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Mistakes That Might Be Provoking Your Sciatica

Jan 25, 2019
 

You may be one of many people who suffer from sciatica, pain that radiates from your lower back through your hip, buttock, and leg. Things you do every day might provoke sciatica. You can make small changes that could make a big difference in your pain. Sciatica usually goes away, but if your pain continues for over a week or gets worse, contact an orthopedic spine specialist in Suffolk County, NY at Peconic Bay Medical Center.

The Shoes

Wearing high heels may trigger sciatica. Posture is important to the health of your back. When you walk or stand in high heels, your weight shifts forward. This causes you to flex forward at the hips. This hip movement stretches the hamstrings in your back and may stretch and irritate the sciatic nerve, which runs along the same path as the hamstrings.

A simple, although perhaps unpopular, a solution is to not wear high heels. If you don't want to give up the heels, at least wear a comfortable pair of shoes to work and change after you arrive. You need to limit the heel to 2 inches. Make sure your shoes are tight enough so your feet don’t slide forward, which causes your weight to shift.

The Back Pocket

Sitting for a long time with your wallet or cell phone in your back pocket may trigger sciatica. The wallet, phone, credit cards, or whatever is in your back pocket can irritate your piriformis muscle. The sciatic nerve is under the piriformis muscle, so sitting on your wallet or phone may put pressure on and irritate your sciatic nerve. When you have something in your pocket, one leg is higher, causing an imbalance in your spine. This places pressure on the discs in your back and may irritate your sciatic nerve located near the discs.

One solution is to get rid of your wallet. You can use a money clip for your cash or make your purchases electronically with your cell phone. Get a wallet that attaches to your keys. Attach your cell phone to your belt.

how to treat sciatic nerve pain

Exercise

Exercise can help with sciatica; stretching relieves tension in your back muscles. But the wrong exercises can trigger sciatica. For example, if your sciatica goes away, you may return to jogging, and the jarring of your spine when you jog may aggravate your sciatic nerve root.

Tight Clothing

Tight jeans or underwear with tight elastic may trigger sciatica nerve pain. Style may be important to you, but try sweats or something looser for a while to see if you notice a difference.

Weight

Being overweight increases the chance you will suffer sciatica because weight puts pressure on your sciatic nerve

Stress

There may be a connection between stress and sciatica. Stress or fear may cause you to have bad posture or tight muscles, which may put pressure on and irritate your sciatic nerve.

Call Peconic Bay Medical Center if your sciatica persists. Conservative treatment is often successful, but if it fails to relieve your pain, an orthopedic spine specialist can take measures to re-establish the proper alignment of your spine.