Sciatica is a painful lower back pain condition; that’s why patients seek sciatica chiropractic in MI for relief. Apart from lower back pain, it causes other terrible symptoms. Read on to learn what sciatica is, its five main symptoms, and the natural care that can help relieve it.
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What Is Sciatica and Its Symptoms?
Sciatica is the inflammation, compression, or irritation of the sciatic nerve. Considered the largest nerve in our body, the sciatic nerve begins in the lower back, branches off through the buttocks, and extends down in both legs. The pain differs depending on what causes the problem and in which part of the nerve the inflammation occurs.
To help our readers understand sciatica better, here are the five primary symptoms associated with it.
1. Lower Back Pain
This is the main symptom of sciatica. Chronic low back pain stems from issues in the lumbar and sacral spine regions, which is a leading cause of disability in the world. However, people should know that there is such a term called referred pain. In other words, the location of the pain is not always the origin of the problem. Lower back pain can be due to a misalignment in the neck that has a drastic impact in the lower back. This can lead to issues that cause sciatica.
2. Weakness, Numbness, and Tingling
Other than pain, sciatica patients may also experience sensations all over the affected areas in the sciatic nerve. For example, they may go through numbness or tingling in the entire leg. It may even spread into the foot. As a result, sciatica can make it hard for patients to stand or walk as it causes weakness in the affected leg.
3. Radiating Sciatica Pain
As we’ve said, the sciatic nerve extends down to both legs. Therefore, the pain is not centered in the lower back alone. Patients may experience radiating pain on the hips, buttocks, and down the legs. While it’s not always the case, sciatic pain often affects only one side of the lower body. Once again, the location of nerve inflammation is a huge factor that determines which leg suffers from sciatica.
4. Achiness and a Burning Sensation
The pain can also produce sensations in various levels. For example, people with sciatica may have to deal with severe pain or continuous aching or burning sensations. Depending on the location and degree of inflammation of the sciatic nerve, the achiness and burning sensation can be worse.
5. Reduced Bowel and Bladder Function
Sciatica not only affects the lower back, hips and legs, it can also have an impact on a patient’s bowel and bladder function. This is particularly true for severe cases of sciatica. It can be so intense that a person may feel pain when using the bathroom or experience bowel or bladder incontinence.
Medications Only Provide Temporary Relief
Patients with chronic pain conditions often take pain relievers to manage their symptoms. While nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can relieve the pain for a certain time, they do not treat sciatica for good. Without addressing the underlying cause of the problem that leads to sciatica, the pain will keep on returning. Using NSAIDs and other pain relievers for long periods of time can result in headaches and stomach problems.
For this reason, many patients are asking whether there is any natural method to get relief from sciatica and other conditions that bring lower back pain. If you have the same concern in mind, we want to introduce you to upper cervical chiropractic care.
Resolving Sciatica Through Upper Cervical Chiropractic
Within the chiropractic field is a subspecialty known as upper cervical chiropractic. Why is it different than traditional chiropractic and other sciatica relief options? How can upper neck adjustments relieve lower back pain? Below are the reasons why upper cervical chiropractic is a unique form of therapy.
Focus
Upper cervical chiropractic focuses its attention on the two uppermost bones of the spine, the C1 and C2 vertebrae. The proper alignment of these bones has far-reaching effects on the whole body. They play a part in the onset of many health conditions. Firstly, they affect the function of the brainstem. Also, they can cause the spine to shift and that can result in disorders such as sciatica.
Low Force
It is a practical form of therapy as its gentle adjustments benefit people of all ages. Upper cervical chiropractors only use low force in every correction, making it a safe and gentle option for people who are already in pain.
Precision
The process that upper cervical chiropractors employ is precise and scientific as they use diagnostic imaging and x-rays to measure misalignments down to the smallest degree. After that, they make mild adjustments to bring long-term relief. This allows the body more time to health naturally from sciatica and conditions that are due to misalignments.
Cost-Effectiveness
Since gentle adjustments are designed to hold for as long as possible, patients can slowly spread their appointments out further. For this reason, upper cervical chiropractic is cost-effective therapy.
If you have been dealing with sciatica or any other form of back pain, you should give sciatica chiropractic in MI a try. Here at Balanced Living Chiropractic in Rochester Hills, Michigan, we ensure proper alignment of the upper neck bones because we know it is the key to having an overall healthy spine. Fill out a contact form to set an appointment with us. This could be your first step toward a sciatica-free life.
To schedule a complimentary NUCCA consultation, call 248-831-0729 or just click the button below.
If you are outside of the local area, you can find an Upper Cervical Doctor near you at www.uppercervicalawareness.com.