Back Pain and Sciatica

Finally, Find Lasting Relief for Back Pain and Sciatica

Ready to Say Goodbye to Those Persistent Aches and Pains?

Do you find yourself waking up with pain in your back? If so, you might have sciatica. While back pain and sciatica are similar, they still have differences and are often confused. Back pain is specifically found in the upper, middle, or lower back. Sciatica can radiate pain down the back, buttock, thigh, and even to the legs.

If you wake up with back pain in the morning, or if you notice pains in your back, buttocks, or thighs, our Sarasota physical therapy services can help you find relief.

According to the American Physical Therapy Association, back pain is the most commonly reported pain across the nation, and one in four Americans has experienced back pain in the past three months.

If you have back pain or sciatica, don’t rely on medicines to help you mask your pain!

At Total Body Physical Therapy, our physical therapists will get to the root of the problem and provide long-lasting relief. In many cases, our treatments may even eliminate the need for harmful painkillers, such as opioids, or invasive surgical procedures.

Contact us today to schedule an appointment, so you can begin to find effective and lasting relief!

How can physical therapy relieve my back pain or sciatica?

While these conditions are very painful and unfortunate to deal with, both back pain and sciatica can be completely treated through physical therapy. Our Sarasota physical therapists will design a specific treatment plan for you based on your diagnosis.

For the treatment of sciatica, our physical therapists will utilize pain relieving modalities, manual therapy techniques and recommend specific leg stretches to your treatment plan to loosen the sciatica nerve. This restores the natural health of the nerve and reduces symptoms quickly.

Back pain may appear and disappear, but it is always important to treat it as soon as you notice it! If not, it may lead to poor joint movement, core weakness, and poor muscle coordination, all of which may lead to unwanted injuries in the future.

The early stages of your physical therapy treatment plan will focus on rapid pain relief. Afterward, our physical therapist will expand your treatment to include strengthening your core muscle group with specific therapeutic exercises and stretching.

This helps to improve your strength and range of motion to prevent your spine from being re-injured. Our physical therapist will also provide you with ergonomic techniques to take care of your spine during daily activities, such as sitting at a desk or driving.

Why am I experiencing these symptoms?

The technical term for sciatica is “lumbar radiculopathy.” People who develop this condition are generally between 30 and 50 years of age. Most commonly, we find that people lose their flexibility in the hips and pelvis, which makes the muscles of the hips and gluteus tighten. This, in turn, alters the spine mechanics and compresses the sciatic nerve as it travels through these tissues.

Many different types of injuries may cause the development of sciatica, including arthritis, bone spurs, or any other injury affecting the sciatic nerve.

General back pain usually develops as a result of an injury. This may be due to repetitive straining movements, such as leaning down multiple times throughout the day to pick up a toddler, or more serious, sudden trauma, such as a motor vehicle accident.

Underlying conditions, such as herniated discs, can also cause severe pain in your back and radiculopathy in your thigh, leg, or foot.

Degenerative disc disease is a common condition as we age, which can lead to back pain. Those with this condition typically report dull, aching pain in their lower back, and have difficulty standing or walking for long periods of time.

There are dozens of other reasons why you may be experiencing this kind of pain, and the best way to find out for sure what is the source of your problem is to visit a physical therapist.

So, how can I know if I’m experiencing back pain or sciatica?

Sciatica

Sciatica is a specific type of back pain that is pretty easy to diagnose, although it is reported as being highly uncomfortable. People with sciatica experience pain along the sciatic nerve, which is the largest nerve in your body.

The sciatic nerve begins at your lower back and then splits at the base of your spine to extend further down to your buttocks, legs, and finally ends at the bottom of each foot.

The sciatic nerve can become compressed or irritated, which causes a “shooting,” “stinging,” or “burning” sensation in your lower back, buttocks, legs, or feet.

Back pain

“Back pain” is a very broad term that can be caused by an array of different conditions. For example, you may experience back pain due to having poor posture, a motor vehicle accident, or an injury sustained while lifting something heavy. You could also have back pain from poor posture.

Back pain can be described as acute, meaning it is short-term, or chronic, meaning it is long-term (typically lasting for three months or longer).

The treatment plan that our Sarasota physical therapist sets up for you, will depend on how you developed the back pain, in addition to its exact location and your past medical history.

Discover effective and natural relief today

Do you have any of the aforementioned symptoms of back pain or sciatica? If so, you can find relief with Total Body Physical Therapy today. Our Sarasota physical therapists are ready and willing to help get you on the road to recovery!

Please call us at (941) 203-8705 or click here to request your appointment.