A pinched sciatic nerve is a big problem for people who are forced to sit constantly. A nerve pinched by muscle tissue becomes inflamed, and if this happens, then the person should immediately contact a neurologist. If pinched is left untreated, inflammation of this nerve can lead to flaccid paralysis of the leg. This is a very dangerous disease.
Sciatica (inflammation of the nerve) is treated with an exclusively active movement. Sometimes massage helps.
What is the sciatic nerve?
How to unlock the sciatic nerve? And how long will the leg pain appear after the release of the nerve?
We have two sciatic nerves, each starting in the lumbar region, and passing down the leg, along the back of the thigh, and descends to the very foot. In the popliteal fossa, bifurcation occurs - separation of the nerve into 2 branches: tibial and fibular. Nerves are the longest plexus of neurons in the entire body. Each sciatic nerve has 5 roots.
The plexus innervates the muscles of the buttocks and joints in the thigh, as well as the joints and muscle tissue of the lower leg and foot.
Signs of pinched sciatic nerve
Pinching does not occur immediately. A person does not respond to mild pains and asks for help already when he becomes completely ill.
What symptoms should you immediately pay attention to:
- Backache. The pain intensifies with physical exertion.
- Pain gives in leg.
- Pain can spread to internal organs.
- Limb numbness
If you find these symptoms, you should immediately go to a neurologist for a consultation. In general, enduring pain for a long time does not make sense. You can help yourself with the help of exercise therapy. How to unlock the sciatic nerve in other ways will be described later.
When to urgently go to the doctor?
You need to go to the doctor to establish a diagnosis when you feel pain in the lower back and leg. Inflammation is rarely found in both sciatic nerves at the same time. In addition to pinched nerves, pain can be caused by a hernia of one of the discs and other problems in the spine.
There are some signs of an acute condition that occurs when an intervertebral hernia in the lower back wakes up. In this case, you need to go to the doctor immediately. The signs are as follows:
- The pain is already unbearable.
- A sharp increase in temperature to 38 degrees and above.
- The pain spreads to other organs.
- There are problems with urination.
- It is felt that the sensitivity of the pelvic region is lost.
In these cases, the problem is already so serious that it will not work to relieve pain with simple exercises. How to unlock the sciatic nerve in other ways? You can try to go to a chiropractor or risk taking an acupuncture session.
How to unlock the sciatic nerve at home?
With the first symptoms, you can begin to do exercises at home that stretch the muscles. Thanks to such a stretch, the nerve can be released, and a person will feel relief for a while. However, you should definitely consult a doctor about a method for treating sciatica. You may have to perform a scheduled operation, as the exercises will not help.
But if a person does not feel much pain, but for no reason felt a backache in his lower back, what should I do? It is advisable to undergo a course of regular massage to relax the muscles of the back and buttocks. Then, most likely, the pain will recede.
Unlock Exercises
Here are some effective exercises for treating a squeezed sciatic nerve.
- You need to sit on your knees, bend and stretch your arms forward and down. The head can be laid on the floor. This position should be held for 30 seconds. Then straighten, rest, and again fix the described position.
- Standing straight, raise your hands up. Feet shoulder width apart. Without bending your knees, you need to make 10 slopes in each direction. Do not bend over if you are in pain.
- Kneeling and on your hands, slowly, as far as possible, bend the spine in an arc, and also slowly unbend. Do it a few times.
- Lying on the rug, bend your knees and grab them with your hands. Lock the position for a few seconds and straighten. Repeat several times, but without sudden movements.
More serious exercises are best done under the supervision of an exercise trainer. Many are interested in how effective the exercises are. How to unlock the sciatic nerve if the pain in the lower back and leg does not allow you to perform physical actions?
To clarify, exercises are prescribed to everyone, they help to keep in tone muscles that become rigid with age, which provokes infringement. But if the pain does not allow you to move at all, you need to carry out a blockade.
Indications and contraindications, risks
The main indication for the blockade is severe pain, which deprives a person of the ability to move normally. For this, the patient is injected with an anesthetic needle, acting directly on the nerve roots. After this, the pain immediately stops, the swelling subsides. You can repeat the blockade several times.
However, there is a list of contraindications. In the presence of these conditions, sciatic nerve block is prohibited.
- osteoporosis;
- allergy to anesthetic;
- pregnancy;
- the presence of other injuries in this area;
- bone tuberculosis;
- renal failure;
- heat.
If the doctor is allowed to block the nerve, it is worth considering the possible side effects. These include severe cases, such as a possible infection or a broken needle in the thigh. The fact is that a person can be afraid of pain, jerk sharply during the insertion of the needle, and if it breaks at that moment, the remaining metal will have to be removed surgically.
Output
If you need to unblock the sciatic nerve, then it is best to choose exercise therapy and acupressure. Charging should be performed daily in the morning and evening for 10-15 minutes. Massage should be performed by a chiropractor with a license and medical education.