If you want to reduce sciatica and lower back pain, try this 1-minute stretching routine before bed.
Sciatica is leg pain caused by a pinched nerve in the lower back. The pangs begin in the nerve roots located on either side of the lower spine, however they also course through the sciatic nerve, which runs down the length of each leg from the buttock down to the foot. This pain is often worse than the lower back pain.
Brigit Ruppert, a physical therapist at the Spine Centre says that “some people liken it to the nerve pain you experience if you have a toothache —“ and that’s painful.
The most common cause of sciatica is a herniated disk – when a disk becomes torn or cracks and bulges into the spinal canal. This causes it to pinch the sciatic nerve. It can take up to 6 weeks to cure itself, but for some people, the pain can last much longer.
Other forms of treatment that help include chiropractic, acupuncture, yoga, pilates and massage.
The stretches shown in the video below illustrate a one-minute daily stretching routine that can help reduce sciatica stemming from an overly-tight piriformis muscle in your buttocks.
