Identifying Sciatica and Preventing Low Back Pain - Sioux Falls Chiropractic
Are you in pain, but don't know what is wrong? It is often difficult to diagnose low back pain. Sioux Falls Chiropractic is here to help!
Identifying your pain:
Do you constantly have pain on only one side of your buttock?
Do you have pain that starts in your lower back and travels down only one leg, sometimes into your foot and toes?
Is your pain worse when you try to sit or stand, but feels better when you're lying down or walking?
Does your pain feel like it is burning or tingling rather than a dull ache?
Do you ever have weakness, numbness, or trouble moving your leg, foot, or toes?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you might be suffering from sciatica.
What Causes Sciatic Nerve Pain?
Unfortunately, sciatica—pain that originates in the lower back and travels down one side of your body—is sometimes difficult to correctly diagnose because many of the symptoms are common to other injuries; in fact, sciatic pain can stem from a lumbar herniated disc, degenerative disc disease, spondlyolisthesis, or spinal stenosis. But don't let that list scare you, chiropractic care can help!
The sciatic nerve is the largest single nerve in your body, so your symptoms will depend on where the nerve is pinched. But, luckily for you, with chiropractic care sciatica doesn't have to keep you down; while the specific treatment depends on how severe your case is, there are many things a chiropractor can do to help relieve your pain.
Preventing Your Pain:
As chiropractors, we aren't just here when you get to the crisis point, we are also here to help you prevent it! Here are some simple tasks you can do to help reduce your sciatic low back pain:
Sitting for long periods of time might be causing or amplifying your pain, so try taking frequent stretch breaks if you regularly sit for long periods of time. While you are sitting, work to maintain and correct your posture.
If you frequently lift heavy loads, your chance of sciatica increases. Try to limit the amount of time you carry heavy loads if at all possible; taking a couple extra, lighter trips will take less time than healing an injury! And if you must lift a heavy load, make sure to do it correctly.
Like many health-related injuries, low back pain can be magnified by the extra weight you're carrying around. Try toning your core. Strong core muscles help support your back muscles so they don't have to do all of the work. Improving your overall physical health will almost always also improve your low back pain.
If you have low back pain, Sioux Falls Chiropractic wants to help! Make an appointment and then click below to try some stretches to hold you over until your appointment.