To ease sciatica pain, keep moving

Dr Ryan Smith was 23 when he felt a pop in his back while performing a heavy deadlift at the gym.

- Amanda Loudin

That pop led to an immediate, radiating pain from his spine all the way down the back of his leg and into his foot.

A physical therapy (PT) student at the time, he quickly recognised it as a possible sign of sciatica.

“The pain was debilitating,” said Dr Smith, now a physical therapist in Maryland. “I couldn't sit, I couldn't drive long distances and I had to stop exercising. All my PT common sense went out the window, and I began throwing everything at it because I needed relief.”

Sciatica is pain resulting from irritation or injury to the sciatic nerves that start in your lower back and branch down your legs. The pain is often accompanied by a burning or pins-and-needles sensation.

An estimated 13 to 40 per cent of the population will experience sciatica in their lives, most often during their 30s to 50s. The most common cause is a herniated disc, a condition that actually becomes less frequent as you age.

Unlike with muscles or other soft tissues, there is no consistent way to prevent nerve injury. But there are steps you can take to jump-start the healing process after you experience it.

IDENTIFYING SCIATICA

Sciatica has some unique distinctions from other back, butt or leg pain and affects only 5 to 10 per cent of people who suffer from lower back pain.

“People often use the term to describe almost any pain travelling down the leg,” said Dr Amy Benton, a physical therapist in Portland, Oregon.