Amanda C. – Low Back Pain & Sciatica
Amanda had severe Low Back & Sciatica pain when she came in for chiropractic care. Specific Gonstead Chiropractic Adjustments were used in order to give Amanda relief from relief from her Sciatica pain and her lower back pain dropped from a 10 to a 3/10. She was also advised on proper stretching, exercising, posture and sleeping habits to maintain her condition.
Sciatica can be either pain, numbness, tingling or weakness in your leg or legs. Sciatica occurs when there is irritation to the sciatic nerve, which is the longest nerve in the human body. It branches out from your spinal cord through your buttocks and extends down the back of both your legs. From there, it divides into smaller nerves. The sciatic nerve controls your muscles and provides sensations throughout a large portion of your lower back and legs. Pain radiating down the leg or Sciatica is an indicator of a problem somewhere else within your body that is putting pressure on your sciatic nerve. The pain, numbness, tingling or weakness associated with sciatica is caused by pressure or damage to the sciatic nerve. The pressure or damage to the sciatic nerve is commonly caused by a subluxation or misalignment of the vertebrae. Because sciatica is a sign of something else, a very thorough examination should be performed to pinpoint exactly what is irritating the sciatic nerve. Sciatica is a symptom, it’s important to seek the care of a health care professional who specializes in diagnosing the root cause of pain and implementing a treatment plan to correct it.
As outlined above, sciatica is a severe pain along the course of the sciatic nerve, from the back all the way down the leg.
The following is an example of a possible Treatment Protocol for Sciatica:
1. Gonstead Specific Chiropractic adjustments – remove subluxations and restore alignment
2. High Power Laser Therapy – decrease swelling, decrease inflammation, decrease muscle spasm, decrease pain…
3. Ice Therapy – 20 minutes on / 60 minutes off (repeat as much as possible to decrease joint & disc swelling)
4. Stretching and Strengthening Exercises
5. Proper posture for sitting, bending, sleeping, standing