Lots of people come to me with sciatica, and so I’ve been
doing some research on the subject. It was really interesting,
so I thought I’d write an brief article about it. I’ve
missed out all the long Latin words that describe it in Doctorspeak
as I could neither spell nor pronounce them! Just about everyone knows what the term “sciatica” means.
Mention the word and people start grimacing and rubbing the backs
of their legs…most of us have felt that awful, stabbing pain
at one time or another. Like a bolt of lightning, sciatica makes
you yelp and stop whatever you’re doing!
Luckily for me , the only times I ever experienced it was during
pregnancy, but I know people who are plagued by it, and it’s
no joke. Actually, neither’s pregnancy. Nothing natural about
childbirth is what I say! Sciatica is actually a set of symptoms, rather than a diagnosis
in itself, and can be caused by several things…some not serious
and some very serious indeed. This is why, if you get sciatica,
you MUST get it checked out by a health professional (doctor, physiotherapist
or chiropractor) before you try and self-treat. The cause could
be anything from a tight muscle in your bottom to a slipped disk
or even, at worst case scenario, a tumour. That last is rare, by
the way. Thankfully.
When people ring me to book a place in any of my Pilates classes,
I always ask them about back and leg pain on the phone…any
mention of sciatica-type problems and my ears prick up like a hound’s
and I insist they get medical clearance before I accept them. I’ve
lost a few potential clients that way, but nothing’s worse
than someone turning up for their first class and gaily announcing
that they sometimes get “a bit of leg pain” which causes
numbness in their toes…
At which point I lose the will to live! The sciatic nerve is the longest in the entire body and runs roughly
from the middle of your spine down through your buttock and right
down the back of your leg. Any pressure on it anywhere down its
length can cause the stabbing ache of sciatica. Without getting
too technical (because we’re into medical territory here)
there are four main causes of sciatic pain: Slipped Disc When you have a herniated (slipped) disc in your lumbar spine – your
lower back – this causes pressure in the sciatic nerve, which
is close to the spinal cord. So you have the double misery of lower
back pain and sciatica too. A similar thing can happen with age-related
wear and tear to the spine. Maybe there’s something to be
said for being a Borg. Or a Cyberman.
Then again, maybe not! Stenosis This is a narrowing of the spinal canal, often associated with
age (though sometimes pregnancy can cause it). Again, pressure
is put on the sciatic nerve, resulting in pain being felt in the
back and/or leg. Piriformis syndrome The piriformis is a muscle in your buttock which helps to turn
your thigh outwards. It can get very tight in people who sit a
lot…long distance drivers and people who are desk bound for
long periods. The sciatic nerve runs under this muscle – in
some people it goes through the muscle – and can get irritated.
This is not true sciatica, but certainly feels like it! Sacroiliac joint problems The sacroiliac joint is the roughly triangular bit at the base
of the spine where the backbone meets the pelvis. This joint has
to stand up to a lot of wear and tear during your lifetime (once
again pregnancy rears it’s head!) and can become damaged
and inflamed, thus pressing on that pesky nerve! The good news is that these last two can be significantly helped
by doing Pilates. I’ll give you more info on this next time!
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