Lifestyle Changes to Reduce Sciatica Pain

Sciatica pain is brought on by injury or inflammation to your sciatic nerve. The sciatic nerve is a set of nerve roots that runs down from your buttocks to just below your knees on each side of your body. 

Other nerves branch out from your sciatic into your toes and foot, which is why you are likely to feel pain from your lower back down to your legs when it's injured or inflamed. 

At Liberty Pain Associates in Flower Mound, Alliance/Keller, and Fort Worth, Texas, our primary mission is to offer skilled and personalized care for people with most forms of physical pain. 

Sathya Bhandari, MD, is a triple board-certified physician specializing in pain management. With over 20 years of medical experience, she’s more than equipped to help you find a lasting treatment for your sciatica pain. 

First, learn more about what causes sciatica pain and what lifestyle changes you can make at home to help manage your pain. 

Symptoms of sciatica pain 

In most cases, sciatica pain manifests as lower back pain. The constant ache in your back, which you thought was brought on by strenuous exercise or sleeping in an odd position, might be sciatica pain. 

Other symptoms include: 

• Feeling pain in your buttocks and legs 
• Feeling numbness in your lower back, down to your legs 
• Feeling “pins and needles” in your feet 
• Worsening pain when you move or exercise 
• Losing control over your bowel and bladder movements 

Causes of sciatica pain 

Sciatica is a common condition affecting up to 40% of the population in the United States. It’s typically caused by a slipped or herniated disk, which puts pressure on a sciatic nerve root. Degenerative disc disease can also cause sciatica pain as the condition causes the discs in your spine to wear down. 

People who have had some form of lower back injury are at a greater risk of developing sciatica pain. Other risk factors that can make you more vulnerable to developing sciatica pain include: 

• Obesity 
• Aging 
• Diabetes 
• Osteoarthritis 
• Smoking 
• A sedentary lifestyle 
• Poor posture 

Lifestyle changes to manage sciatica pain 

Poor lifestyle habits can worsen sciatica pain. As you follow your doctor’s treatment plan, making specific lifestyle changes to help reduce your pain and aid your healing process is crucial. A great place to start is with these lifestyle changes. 

Maintain a healthy weight 

Obesity is a risk factor for developing sciatica pain. Maintaining a healthy weight by eating nutritious foods and exercising can help prevent sciatica pain and reduce the pain if you already have the condition. 

Get stretching 

Engaging in gentle stretches with the aid of a physical therapist can help you strengthen your core, reducing back pain. 

Avoid strenuous physical activities 

Strenuous physical activities like lifting heavy objects regularly may worsen your sciatica pain. Avoid these activities until you’ve healed. 

Quit unhealthy habits 

Unhealthy habits like smoking and drinking alcohol excessively can slow down your healing process and worsen your pain. Quitting these habits is crucial.

Manage your stress levels

Physical and mental stress can take a toll on your body, and even more so when living with a condition like sciatica pain. Prevent this complication by mediating and avoiding stressors.

While these lifestyle changes are a great start to helping you manage your pain, we understand that living with pain can be debilitating. Get to the root cause of your sciatica pain and find effective treatment by booking an appointment with us at Liberty Pain Associates. You can do this online or by calling 972-355-9038.