CHARLOTTE – This week alone I’ve had two clients come in to get relief from sciatic nerve pain. Generally speaking, people call sciatic nerve pain anything that starts in the low back/buttocks area and continues down the leg to the knee. Some people also have the pain extend to their foot. So how do we know it’s the sciatic nerve causing this?
The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in your body and when it’s unhappy then everything can be unhappy. This nerve, which branches off your sacrum (tailbone), might present itself as tingling, burning or even radiating pain that flows the way the nerve sits in your body. The good news is that it rarely affects both sides of the body at once, but make no mistake that it will disrupt your life when it’s irritated.
The beauty of this nerve is that it allows you to stand, run and walk. It is not only a motor nerve, where it causes movement, but it’s a sensory nerve as well. It’s pretty big in diameter too, about the size of a penny. According to the Cleveland Clinic, sciatic nerve issues are more common in people over the age of 30, those with diabetes (diabetes increases your risk of neuropathy and nerve damage), heavy lifting, pregnancy, running, a sedentary lifestyle and even smoking can exacerbate the condition.
What can a massage do? A massage can help stretch the muscles that the nerve comes into contact with and provide relief by relaxing your muscles.
-Lisa Lane is a licensed (#13098) massage and bodywork therapist in the Mint Hill area. To make an appointment visit her website at www.ncmassagesanctuary.massagetherapy.com.
