Massages sure feel amazing, don’t they? Coming out of a massage, you just feel so carefree and at ease. But can massage therapy actually be used to treat sciatica effectively?
Sciatica and back pain sufferers can benefit from massager therapy. If your massage therapist has a solid understanding of the human anatomy and sciatica, then you’re in even better hands (sorry for the pun).
There are quite a few upsides to massage for sciatica. You’ll notice that a lot of massage therapists these days employ a variety of different techniques and styles. You might experience traditional massage, reiki energy work, or even someone working on muscle imbalances (if you’re lucky). Many studies have even shown that massage can improve flexibility, decrease back pain, encourage sound sleep, and decrease feelings of depression.
If possible, try to find a massage therapist that has some background experience with muscular imbalances These types of massage therapists are unbelievably rare, but if you can find one, you’ll be quite happy. This can really go a long way since many cases of sciatica are actually caused by muscle imbalances.
There are quite a few benefits to massage for sciatica. Massage has long been known to improve circulation and decrease inflammation in the body Massage helps to move lymph through your system, which can actually impede circulation and and promote inflammation if it isn’t managed. Not only that, but you’ll be more flexible, be more relaxed, have a better night’s rest, and you have an overall sense of well-being.
Massage can help relax tense muscles that may be putting pressure on your sciatic nerve, as may be the case with conditions such as Piriformis Syndrome. But can it help be an effective treatment in all cases of sciatica?
Even though you will probably feel on top of the world after a massage, you don’t want to rely only on massage to deal with sciatica. Unfortunately, massage isn’t a silver bullet. It just doesn’t take care of all the muscular imbalances that are responsible for the majority of sciatica cases.
You will probably see some amazing results if you combine it with other types of treatment out there. But by itself, massage will not completely correct the problem in most cases. You may wish to consider massage for sciatica in conjunction with stretching exercises specifically designed to correct muscle imbalances that are the underlying cause of most cases of sciatica.
Treat yourself to a massage; you’ll feel so much better afterwards. Keep working toward resolving the core problem though and you will be sure to find lasting relief.