Sciatic Nerve Pain
Sciatic nerve pain is renowned for being extremely painful.
We know people suffering this kind of pain are often fearful this will last forever and are willing to try almost anything to get the pain gone.
This leads you to be vulnerable to anyone offering anything.
We want to provide you with accurate, specific and useful information about what to do about your sciatic nerve pain.
Is it sciatic nerve or sciatica?
The sciatic nerve runs from your lower back, via the buttock and down the back of the thigh and leg to the foot.
It can get irritated, inflamed, or squashed anywhere along its path and become a cause of pain.
This is known as sciatica.
We have a whole blog post dedicated to sciatica here.
Will the pain ever go away?
We have good news, the pain will resolve.
It is very rare that sciatic nerve pain is permanent or requires invasive treatment.
This is great news!
Will I need surgery on my sciatic nerve?
No! (It is extremely unlikely)
The vast majority of people will not require surgery for problems relating to their sciatic nerve.
The pain is really bad, I think I need surgery!
There are very specific instances where surgery is required.
This typically involves loosing control of bladder and bowel function.
In addition if you are loosing sensation of your saddle region (think the area between your legs where you sit on a saddle), this is a serious problem.
If you are having any of these types of symptoms, you need to seek immediate medical attention.
Let’s be clear, go to your local emergency department.
Please never ignore these symptoms.
Don’t wait for an appointment with your Osteopath, GP or any other type of health professional.
They will send you to a hospital.
In these instances, it is likely they will call you an ambulance.
Okay, it’s not that bad, what should I do?
AVOID THE FOLLOWING
- No sitting (this is very unpopular advice, but it is for your benefit).
- Do not bend and twist.
- Don’t do activities that aggravate the pain – this may sound obvious, but people come to appointments admitting to doing all kinds of things.
- Avoid taking excessive quantities of over the counter pain relief medications. These do have real side effects, speak to a health professional, such as your pharmacist or GP.
WHAT SHOULD I DO
- Keep moving lightly – walking and light swimming is great.
- Most people will respond positively to applying heat.
- Get a diagnosis, there are lots of issues that can lead to pain of the sciatic nerve.
- See a health professional who will get all the information, perform an assessment (they should touch you), provide a diagnosis, give you advice and tell you when you need to come back.
Why is this happening?
There are numerous risk factors for developing an issue with your sciatic nerve, including but not limited to the following:
- Age related changes to the spine (it is more likely to happen in older people).
- Increased weight – if you are overweight or obese, this increases the pressure on the spine and legs.
- Work related – people who perform repetitive movements, bending and twisting in combination.
- Excessive sitting.
- Heavy lifting.
- Diabetes is associated with increased nerve problems including sciatica related complaints.
Do I need a scan?
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists recommends an x-ray or other scanning only when there is significant symptoms.
This includes the following:
- Changes to voiding (bladder or bowel function altered)
- Weakness, numbness and severe pain.
As a result, you can see that pain alone is not a reason to have an investigation.
Our Osteopaths, as registered allied health care practitioners are able to directly refer you for an x-ray or MRI. We know sciatic nerve pain is incredibly frustrating, however the sooner you get to the cause of why it is causing you trouble, the sooner you can get on top of it. Make an appointment today.