Sciatica

Sciatica refers to pain, numbness, or tingling down the leg that is a result of pressure on the sciatic nerve. This impingement can be due to a number of different conditions, but one of the most common conditions is called “Piriformis syndrome” in which the piriformis muscle (a bum muscle) tightens down on the piriformis nerve, causing relentless distracting pain.

Any kind of nerve pain can be debilitating and make it extremely difficult to focus on regular activities. A person suffering from this syndrome might find themselves constantly shifting positions, finding one that relieves the pain, only for it to come back within minutes or even seconds later.

There are some effective ways to treat Piriformis syndrome. I will often perform a deeper massage to the effected area or implement a “pin and stretch” technique in which I pin the muscle down in one area and then passively stretch your muscle. This allows me to choose which part of the muscle I want to elongate.

I also see that Piriformis syndrome improves the quickest when daily stretches are performed. Often, a modified version of pidgeon pose does the trick, although typically we change it to a sitting or standing pose as getting off the floor is difficult for many.

https://www.ekhartyoga.com/resources/yoga-poses/pigeon-pose

In cases of Piriformis syndrome, I encourage clients to use pain as a reminder to stretch, and the piriformis may need multiple stretch sessions per day to recover quickly. Start with 30 seconds per stretch session, and add 30 seconds every few days until you can safely reach 3 minutes. It takes a few minutes for elastin fibers to respond to a stretch, which is why longer stretches give you the most long-term gain, although we do need to achieve this amount of time gradually to avoid any strain.

We always review stretches during your appointment to make sure that everything is done safely and effectively so that you can achieve full recovery as quickly as possible.