Created by: hms

Date: 05/22/2020 @ 12:04:13 pm

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Remedies for sciatica

Dr. Irma I. Sierra, DC

Sciatica is commonly used to describe radiating leg pain. It is caused by inflammation or compression of the lumbosacral nerve roots (L4–S1) forming the sciatic nerve. Sciatica can cause severe discomfort and functional limitation.

People with sciatica usually describe aching and a sharp leg pain radiating below the knee and into the foot and toes. The pain can have a sudden or slow onset and varies in severity. Most people report coexisting low back pain. Disc herniations affecting the L5 or S1 nerve root are more common and cause pain at the back or side of the leg and into the foot and toes. If L4 root is affected, pain is localized  to the front and lateral side of the thigh. Tingling or numbness and loss of muscle strength in the same leg are other symptoms that suggest nerve root involvement.

Compression of the nerve root and resultant inflammation play a role in pathogenesis of sciatica. Disc herniation resulting from age related degenerative changes or trauma, is the commonest cause.  The inflammatory response induces resorption of the herniated disc material and is thought to be the reason why most people improve without surgery. Foraminal stenosis and, less commonly, soft tissue stenosis caused by cysts, tumors, or extraspinal pathology are other causes. Rarely, extraspinal pathology in the lumbosacral nervous plexus such as neoplasm, trauma, infection, or gynecological conditions, or muscle entrapment such as piriformis syndrome can mimic symptoms of disc herniation.

As a Chiropractor I will ask, what happened?  Did you suffered a slip, fall, made a wrongful force, spend many hours sitting? You could have hurt your sciatic nerve.  The nerve exits the lower vertebrae of the back, nerves of lumbar 4, 5 and sacral S1.   

That nerve is wide and long and can be caught or irritated in several areas of its path.  Therefore, we need to keep it with nutrients, relax the body zones where the nerve pass and prevent it from becoming more inflamed. 

This is why I offer a combination of alternatives that can make it possible to avoid prescription drugs and surgery.  It could have taken many years for your nerve to get sick so probably it might take some time for you to find relief. Don't despair, you're going to get better, but you'll have to keep taking care of yourself while, and after, you feel the relief.

DR. IRMA SIERRA SCIATICA PROTOCOL - NATURAL ALTERNATIVES

You need to adapt new habits, the way you use your back.  And this change is for the rest of your life:

1. Stretch out every morning before you get out of bed. You will bring your legs to your chest one at a time and then both by five (5) repetitions.  Repeat three (3) times a day, in bed or floor.
2. Avoid bending at the waist.  Learn how to bend your knees to get things off the floor.
3. Change the way you sleep. Avoid sleeping face down. To sleep on your back, you should add a pillow under your knees or use a cushion between your knees if you sleep on your side. We recommend the Knee Elevator and the Leg Spacer, but you can use your own pillow.
4. Don’t sit more than 20 minutes at a time.  Get up and get some water and sit down. And if it's in the car and caught in traffic try to pause to get out and stand for 2-3 minutes and be careful when getting in or out of the car.  If you are in a private area, lay down and rest your back, do the stretches by carrying your knees to your chest.
5. Ladies: avoid high heels that are more than two and a half inches. 1½” to 2” is good.
6. Do stretching or yoga exercises as a routine.  Walk 20-40 minutes three times a week.  This is no time to start if you have a lot of pain, but 15 minutes walking will help.
7. Avoid constipation, you may take a soft laxative. LaxEase works very well.
8. Visit a Chiropractic Doctor. They're the only doctors who can adjust (manipulate) the spine to remove nerve interference.  With lumbar and pelvic x-ray of the front, side and oblique we can see if you have any vertebrae misaligned, outside their normal position, evaluating the disc spaces between them and if you have one hip higher than the other, or any rotation.  A lumbar Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is most likely needed to learn about those discs that may be compressing the sciatic nerve.  If necessary, he or she may recommend physical therapy. In our clinic we use Electro-Magnetic therapy, cold laser therapy and hydromassage. Also, regular Chiropractic visits should be like a lifestyle, a routine, to keep your spine always aligned without nerve interference.
9. Take daily natural muscle relaxant and natural anti-inflammatory. To nourish the area you need: Vitamin B-12 sublingual, a supplement for discs, calcium with magnesium, (calcium is not just for bones, you need it to avoid cramps, muscle contractions) and Glucosamine with chondroitin (and MSM).  It is produced in our body, it maintains cartilage.  We have prepared a Rehab Pack.  Consist of Relax-S, Inflam Health & More, Lig-Disc & Joint and Bone Health & More. Add the B-12 and white willow bark, Pain-Less™ caps. The combination of these accelerated the healing process, helps with the pain, numbness and inflammation in the joints.
10. Put ice packs or cold ointment on your back, buttock, leg and feet. 5% of the population feels that heat works better. Please see our hot/cold gel packs, Pain-Less™ cream and Cryoderm.
11. Get a lumbo-sacral support or belt that supports the area and don’t use too tight, which limits its movements both preferably with magnets. Here is a variety of back supports with or without magnets like the Triple Pull Elastic Lumbosacral Support with Sierra Magnet 3" x 7" or the Black Industrial Belt (non-magnetic that you can add a magnetic pad, sold separately)
12. Something as simple as a magnetic pad, flexible that you can move from back to leg.  Numerous scientists, among them Dr. Ralph U. Sierra, worked on the premise that the human body is influenced by changes in natural magnetic fields and by applying a magnet of negative polarity creates an electrical current that stimulates the nerves and blocks the sensation of pain, strengthens the cells of your body, reduces inflammations, increases blood circulation, and helps in the healing process. 
13. The use of a seat- back cushion directly protects the curvature of the lower back. There are also cushions for the chair that covers the back and the seatrest area.  We have three styles available. 
14. Stimulate the muscle, massaging with a machine with low vibration, preferably with magnets, since we have to release the spasm so the nerve signal can pass through all those muscles. We have Tsubo massager.

As you can see, my recommendation is holistic and based in self-care, rest, and rehabilitation. It is focused on addressing the cause of the symptoms, the subsequent pain, rather than just medicating the pain alone. Consult a chiropractor for a treatment strategy.

By: Dr. Irma I. Sierra 

The author is a doctor in Chiropractic and an expert in the field of Biomagnetism.  For more information visit or call Health Magnetic Store 787.782.5767 or Clínica Quiropráctica Jarrot Sierra at 787.277-5967, located next to each other.

Visit Clínica Quiropráctica Jarrot Sierra website: www.tuquiropracticopr.com in San Juan area.

HEALTH CHIROPRACTIC & MORE in Canovanas or Ponce area: https://www.tucolumnahabla.com