How to Recognize Sciatica Symptoms

August 16, 2020

how-to-recognize-sciatica-symptoms

Patients who complain of their low back pain often wonder why the pain exists. In many cases, sciatica is the culprit. Low back pain from sciatica can be debilitating and very disturbing. Countless people continuously look for natural care, opting out of medication, fearing the possible side effects they may encounter. 

Medication can help, but only temporarily. Also, whenever the drug’s potency wears off, low back pain most likely comes back, and often, it may even recur with a vengeance. Would you like to know how to recognize sciatica based on symptoms and determine if there are other natural and long-term care options for this painful condition? Read on.

 

Are You a Candidate for Sciatica? 

Sciatica patients are most likely tired of getting recurring and debilitating pain. They are locked in a constant battle against anxiety and pain. Is there even an end to this struggle? Of course, there is. Therefore, knowing your enemy can be a step forward in winning half the battle. The other half of the equation requires you to know yourself.

A lot of people are highly susceptible to acquiring sciatica. There are certain risk factors involved. Let’s take a look:

  • Doing regular and back-breaking physical work 
  • Being over the age of 30
  • Obesity
  • Having poor posture
  • Inflammation
  • Genetics (family members suffer from sciatica)
  • Pregnancy

 

Sciatica Symptoms to Look For

Let’s take a closer look at the following warning signs of sciatica. Try and determine if you have experienced any of these recently. Here are a few apparent symptoms that you may be experiencing sciatica.

  • Pain down the back, buttocks, and one leg

This specific feeling is one of the most common symptoms of sciatica. It is a particular path of pain that follows the sciatic nerve. The pain usually spreads out, originating from your lower back and radiates down your leg. It may become more brutal as it runs down the leg. It is more likely to be sciatica, primarily when your back pain concentrates in the lower back area before it goes straight down just one leg.

  • Feeling pain on one side of the body

Sciatica frequently affects only one side of the body. It may be because trauma often focuses on one of the nerve roots. As a result, it’s only causing you to feel pain down one leg, one side of your buttocks, a knee, or a hip.

  • Hip pain

This kind of pain can affect either side of the hip or both sides, not only on the underside of the sciatic nerve. If one side of the body experiences pain, the body has a natural tendency to compensate by shifting your weight to the other side. As a result, this can cause hip pain on both sides – one side is due to sciatica, and the other due to overcompensation.

  • Sharp pins and needles or burning sensation 

Sciatica triggers a burning sensation in the back, hip, or a specific spot down the leg. The feeling can be mild, and it often goes away and then comes back anytime. If it is not taken care of properly in time, there is a high chance that it would gradually worsen and lead to more symptoms such as back pain and more painful spots.

  • Pain that becomes worse when you stand, sit, cough, or sneeze

Experiencing pain from prolonged standing or sitting is nothing to worry about. This specific pain often goes away as soon as you move around, shift your weight, or do some stretches. However, sciatica pain is very different. The discomfort and pain worsen the longer you sit or stand. Changing your position or moving around for a while may help. Unfortunately, it would only give you temporary relief. Many sciatica patients report about feeling sudden and severe pain when they sneeze or cough.

  • Numbness

As sciatica becomes worse, numbness can start to appear somewhere along the side of your hip, lower back, or down the leg. In some cases, extreme numbness can occur. As a result, this would affect your entire leg and give you problems with walking correctly.

 

Conditions That Cause Sciatica

First of all, let us define what sciatica is not. Sciatica is not a health or medical condition. Instead, it is a word used to indicate a collection of symptoms from an underlying medical condition that adversely affects the sciatic nerve. 

The most extensive nerve in the body is the sciatic nerve. It originates from the lumbar spine, then runs deeply through the buttocks and continues down the back of the leg and feet. Anything that can cause damage, irritation, or compression, and also give trauma to your sciatic nerve can trigger excruciating back pain. However, there are also several conditions which can also cause sciatica:

  • Injury to the lumbar spine
  • Degenerative disc disease
  • Osteoporosis
  • Piriformis syndrome
  • Muscle spasms
  • Spinal stenosis
  • Herniated discs, pinched nerves, slipped discs.
  • Spondylolisthesis
  • Other injuries to the spinal column

 

Finding Gentle And Effective Care for Sciatica

Many upper cervical chiropractors have served sciatica patients to help identify and correct a frequently overlooked reason for their situation. They focus on precise adjustments and realigning the atlas, the uppermost vertebra in the spinal column with utmost gentle care.

The atlas vertebra is special and unique. First, it is responsible for lifting and supporting the head's weight. Second, it allows flexibility for the head's multi-directional movement. Here is a possible reason for sciatica to occur: When the atlas vertebra becomes misaligned due to an injury, accident, trauma, or regular wear and tear. The atlas bone is one of the possible locations for misalignment because it is the most flexible and freely movable part of the entire spine.

If the atlas moves out of its proper alignment, the shoulders become uneven as the mid-back compensates. Thus, one hip moves up higher than the other, causing an imbalance in the lower back. These adjustments of compensations can begin to irritate the nerves that connect to your sciatic nerve. Finally, pain and inflammation follow next, thus, causing burning, numbness, and weakness. These are just some of the symptoms associated with sciatica.

In a clinical study, a 57-year-old woman with sciatica experienced relief with upper cervical chiropractic care. She had right-sided sciatic pain, and she suffered from 10 hot flashes each day. She had a misalignment in the upper cervical spine. After her upper cervical care, she had a significant reduction in her sciatic pain and hot flashes.

 

Upper Cervical Care for Long-Term Sciatica Relief

We know that a misalignment in the atlas can cause a domino effect causing sciatica to occur. Upper cervical care focuses highly on addressing the root cause of any patient's symptoms. 

Unlike medicine that merely provides a temporary solution or relief, upper cervical chiropractic provides long-term care by addressing any health problem's underlying cause. A precisely aligned spine results in a fully functional central nervous system. Be free from low back pain and sciatica pain as soon as possible. Experience long-lasting relief and seek an upper cervical chiropractor in your area today.

Find An Upper Cervical Doctor in Your Areato schedule a consultation today.

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The content and materials provided in this web site are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to supplement or comprise a medical diagnosis or other professional opinion, or to be used in lieu of a consultation with a physician or competent health care professional for medical diagnosis and/or treatment. All content and materials including research papers, case studies and testimonials summarizing patients' responses to care are intended for educational purposes only and do not imply a guarantee of benefit. Individual results may vary, depending upon several factors including age of the patient, severity of the condition, severity of the spinal injury, and duration of time the condition has been present.

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