If you’ve ever experienced pain, numbness or tingling that radiates from your low back or buttocks down into one of your legs, you’re personally familiar with sciatica. But you’re not alone. Sciatica is a very common condition that affects many people. In fact, it’s estimated that up to 40% of people experience sciatica during their lifetime.
Sciatica — also known as lumbar radiculopathy — is caused by irritation or inflammation of the sciatic nerve, which is the largest nerve in the human body. The nerve extends from the lower back through the hips and down the back of each leg. It’s important to note that sciatica is a symptom, rather than a specific medical problem.
Fortunately, certain exercises can help ease the discomfort.
[Read: Tips for Chronic Pain Relief.]
Sciatica Symptoms
With sciatica, sensations of pain, numbness, burning or tingling along the sciatic nerve often occur when the nerve root in the lower back is compressed, according to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. When this happens, you may feel discomfort, ranging from mild pain to intense shock-like sensations that can affect your daily functioning.
Sciatica discomfort can vary considerably but usually involves radiating or shooting pain into the leg on one side of the body, even down into the foot. Sometimes the pain feels like a dull ache; other times like a burning or tingling sensation.
“With sciatica, the nerve root becomes injured, pinched or compressed,” explains Paul Schroeder, a spokesperson for the American Physical Therapy Association. “Depending on the extent of the nerve root impingement, it can affect the location of the symptoms.”
Other symptoms may include:
— Continuous pain in one side of the butt or one leg.
— Numbness or difficulty moving the affected leg.
— Muscle weakness on the affected side of the body.
[READ: Questions to Ask Your Doctor About Nerve Pain. ]
6 Stretches for Sciatica Discomfort
Doing certain stretches regularly can help you prevent and manage pain from sciatica.
“Movement is medicine,” says Schroeder, a physical therapist and strength and conditioning specialist based in Chicago. “Do frequent stretching throughout the day to maintain hip mobility and decrease stress on the lower back.”
Here are stretches to help you do that:
[READ: Muscle Pain: Causes and Treatment.]
Seated figure-4 stretch
1. Sit toward the front edge on a firm chair.
2. Keeping your right foot flat on the floor, bend your left knee and bring your left ankle across your right thigh just above the right knee.
3. Slowly lean forward at your hips, moving your chest toward your legs. Make sure to keep your spine in a neutral position. (You can place your hands on the raised leg for support.)
4. Hold the stretch for 20 to 30 seconds.
5. Repeat the stretch on the other side.
Figure-4 on the floor
1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
2. Cross your right ankle over your left thigh and flex your right foot.
3. Lift your left leg off the floor, bringing it toward your chest.
4. Clasp your hands around the back of your left thigh and gently pull your legs toward your chest.
5. Hold the stretch for 20 to 30 seconds.
6. Repeat the stretch on the other side.
Knee-to-opposite-shoulder stretch
1. Lie on your back with your legs extended and your feet flexed.
2. Bend your right leg, and place your hands just below your right knee.
3. Gently pull your right knee across your body (as far as it will comfortably go) towards your left shoulder.
4. Hold the stretch for 20 to 30 seconds.
5. Release your right leg and extend it back to the floor.
6. Repeat the stretch with the other leg.
7. Do a total of three on each side.
Standing hamstring stretch
1. Stand in front of a chair and lift your right foot onto the seat.
2. Flex your right foot and bend forward from the hips toward your raised foot, keeping your back flat.
3. Hold the stretch for 20 to 30 seconds.
4. Return to a standing position and bring your right foot onto the floor.
5. Repeat on the other side.
Sciatic nerve flossing
1. Lie on your back with your left knee bent to a 90-degree angle and your left foot flat on the floor.
2. Bend your right knee and lift your leg to a table top position, aligning your right knee over your hip and keeping your right calf parallel to the floor.
3. Hold onto the area behind your right knee with both hands and slowly straighten your right leg so that your foot extends toward the ceiling. (You should feel a comfortable stretch, not pain.)
4. Bend your right knee and return to the starting position.
5. Do this a total of 10 times.
6. Switch legs and repeat.
Lower trunk rotations
1. Lie on your back with your hands by your sides, your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor.
2. Gently rotate your hips as you slowly move your knees toward the right side. (Keep your upper body and your feet flat on the floor.)
3. Pause for a moment when you feel a comfortable stretch.
4. Slowly bring your knees back to center, then rotate toward the left side.
5. Pause for a moment when you feel a gentle stretch.
6. Repeat this side-to-side movement for a total of 10 times.
[Read: Exercises for Lower Back Pain.]
Sciatica Causes
The most common cause of sciatica is a problem with a disc in your spine, such as a herniated, bulging or ruptured disc. Normally, the discs cushion the bones in your spine (the vertebrae) and prevent them from rubbing against each other. When the discs move out of their proper position, they can cause compression of the nerve root, leading to symptoms of sciatica.
Less commonly, a tumor or spinal stenosis — a narrowing of the spinal canal in the lower part of the back — can also cause sciatica.
The discomfort can come on slowly and can worsen at night or when sneezing, coughing or straining (during a bowel movement, for example).
While anyone can get sciatica, it’s most common between the ages of 30 and 50. Risk factors for developing sciatica include:
— Poor posture.
— Sedentary lifestyle.
— Smoking.
— Obesity.
— Trauma from an accident or injury.
Things that can aggravate sciatica include:
— Sitting for long periods. “Prolonged sitting causes compression on the sciatic nerve,” explains chiropractor Allen Conrad, owner of Montgomery County Chiropractic Center in North Wales, Pennsylvania. “Compressive repetitive forces like sitting at the computer can entrap the piriformis muscle (located in the buttocks and hips), which can put pressure on the sciatic nerve and cause an interruption of the nerve function.”
— Activities that involve excessive twisting or lifting. These include playing sports like tennis or golf. This excessive twisting or lifting can be harmful if you don’t have proper form. “If someone is overcompensating for bad form during an exercise, they may push the lumbar spine past its normal range of motion — this can cause swelling, spasm and pain around the sciatic nerve and down the affected leg,” Conrad says.
Other Forms of Pain Relief for Sciatica
In addition to stretching exercises and regular movement, sciatica pain can be treated with:
— Ice. Apply ice to the affected area for 10 to 15 minutes every couple of hours, Schroeder advises.
— Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drugs. If it’s safe for you to take a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) drug, such as ibuprofen or naproxen, doing so can help relieve inflammation and pain. If you can’t take an NSAID, acetaminophen may help.
— Physical therapy. Physical therapy can strengthen the back, core and hip muscles and improve hip and nerve mobility to decrease stress in the lower back, Schroeder says.
— Acupuncture. A review of 28 studies, published in a 2022 issue of the journal Complementary Therapies in Medicine, found that acupuncture had a greater effect on relieving pain from sciatica than analgesics.
— Surgery. In severe cases, doctors may recommend surgery for patients who don’t respond to conservative treatments.
Tips to Prevent Future Sciatica Pain
The best ways to prevent flare-ups of sciatica in the future are to avoid prolonged sitting and to engage in regular movement and frequent stretching throughout the day. Be sure to maintain optimal posture as you sit, stand and move during the day, Schroeder advises.
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6 Exercises to Help Sciatica originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 10/31/23: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
