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Alleviate Sciatica in Ten Minutes

Sciatica is a common diagnosis among those with low back, buttock, and/or leg pain.  The hallmark of sciatica is pain felt along the buttock and back of the leg, often times all the way to the foot. The structure that acts as a pain generator is the sciatic nerve.  This nerve can become affected a number of ways, usually at the nerve root level where the nerves exit the spinal cord or along the deep musculature of the buttock.  The nerve can even be negatively affected at both levels.

The condition is often disabling and difficult to treat.  The standard of care is no different compared to any other musculoskeletal issue: anti-inflammatories, pain meds, and/or muscle relaxers.  This approach is often times less than completely successful.

Fortunately you can alleviate sciatica pain with a simple exercise. The technique described is a simple, effective self-treatment one.  You will know within five minutes if this technique works for you.  If it does, do it until your symptoms have resolved.  If it does not work, consult with a qualified healthcare provider.

This self treatment technique is  most effective for people who meet three criteria:

1.  Less than 50-years-old.

2.  Bending forward like you’re going to touch your toes makes the sciatica symptoms WORSE.

3.  Bending backwards lessens symptoms or at the very least does NOT make them worse.

If you meet these three criteria, this simple self-treatment technique may be all you need in order to be free of sciatica related buttock and leg pain.

1.  Determine your pain level and how far down the leg the symptoms are felt.  For example, the pain and/or numbness/tingling may be felt to the mid calf region.  Let’s use this for our explanation.  Next determine the level of pain.   You can rate it on a scale of 0 to 10 or you can simply say it’s mild, moderate, or severe.  Let’s say its moderate.

2.  Lie on your stomach on the floor.  Make certain you are lying straight, without the spine curved to either side.  Keep your waist on the floor and press your chest up with your arms.  Press yourself up as far as you can WITHOUT making the leg symptoms worse.

You can also do this standing if you’re at work or unable to get on the floor.

Do this ten times.  Repeat three times for a total of thirty repetitions.  Take around a one minute break between sets of ten.  As you do this movement, pay attention to the pain in your leg.  The pain in your leg should lessen or should move up towards your back or both.

For example, if the leg pain was moderate, it should decrease to mild or should go away altogether.  The pain may stay the same but will move up towards your buttock and low back.  For example, if the pain is felt to the mid calf region it may be felt above the knee during or following the self-treatment technique.  It’s possible the pain level will decrease AND the pain will move out of the leg, closer to the low back.  As this happens you may notice MORE pain along your low back or buttock region.  This is fine as long as the leg pain is less or has moved up towards your spine.

If the pain behaves this way during and following the exercise,  you need to use it to alleviate the symptoms.  If completing thirty repetitions of this movement does NOT bring the pain up closer to the low back or does NOT reduce the severity of the leg pain, then it will probably not alleviate your symptoms.

If you did notice less leg pain or leg pain that was not felt as far down in your leg towards your foot following this movement, then it needs to be the primary treatment direction to address your sciatica symptoms.  When this is the case, complete three sets of ten repetitions three to four times per day.  Your symptoms will gradually improve over the next two to four weeks until they eventually go away.  If this exercise makes your leg symptoms worse, stop doing it.