The Four Main Causes of Sciatica

Sciatica typically involves a seemingly never-ending pain down the back of your leg. What causes this annoying pain? There are four main causes of sciatica.

First, there’s something known as your sciatic nerve and it runs down your legs. There’s also something known as your piriformis muscle, located deep in the buttock. It helps the hip rotate as well as turn your leg/foot outward. When the piriformis muscle tightens, swells and/or spasms, for whatever reason, it can, and usually does, affect the sciatic nerve, thus causing you pain. “Piriformis Syndrome” is the fancy term used to describe this process. In layman’s terms, you’ve got a muscle imbalance whereas stress and uneven pressure are causing problems around your hip, spine, buttocks and legs. A chiropractor’s job is to balance muscles in order to relieve your sciatica.

Secondly, consider herniated discs as a cause of sciatica. Your vertebrae are usually set up in an orderly fashion but certain things, like a car crash, can cause one or more of them to protrude out of their normal spot(s). When this happens, the “bulging” disc(s) can cause sciatica.

Thirdly, you have what’s called a spinal canal and when the space in this canal narrows, pressure forms and you’ve got “Spinal Stenosis.” In other words, you could use a chiropractor to adjust your hip and spine back into a normal position to relieve this pressure.

Finally, sciatica can happen due to pressure when a vertebrae slips or moves. The fancy term for this is “Isthmic Spondylolisthesis,” which is not easy for the average person to pronounce, right? Still, it happens, and when it does, the pressure pinches the sciatic nerve and, therefore, bothers the person.

A chiropractor can help relieve your sciatic pain through chiropractic adjustments focused on bringing your bones, joints, vertebrae and muscles into balance. Rather than rely on medication for sciatica pain relief, have a chiropractor adjust you so you can heal naturally.

In Forest Lake, MN, Lakewoods Chiropractic regularly treats people with sciatica. Call 651-464-0800 or email info@lakewoodschiropractic.com today to make an appointment with Minnesota’s top chiropractor.