Steps You Can Take To Improve Your Quality of Life With Sciatica

If you’re living with pain, numbness, and tingling in your sciatic nerve, it may feel like you have no control over your situation. That’s why it’s important to know that there are ways to manage your discomfort and improve your day-to-day living. From making sure you stay active to working with a physical therapy clinic to safely return to normal activities, here are steps you can take to improve your quality of life with sciatica.

Keep Moving

While your doctor may advise resting for a few days after a sciatica flare-up, he or she will almost certainly recommend that you get moving again as soon as possible. That’s because prolonged sitting puts additional pressure on your lower back, causing further damage and ultimately increasing your sciatica pain. Favor standing over sitting, and take frequent short walks if you have a job that requires you to be at your desk for long periods.

Consistency With Strengthening Exercises

It may seem surprising, but sciatica pain is often impacted by the strength of all of your core muscles, not just those in your back. That’s why engaging in exercises that bolster the muscles in your abdomen, sides, pelvis, and buttocks is recommended to improve spinal health and decrease discomfort. Even doing just a few minutes of core exercises each day is enough to see benefits, as long as you’re consistently working on strengthening these key muscles.

Consult With A Physical Therapist

As part of your program for increasing mobility and strength, your physician will likely recommend physical therapy. By working with one of the top physical therapists in Louisville, you’ll learn how to modify your body mechanics and properly perform exercises and stretches so you comfortably get back to normal activities. Techniques like massage and other manual therapies, aquatic therapy, and weightlifting might also be incorporated in your physical therapy program to maximize results.

Modify Your Lifestyle

While mobility, exercise, and physical therapy all go a long way toward improving your quality of life with sciatica, there are other choices you can make to ensure you minimize suffering. These include:

• Managing Your Weight – Being overweight increases your risk for sciatica and places additional pressure on your spine and discs. Losing weight and keeping it off reduces that pressure.
• Following a Healthy Diet – Proper nutrition benefits your body in any number of ways, and there’s evidence that foods rich in essential fatty acids, antioxidants, and fiber reduce sciatic nerve pain by combatting inflammation.
• Improving Your Posture – Slouching compresses your sciatic nerve, triggering pain. A physical therapist will identify posture problems and provide techniques for carrying yourself correctly.

Now that you know some of the steps for better managing your sciatica pain, it’s time to take control of your situation. Get started by searching for “physical therapy near me” to find a partner on your path to feeling better and improving your quality of life. Through a combination of therapy, activity, and lifestyle modifications, you’ll be doing your part in living more comfortably with your sciatic nerve pain.