5 Sciatica Mistakes You're Making: How Massage Therapy Can Save Your Butt

Sciatica pain relief. Sciatica is something that nearly 40% of people in the United States suffer from. This can be caused by various reasons but they all have one thing in common. The sharp pain prevents them from living full lives. This is because they are worried which movement will set it off next. In this article we will go over what sciatica is and how manual therapy can help. Tranquil Therapy is an Orthopedic Massage Studio. We specialize in the treatment of chronic pain and autoimmune diseases. We help people suffering from chronic pain, like yourself, get results to improve the quality of their lives. When you use things like manual therapy you are giving your body a chance to recover without the use of medications that can prolong the healing process.

What is Sciatica?

The Sciatic nerve runs from the lumbosacral plexus and travels down the back side of the leg and into the foot. This nerve can cause a lot of pain when compressed, sending shooting pain down the leg and into the foot. Sometimes, this pain is described as “sharp”, “burning”, or “debilitating” and will arise from seemingly nowhere. Although we know it comes from somewhere, your body gave you signals you didn’t realize were cries for help. These can look like: decreased range of motion, tingling down the leg, numbness in the leg, and pain in the glutes. That’s why having a strength training routine can help you notice these things as they happen instead of letting them build. A decreased range of motion is a great indicator that something is off and should be addressed. Sciatica pain relief is a complicated issue but can be addressed with the right team.

Mistake #1

People believe that sciatica is something that runs all the way down the back of the leg from the glute. While this is true, you can also have sciatica in only one part of the leg such as the hamstrings or even just the foot! The Nerve is a long one and there are lots of places it can get caught and compressed.

How do you get Sciatica?

Sciatic pain is something that no one wants but everyone is likely to experience it. There are many reasons why your Sciatic nerve could become compressed. The most common reason is tightness in the gluteal area. This means your glutes, piriformis or joint can have a decrease in it’s range of motion and this will press on that Sciatic nerve. That’s why tightness results in a decreased range of motion. Think of it this way. Your muscle fibers get stuck together and are unable to allow you to move to your end range. That decrease in range causes you to compensate and use other muscles for that same movement. Those muscles are then overworked or worse, are working in ways that they aren’t meant to. Such as lifting with your back instead of using your hips and legs. While it may happen on a scale that you don’t notice, your muscles notice. Over time that decrease in range of motion will get worse and worse. It may even appear to have “gotten better” without any effort. We all know that isn’t how that works. You have gotten used to that lower level pain and forgot about it. Until it becomes a slightly larger pain.

Do you see the cycle?

Sciatica is also more common due to the postures we now hold. I see a lot of clients come in with an anterior pelvic tilt in one or both sides of the hips. This is caused by several things but for this example we are going to say it is tightness in the Iliopsoas and Iliacus. When these muscles get tight they can rotate the hip bone forward and hold it there. The hamstrings are stretched and then operate from a stretched position when moving the lower body. There are also the glutes that will tighten in some areas and stretch in others. Causing a dysfunction in how those muscle groups operate. There is a lot more to it than this but we will link an in depth article at a later date.

Mistake #2

People often believe that you should stay off the affected leg. What will help that area the most is movement but very specific movement. See the videos we linked below. Sciatica is complicated but easy to identify when you know which movements reproduce the pain.

What can I do: Sciatica pain relief

While it may seem like you can’t move there are some things you can do when symptoms calm down.

Stay hydrated! You need water to help those muscles glide and move. Water is great for so many things. Drink water everyday.
Sleep! I know I know but really. You need to prioritize your sleep and get those 8 hours whenever you can. We will go into detail about how important sleep is in another post. For now you can check out our post by “Mattress Nerd” on the importance of sleep for mental health.
Light, slow stretching
Myofascial ball rolling for the piriformis. Check our our Sciatica ball rolling video and our myofascial ball rolling basics video.
All over strengthening, core, hips, glutes, legs etc. Check out our Sciatica exercise video below! 👇🏼

Mistake #3

People forget to HYDRATE! Staying hydrated helps so many things. Your body is not able to heal if it is dehydrated.

How can massage help?

Once you feel that shooting pain it’s already too late ! Or is it? Sciatica pain relief can be right around the corner. When shooting pain subsides you should take that opportunity to strengthen and lengthen!

What can you do before that? What should you do if it bad and you don’t want to do anything yourself? You can schedule a massage.

Massage is a great tool to help get you there faster. Lets be real, it is a lot easier to do the thing when you don’t have that fear of hurting yourself or moving the “wrong” way. A skilled massage therapist can help with a lot more than just relieving the pressure on the Sciatic nerve. We go in and see what it’s happening so you have a comprehensive list of what you can do and why you need to do them. Giving you the tools you need to understand your body on a kinetic level. This way, you make choices that are good for your body without compromising on activities.

Massage uses techniques like Myofacsial Release along the glutes, quads, low back and hips to give the area it’s range of motion back. Using things like range of motion testing, assessment testing, and testing things like grip and strength. We do this to determine which muscles need attention first.

Mistake #4

When people first get sciatica symptoms they tend to stay off the leg and rest. While this can be helpful it is not helping the situation in the long term. Seeing a skilled massage therapist can help identify the movement or holding patterns causing the issue. These professionals are hands on and have the time to really get to the root cause.

Finding a skilled massage therapist for Sciatica pain relief

I hope this article gave you a great start to what you can do about your Sciatic pain. Tranquil Therapy Wellness strives to educate our clients on whats going on with their bodies and what they can do. If you are in need we highly recommend booking a session with a skilled massage therapist.

We are also taking new clients at our Lancaster PA Location and you can schedule here.

When booking you can look for things such as

What modalities they practice
If they focus on pain management
Do they have anything regarding Sciatica pain on their website

As with anything service based, you will have to take a chance. It’s important to do some research before making an appointment. Looking at reviews, social media pages, as well as their website can give you a lot of information. Even a website that has nothing on can tell you that it may not be the place for you.

Mistake #5

Going to a spa when you need a different kind of massage. People do not always know the differences in massage. While a spa session can be great for the nervous system and promote relaxation it may not do much for sciatica. Seeing a massage therapist that knows your condition and how to improve it will help you 10x more.

Some key things to know when getting a massage though are

You can always stop a session at any time for any reason. You may still owe for that session but you not obligated to continue a session.
You can always tell your therapist how you feel about the pressure. If you want light pressure please tell the therapist. If you want deeper pressure please tell the therapist. This will ensure you getting the session you want. A skilled therapist will able to meet these requests.
Draping is necessary. Your massage therapist should have a sheet, blanket, large towel, or a combination of those. If you are hot or cold please tell your therapist so they can uncover your feet, add a blanket, etc.

Remember that every therapist is different and like a good physician you may need to try a few before you find the one that works for you.
If you are in the Lancaster PA area and want results you can feel schedule a session!
Other ways you can find a skilled massage therapist is through sites like AMTA or searching for Licensed Massage Therapists that specialize in pain management.

5 Sciatica Mistakes You’re Making: How Massage Therapy Can Save Your Butt