Most people know what sciatica means- it is the pain that is experienced in the lower back that eventually radiates downwards. This can go further downwards to the buttocks and even legs and feet. In some cases, the pain can be extremely excruciating. It is hard to believe, but sciatica does go away within 3 months of proper conservative treatment. A number of treatments are available but if the pain is bearable you can go for home remedies too.
According to the best chiropractor in Karachi, people often try and do home remedies even before getting sciatica checked. But if these remedies do not help them they go for other treatments.
Here I have come up with 5 home remedies that you can try. But do consult the doctor before trying them.
- Exercise
It seems very unnatural to exercise when you are in pain. It is proven that resting too much can make your pain aggravate on the legs and arms. Gently incorporate easy exercises day by day to make your sciatica pain less. The exercise shouldn’t include rigorous training or weight lifting. The key is to be ‘gentle’. A walk around the block is the perfect example of an easy exercise that can keep your spine strong without any damage.
Go for core exercises that make your spine take pain by making it strong. Along with that exercise helps the release of endorphins that reduce the feeling of pain.
- Ice Pack and Heating Pad
To get relief from sciatica pain, altering heat and ice therapy can provide instant relief. Ice reduces the inflammation, while heat encourages the blood flow to the area that’s in pain. And that results in speeding up the healing. Ice and heat also help in getting rid of painful muscle spasms that also come with sciatica.
Take an ice pack and apply it to the area where you are feeling pain for 25 minutes once every hour. Then apply heat for 15 minutes every 2 to 3 hours. Always remember to use a barrier (a towel) to protect your skin when using heat and or ice. Do not sleep while using heat or ice therapy.
- Stretching
Add gentle stretching into your daily routine. To improve your spinal flexibility and range of motion while also building your core and spinal strength, stretching is an incredibly excellent way.
Most of the stretches are very simple to be done while watching the news or your favorite movie. Perform the stretching gently, whenever you feel that the pain is worsening, stop immediately, and go for a walk whenever you feel like it.
- Refresh Your Posture
Whether you are at home chilling or you’re in the office, if you stay in the same position for too long, it is very likely that your sciatica pain will spike. You should vary your posture after every 20 minutes and use proper posture. Proper posture can help take the pressure off your spine and reduce the symptoms of sciatica.
Other Complementary Approaches
A lot of people look for other complementary treatments to relieve the pain and the symptoms of sciatica. Among them include;
- Supplements
- A mind and body approaches such as yoga or meditation
- Medical approaches such as acupuncture
- Practitioner-based approaches such as chiropractic care
Surgery
When nothing seems to happen the last resort that everyone opts for is surgery. If you still have milder sciatica pain even after resting, stretching, and exercising for 3 months at least, you need to get your surgery done.
The two major surgeries that work for Sciatica are diskectomy and Laminectomy. These are discussed further for your understanding.
Diskectomy:
During this surgery, your surgeon removes whatever is putting pressure on your sciatica nerve. It could be a bone spur, a herniated disk, or something else. The goal is to remove the piece that is actually causing pain. But in a few cases, the surgeons have to remove the whole disk. General anesthesia is given for diskectomy and you go home on the same day.
Laminectomy
The ring of bone that covers the spinal cord is called the lamina. During the surgery, the surgeon removes the lamina and any other tissues pressing on the nerve causing the pain. You will get general anesthesia in this case too.
Final Thought
You can choose to go for home remedies if you want to. But if the pain never goes away and bugs you for months, do visit your doctor and take your OTCs. If they don’t work then opt for the option of surgery. Don’t panic, this is going to be okay.
