in case of severe pain in or spine, your doctor may refer you to a physical therapist as part of your multidisciplinary sciatica treatment plan. The process of physical therapy (PT) typically involves passive and active therapies. Passive PT refers to treatments (e.g., heat/cold packs) administered by the physical therapist, and active PT requires your “active” participation (e.g., therapeutic exercise).
Sciatica is the medical terminology for pain that travels down the line of the sciatic nerve, which starts in the buttocks and goes down the back of the leg.
Numbness, tingling, pins, and needles, weakness, lack of feeling, or any combination of these symptoms are all common indications of severe sciatica.
What Causes Sciatica?
Sciatica pain can take place when the sciatic nerve becomes irritated and inflamed. In many cases of sciatica, it might be difficult to diagnose any single obvious cause.
However, causes of sciatica include:
- injuries to the spine
- infections that spread to the spine
- spinal stenosis, which feels like a narrowing of the spinal cord
- spondylolisthesis, a specific condition causing the disk itself to slip over a vertebra
- tumors in the spine
- cauda equine syndrome, affecting the nerves in the lower part of the spinal cord
Sciatica Physiotherapy Treatment
Since sciatica is triggered by pressure on the sciatic nerve, treating it involves relieving that pressure. Your physiotherapy treatment aims to do this by relieving muscle tension in the lower spine, buttocks, and leg and also lowering nerve pressure caused by poorly functioning spinal joints.
It is done by integrating the following techniques:
- Spinal mobilizations
- Ultrasound and other electrical stimulation devices
- Massage therapy and trigger point therapy
- Advice concerning how to minimize pressure and irritation of the sciatic nerve
- Stretching tight muscles, joints, tendons, and ligaments.
In addition, you will be given a list of home stretching exercises and instructions on how to use ice and heat to support your recovery.
If you are suffering badly from sciatica, do not wait to get treatment – the best results can be achieved when the symptoms are treated as soon as possible.
How can these Exercises Work to Reduce Sciatic Pain?
Physical therapy and exercise are most of the time considered as the first-line treatments for relieving, treating, and preventing sciatica symptoms. Most common sciatica signs and symptoms through physical therapy include:
- Painful sensation in the lower back, hips, and legs
- Buttock, thigh, calf, or foot numbness, tingling, or weakness
In treating the symptoms and signs of sciatica, physical therapy and exercise aim to:
- Restore functional movement patterns that are pain-free.
- Alleviate lower back, buttock, thigh, and leg pain
- Reduce the muscle spasms
- Improve lower body mobility by restoring lumbar spine and sacroiliac joint function.
- Improve the healing environment in your lower back.
- Prevent future pain flare-ups and lessen the anxiety associated with movement by promoting neuronal changes that diminish pain perception.
When it comes to physical therapy and exercise for sciatica, commitment and consistency are key factors in achieving a good treatment outcome. Physical therapy may or may not be used in connection with pain-relieving therapies such as over-the-counter (OTC) or prescription drugs, as well as an epidural steroid injection.
How do Exercises Help with Sciatica?
According to some researches, healthcare professionals should see exercise as the main component of noninvasive treatment.
It’s because, unlike other types of injuries, sciatica pain may improve with exercising rather than rest. Continuing the exercises after the discomfort has subsided may also help prevent it from returning.
Sciatica Physiotherapy Exercises
The majority of sciatica patients improve after 4–6 weeks.
. Some exercises and stretches, on the other hand, may help in the healing process while also relieving pain. It’s important to remember that although workouts should stretch and tighten the region, they shouldn’t worsen existing pain or cause new ones. Following are some exercises helpful to treat sciatica issues:
Here are 10 exercises for sciatica:
- knee to the opposite shoulder
- reclining pigeon pose
- sitting pigeon pose
- forward pigeon pose
- sitting spinal stretch
- standing hamstring stretch
- basic seated stretch
- standing piriformis stretch
- groin and long abductor muscle stretch
- scissor hamstring stretch
Conclusion
In addition to gentle exercises to help strengthen your core, low back, and legs, your physical therapist may help you learn how to correct your posture and incorporate ergonomic principles into your everyday activities to protect your spine better. These simple changes in daily movement will go a long way toward preventing future episodes of sciatica.
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)
1- For how long does physical therapy take for sciatica?
An acute episode may last between one and two weeks and usually resolves itself in a few weeks. It’s fairly common to experience some numbness for a while after the pain has subsided. You may also have sciatic episodes a handful of times a year.
2- What does a physiotherapist do for sciatica?
Treatment includes hands-on, manual techniques by a physiotherapist and gentle, progressive exercises aimed at reducing pain and returning normal movement. You may be given gentle stretches for the sciatic nerve.
3- What should you not do with sciatica?
Things to avoid when you are suffering from sciatica are:
- Avoid Exercises That Stretch Your Hamstrings
- Avoid Lifting Heavy Weights Before Warming Up
- Avoid Certain Exercise Machines
- Avoid Sitting For Longer Than 20 Minutes
- Avoid Bed Rest
- Avoid Bending Over
- Avoid Sitting in the “Wrong” Office Chair
- Avoid Twisting Your Spine
