Do you wake up in the morning with that nagging lower back pain back pain? Are you feeling achy pain into your back, buttock, or even thigh? Are you having to watch what you do, because you are afraid you may hurt your back?
Back pain and sciatica differ but are often confused with each other. Back is specific to the upper, middle or lower back. Sciatica is a more diffuse, radiating pain down the buttock, thigh, and even leg. It is also possible to have radiculopathy, which is a radiating numbness, tingling, burning, or sharp pain to a specific part of the leg. This is often associated with a herniated disc, or entrapment of the nerve of that area, as it exits the spine.
When it comes to back pain and Sciatica physiotherapy should be your first treatment of choice for lower back pain relief.
How can I tell the difference between back pain and sciatica?
Back pain
Back pain is a term that can be caused by an array of different conditions. For example, you may experience back pain due to poor posture, a motor vehicle accident, or a lifting injury. The treatment plan that your physiotherapist at Prestige Physiotherapy sets up for you, will depend on how you developed the back pain, in addition to its exact location and your past medical history.
Back pain can be described as acute, meaning it is short-term, or chronic, meaning it is long-term (typically lasting for three months or longer).
Sciatica
Sciatica is a specific type of back pain that is reported as being highly uncomfortable. However, it is also fortunately very simple to diagnose. People with sciatica experience pain along their sciatic nerve, which is the largest nerve in your body.
The sciatic nerve begins at your lower back and then splits at the base of your spine to extend further down to your buttocks, legs, and finally to the bottom of each foot. The sciatic nerve can become compressed or irritated, which causes a “shooting,” “stinging,” or “burning” sensation in your lower back, buttocks, legs, or feet.
How Physiotherapy Can Help?
Back pain & sciatica are both completely treatable through physiotherapy intervention. Our physiotherapists will create a specific treatment plan for you that is dependent upon your diagnosis. The early stages of your physiotherapy treatment focuses on quick pain relief. As your pain reduces, your physiotherapist will expand on strengthening your core muscles with specific therapeutic exercises and stretches. The goal here is to increase your strength and range of motion to prevent re-injury of your spine. Finally, we teach you ergonomics and ways to make sure you know how to take care of your spine, avoiding future problems.
If you are suffering from sciatica, our physiotherapist will implement specific leg stretches into your treatment plan to loosen the sciatic nerve. This restores the natural health of the nerve and quickly reduces symptoms.
If you are experiencing back pain or sciatica, contact us today to request an appointment with one of our highly trained clinicians at Prestige Physiotherapy. No matter how severe the pain may be, we will help you get on the road to recovery as quickly as possible