According to Harvard Medical School, roughly 40% of people experience sciatic pain in their lives. Like many aches and pains, it can worsen as you get older. You might feel pain when part of the nerve is pinched, you have a herniated disc, other irritation.
Sciatica affects different people in different ways.
Some people feel it in one or both of their legs. Others feel it in their lower back. You might feel a tingling sensation, feel numb, or have a throbbing pain that makes it painful to stand and live your life. If you know you have sciatica, then you want to find pain relief and you might wonder if a chiropractor for sciatica can help.
How a Chiropractor Helps Sciatica in Bucks County, Pa.
Chiropractic care can help relieve painful sciatica safely and gently without surgery. As you may know, chiropractic treatments offer natural pain relief so you can feel better and get on with your life.
First, of course, we want to make sure you do have sciatica. When you visit our office, we’ll discuss your medical history and take an x-ray to assess your spinal health.
Then, we’ll make a recommendation that fits your condition. In addition to chiropractic treatments, we may also recommend massage therapy, hot and cold therapy, ultrasound, or even spinal decompression.
Massage therapy works well in conjunction with chiropractic adjustments because it loosens up the muscles and releases endorphins. Endorphins are your body’s natural painkillers. The combination is terrific for helping your body heal.
Additionally, since chiropractic adjustments basically “put things back” where they’re supposed to be massage therapy is helpful because those looser muscles are more accepting of the adjustment.
You may know, the chiropractic adjustment releases trapped nerves and align your spinal cord, vertebrae discs, and ligaments. Designed to improve your mobility, chiropractic care uses gentle pressure and spinal manipulation so you can feel better and your body can heal.
In some cases, we’ll recommend other therapies too. In our Doylestown, Pa., office we have many tools to help you relieve sciatic pain. For example, many of our patients like the TENS machine (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation). It stimulates the nerves and reduces muscle spasms and pain. We also regularly use ultrasound therapy to relax tight muscles.
Spinal Decompression May Help As you age, your spinal discs can become thinner and drier. Sometimes, that means your spine compresses. Chiropractors have specific techniques designed to lengthen your spine which relieves nerve compression.
Lifestyle Changes Will Also Help Chiropractors can help with sciatica pain relief in both the short and long term. We can also help you make modifications in your life that will also help. That may mean changing the way you sit or sleep and getting more exercise.
Living a sedentary lifestyle makes sciatica worse. You can embark on a walking program to improve your health and also yoga stretches will help your sciatica. You’ll also want to strengthen your core because a strong core helps support your back which can help with pain relief. Ultimately, yes, a chiropractor for sciatica may be able to help you. If you’re tired of suffering with sciatic pain, please contact McQuaite Chiropractic at 267-247-7000 for a consultation.
If you or a loved one suffer from sciatica, then you’re familiar with the sudden flare-ups and debilitating pain. It’s common too. In fact, an article from Harvard Medical School says, “As many as 40% of people will get it during their life, and it becomes more frequent as you age.”
Sciatica is also often misunderstood. Many times it’s lumped in generically with other back pain even though it’s not the same thing. However, since sciatic pain is often in the lower back, its sometimes treated as degenerative disc disease or other common back pain causes.
In this article, we’ll look at the typical causes and symptoms of sciatica along with some treatment options including chiropractic therapy for sciatica.
Common Causes and Symptoms of Sciatica
You’re probably familiar with the sciatic nerve. It’s the longest nerve in the body which means it is easily irritated. The sciatic nerve runs from the top of your spine to your feet. These are common causes:
Muscle spasms
Lumbar spinal stenosis – the lumbar is the lower part of the back and spinal stenosis is when it narrows more than it should.
Spondylolisthesis – when discs stack onto another
Even pregnancy
It often strikes people who are overweight and sedentary, but not always. I’ve known young yoga teachers to suffer from sciatica. Overall, it’s generally caused by nerve compression.
The Symptoms of Sciatica
Just as the causes are varied, so are the symptoms and it’s very individual. You might feel:
Tingling in the legs
Numbness
Throbbing pain
For some, it’s a mild annoyance while for others, it’s debilitating. It can last for years, come and go without notice, or disappear after a period of acute pain.
It’s important to be checked by a medical professional. That way you’ll be treating the right issue. As a chiropractor, we conduct a thorough physical and medical history including an x-ray right in our Doylestown, PA office.
We’ll prescribe a treatment plan once we’ve assessed that it is sciatica.
Can Chiropractic Therapy for Sciatica Help?
As you may know, many people find their sciatic pain will go away on its own – sometimes within a few hours. But for others, it can drag on and keep reappearing.
Fortunately, many patients find sciatic pain relief through chiropractic care. The entire purpose of chiropractic care is to offer an effective natural solution for our patients.
We also recommend hot and cold therapy to reduce inflammation and spinal adjustments.
Other natural pain relief treatment options include:
Ultrasound – this warm heat is gentle and goes deep into the tissues to help muscles relax.
TENS machine– (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) – We use this in our Doylestown office to help relieve pain. You’re hooked up to a machine that sends electrical currents throughout your body—concentrating on the painful area. It can be as gentle as you like or more like a deep tissue massage. However, it’s up to you.
There are smaller home units available too.
Chiropractic massage – A good massage therapist can help loosen muscles and improve blood flow throughout your body. Improved blood flow can reduce inflammation which will relieve the pain.
