Dr. IV on sciatica nerve pain

Marisol: My name is Marisol. I’m from Texas. My question is on how to deal with sciatica nerve pain with muscle spasms.What do I do with that? 

Dr. IV Mirus: Hi, Marisol! Thank you for your question. Sciatica can be very painful. I get it. I have it sometimes in my right leg.

What is it? The sciatica nerve is a very big nerve that runs down your spine and down both legs. It helps to control your legs and to walk and run. Move your feet. It is a big and important thing but it can cause tremendous pain. The nerves in the hips goes through muscles and all the way down the legs. Sometimes it can be compressed and when the muscles get tight, it puts pressure on the nerves. It causes pain and feels like there is electricity shooting down the legs. It can cause hip cramps. 

Sometimes rest will make it better, but it will come back. If you rest for too long, the pain will come back. It is difficult to cure completely but there are some options. For short-term relief, you can always take medicine such as Tylenol or Advil. Various kinds of anti-flammatory medicine. It depends, though, because some people can’t take these medicines. It depends on what their doctors say and on the health of their kidneys. Be sure to ask your doctor.

There are some prescriptions that are muscle relaxors, which can reduce the pressure on nerves. Sometimes, you can do stretching.
But the best long-term way to have complete recovery is physical therapy. If your hip muscles become stronger, it will stop the pressure on the nerves. You have to do exercises such as squats or lots of stretching so the muscles will stop bothering the nerves.

Sometimes I use yoga to stretch. I’m not very flexible so I’m trying to  train my legs and stretch them. I’ve noticed a lot of improvements.

Also, something that I use a lot is a theragun. There are various brands. It is a device that has a pulsating end so it can massage your hips and it feels good and causes the muscles to relax and stop putting pressure on the nerves. It’s really helped me a lot. 

So there are two main ways. Medicine helps but it is typically short-term. Try stretching and doing physical therapy. Also try massaging the hips. It should help a lot but I know it is a difficult and a very common issue. Good luck!

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