Sciatica symptoms can range from a searing pain in your leg to numbness in your foot. Symptoms may strike at any moment, so it is a smart idea to have a treatment plan in place ahead of time.
No single treatment option works for everyone, but any of these 4 commonly overlooked remedies may help you find quick relief :
1. Apply heat and/or cold
By now you likely know that applying ice packs or heating pads can help reduce pain and inflammation—the hard part is knowing when and how to apply them. Here are a few guidelines to help get you started:
- As a general rule, apply heat before an activity (e.g. running) to warm up your lower back/buttock muscles and to spur a healthy amount of blood flow to the area.
- If you find heat helps reduce your pain, then be sure to stretch gently afterward—you’ll find that the heat therapy has relaxed your muscles and it will be easier to do your stretching.
- If your pain is worse after activity, use ice or a cold pack to cool down the inflammation. Since inflammation contributes to pain, reducing local inflammation can go a long way toward alleviating your symptoms.
- Consider applying heat before leaving any sedentary position. For example, keep a heating pad near your bed and apply it to your lower back and/or buttock for 10 to 20 minutes before you get out of bed.
- Often, you might not have the time to sit for an extended period and apply heat and/or cold therapy. To find relief while on the move, you can choose one widely available option: a back wrap that can hold reusable and removable heat and cold pack inserts.
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