Low impact exercise – Walking, gentle yoga, daily back stretches, swimming, and other low impact exercises will improve your mobility while also improving blood flow. They also strengthen the back muscles which help support the lumbar spine.
As you can see, there are many ways chiropractic therapy can help sciatica. If you’re suffering from sciatic pain or any back pain, give us a call or come in. We’d like to help you feel better!
If you suffer from sciatica, you may wonder if chiropractic therapy can help you find relief. After all, chiropractors can help relieve all types of body aches, why not sciatic pain?
Sciatica, as you may know, starts in your low back and shoots into one or both of your legs. However, the pain isn’t the same for everyone.
Some people with sciatica feel sharp, debilitating pain while for others, it can be more moderate. No matter how it occurs for you, you’ll want to relieve the pain.
In this post, you’ll discover that sciatica is actually a symptom of an underlying problem and how chiropractic therapy can help your sciatica pain.
What Is the Sciatic Nerve?
If you suffer from sciatica pain, you probably know about the sciatic nerve. This is the longest nerve in the body. It starts in the lower back, splits, and runs down each leg into the foot. Its function is to continue the spinal connection from the back into the legs and feet.
If you have a sciatic disorder – causing you pain – it can be because of misaligned vertebrae, herniated discs, pregnancy or even health problems like diabetes.
What Causes Sciatica?
Many people think sciatica is the problem when it’s actually a symptom. In truth, sciatica is nerve compression.
What causes nerve compression you ask? Good question.
Often, it’s caused by a jarring to the body. Have you slipped and fallen? If so, that causes trauma to your body. But also, arthritis in your hip can cause sciatic pain. If you’re experiencing spasms or numbness in your leg/foot, that may be a symptom of sciatica.
How Can Chiropractic Therapy Improve Sciatica?
Chiropractic treatment for sciatica is a way to help your body heal itself.
In addition to a chiropractic adjustment, your chiropractor may recommend ice/heat therapy, ultrasound, and TENS therapy. The classic ice packs combined with heat reduces inflammation and pain and you can do this at home while watching Netflix.
Ultrasound therapy uses a machine to create heat and sound waves throughout your body. It stimulates circulation and reduces swelling while the TENS unit sends electricity through your body. It also stimulates circulation and provides pain relief.
Before chiropractic therapy can help your sciatica, it’s essential to make sure to have a proper diagnosis. Here at McQuaite Chiropractic, we review your medical history and take an x-ray before we create a treatment plan.
How Fast Does it Work?
Many people find immediate relief after a chiropractic adjustment. The quick hands-on manipulation of the spine takes the pressure off the sciatic nerve so you find relief.
Of course, it takes more than one chiropractic treatment for long-term healing. Your chiropractic will work out a customized treatment plan that’s right for your situation.
Do you want to find out if chiropractic treatment is right for your sciatica? We offer free consultations at our Doylestown office.
According to webmd.com, sciatic nerve pain will affect roughly 40% of the population. It’s not that surprising since the sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in the body. It runs the length of the spine, through the pelvis and into the leg so there is plenty of opportunity to pinch something, strain something or otherwise hurt yourself. Sciatic nerve pain can be debilitating and can send you hobbling to your bed, you’ll want to get to the bottom of it so you can be healed. If you’ve been suffering with sciatic nerve pain for awhile and your doctor recommends surgery, here are a few options you may try beforehand. Physical Therapy – an experienced physical therapist will show you certain exercises to help relieve back pain. Lying on your back on the floor with your knees to your chest and your arms around your legs can reduce pressure on your spine so you feel better. Acupuncture—this Traditional Chinese Medicine approach inserts tiny needles at different points in your body to release blockages. You rest on a massage table for 15 or 30 minutes with the needles in you (you don’t feel them once they’re inserted). This changes the energy flow in your body and can help relieve pain. Chiropractic Care – Sitting, walking and even sleeping can whack our body out of alignment due to the habits we pick up. Chiropractors adjust your spinal column to realign it with your body. This can reduce pressure on pinched nerves or discs and put them back to where they need to be so you feel good again. Massage – Massage therapy doesn’t only feel good in the moment, but it has positive long term effects. When you combine it with chiropractic care, massage helps your muscles maintain the correct alignment of your bones. Yoga – Gentle yoga can be helpful for reducing back pain. You may be able to find a teacher who specializes in yoga for sciatica and other back pain, to find them, ask around. Alternatively, if you want to become a registered yoga teacher yourself but don’t know where or how to start, go to https://www.siddhiyoga.com for more information. If you’re dealing with sciatic nerve pain in Bucks County, Pa. Dr. Jeff McQuaite offers a comprehensive approach to healing. He starts with a full set of xrays and will go over them with you to determine a treatment plan that’s right for you. See the new patient offer here.
Dr. Jeff McQuaite
McQuaite Chiropractic
295 Logan Street
Doylestown, Pa. 18901
267-247-7000
Office Hours
Mon: 8:30 am – 12pm,
2:30 pm – 6:30 pm
Tues: 2:30 pm – 6:30 pm
Weds: 8:30 am – 12pm, 2:30 pm – 6:30 pm
Thurs: 2:30 pm – 6:30 pm
Fri: 8:30 am – 12 pm
Sat: 8:00 am – 10 am
