Seekonk, MA—Can you imagine experiencing sudden back pain that makes it nearly impossible to move or continue on with your daily activities? Believe it or not, this kind of thing happens to a great many people in the United States every year, including Seekonk residents. This isn’t just a typical inconvenience like the common cold, however. It’s a serious, sometimes chronic, condition that calls for immediate attention and treatment.
The sciatic nerve is a large nerve that starts in the lower back, runs through the buttock, and ends in the thigh. Sciatica is a term that chiropractors use to classify the kind of pain, numbness, or incapacitating discomfort that occurs in body along the sciatic nerve.
Those with sciatica often experience mild to extreme pain accompanied by weakness and tingling in their lower back, legs, and buttocks. Because of its unfortunate position in the body, both sitting and walking can be uncomfortable for anyone with an irritated sciatic nerve. Though sciatica can come on for seemingly no reason, some known causes include pregnancy, herniated discs, and even spinal tumors. Some psychological disorders—such as chronic depression—has also been known to cause sciatica.
Some people do find that over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen and naproxen can provide adequate relief for their sciatica symptoms. Because sciatica can also be a side effect of depression, some anti-depressants are engineered to subside chronic pain in the lower back. However, when these medicines don’t work or start to lose their effectiveness, you should seek outside treatment from a health care professional.
Alternative treatment methods include surgery and physical therapy.
To learn more about treatments for sciatica in the Skeekonk, MA area, call (508) 226-2333 today!