe you’ve used one of those hot pads to ease the pain a bit, only to notice that the pain just comes back as soon as you stop using the pad. But, you know what? You should actually be using ice, not heat, and then afterward do a few exercises that loosen up your back and help to localize the pain in one spot to really get over your sciatica fast.
What is sciatica? It’s a sharp or sometimes dull pain that could happen anywhere from your buttocks or hips all the way down your legs to your feet. Sciatica is caused when your sciatic nerve is pinched by one of a few different causes that all place pressure on the nerve.
After figuring this all out, it became obvious to me that the way to find real lasting relief from sciatica was to find out what was causing the nerve to get pinched in the first place and resolve that. The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in the body. branches out from the lower back and it runs down your hips, buttocks, legs, knees, and as far down as your feet and toes. So, you can experience sciatica pain anywhere from your lower back all the way to your feet.
Here are a few common things that often lead to a pinched sciatic nerve:
Not lifting heavy object in an appropriate way can cause nerve damage, which in turn can result in sciatica.
As we naturally age, our discs in our back may begin to degenerate with the space between them becoming smaller or even resulting in a herniated disc.
Also, your Piriformis muscle may become too tight and irritate the sciatic nerve. Your Piriformis is a small muscle that connects your hips to your legs, and it rests right on top of the sciatic nerve.
Once you figure out exactly what your sciatic nerve is and the things that can actually cause sciatica, you’ll have a much better understanding of your condition and how to fix it. No one wants sciatica, and I’m sorry that you probably are experiencing it if you’re reading this, but after you understand the basics of what is causing it, you’ll be able to fix it much quicker.
If you found this article helpful, and you’d like to learn some effective stretches for sciatica, be sure to check out: Exercises for Sciatic Nerve on the website: Help for Sciatica