Sciatica in Weldon Spring Heights, MO. Anyone who has ever experienced sciatica will struggle to capture in words the severity of pain it causes and just how disabling it can become. If you have been diagnosed with or believe you suffer from sciatica, or a condition that affects the sciatic nerve, get the care you need right away.

Axes Physical Therapy is a network of multiple physical therapy treatment locations positioned near Weldon Spring Heights, MO and throughout Missouri. Our clinics specializing in movement health and owned and operated by our treating doctors are dedicated to providing you with sound, personalized, intelligent care for your sciatica or other movement complaints near Weldon Spring Heights, MO. Speak to a physical therapist in the Weldon Spring Heights area about your sciatica today or make an appointment online now.

Understanding Sciatica

Sciatica describes the irritation of the sciatic nerve, which happens to be the most extensive nerve in the human body. The sciatic nerve originates from the nerve roots in the low end of the spine, then from the pelvis it splits off to each buttock and travels down and through the back of each leg. Sciatica can be distinguished from general low back pain or other conditions because the pain from sciatica runs along the path of the sciatic nerve.

The term sciatica is not, in itself, a diagnosisas people commonly assume. In fact, sciatica is only a word used to describe conditions connected to the sciatic nerve that arise when an existing medical condition causes the sciatic nerve to be irritated, inflamed, pinched, or compressed. The symptoms of sciatica range wildly, but frequently consist of pain sensations, weakness, numbness, or tingling that can extend from the buttock all the way down the leg. While low back pain in constrained to the immediate area around the back (though other conditions affecting the low back and lead to tightness, imbalance, and overcompensation that causes additional physical problems), people with sciatica experience symptoms down into the buttock, legs, or feet.

Symptoms of Sciatica

The type and severity of sciatica symptoms vary from case to case. Your sciatica’s exact presentation depends on where the damage or pressure is along the nerve root. Sciatica typically includes symptoms like pain, numbness, loss of muscle function, tingling, and pain that worsens when in certain positions.

The hallmark of sciatica is the sensation of pain that travels along the sciatic nerve which begins in the lower spine and travels through the hips and posterior, down the back of each leg. Typically, a patient with sciatica will experience symptoms only on one side — either the left or right hip and leg. There are, however, exceptions, and some sciatica patients are affected down both nerve paths. This simply depends on where on the sciatic nerve the irritation or compression occurs.

Pain is such a significant component of the sciatica experience for Weldon Spring Heights, MO sciatica sufferers. Sciatica pain can range from:

• Sharp
• Jolting
• Shooting
• Burning
• Electric
• Stabbing
• Tingling

If debilitating sciatica pain is preventing you from living your life, speak to a medical professional with spine health expertise right away. The physical and occupational therapists of Axes Physical Therapy near Weldon Spring Heights, MO will guide you on your journey to a full recovery and craft a treatment approach with the best chance of success of restoring your mobility and freedom from pain.

Common Causes of Sciatica

Most instances of sciatica are caused, in one way or another, by the irritation or inflammation of the sciatic nerve. These cases are nearly always successfully resolved with physical therapy in the Weldon Spring Heights area targeted specifically to the source of nerve inflammation, and some even heal on their own over time with proper exercise and self-care. Other cases, when the sciatica is a result of direct compression of the sciatic nerve, may call for a more invasive treatment such as surgery.

Often, patients with conditions such as sciatica pain are not aware of what caused their condition. Whether you suffered an acute injury while playing sports or being active or woke up one day with sharp pains down your left leg that you can’t explain, our Weldon Spring Heights, MO area physical therapists are equipped to provide you with accessible, epirically-supported restorative care.

Common Reasons for Sciatica

• Herniated disc
• Slipped disc
• Bone spur
• Spinal stenosis
• Piriformis syndrome
• Degenerative disc disease
• Spondylolisthesis
• Pregnancy
• Vertebral fracture

Are You at a Higher Risk of Developing Sciatica in Weldon Spring Heights, MO?

You may be at a higher risk of developing sciatica and other physical and neurological conditions based on your background and activities. Risk factors tied to sciatica include:

• Age. As we age, our bodies degrade over time.
• Weight. The back muscles in heavier individuals are forced to work harder to keep the body upright, and their spinal discs and other joints are under more pressure.
• Other medical conditions. Diabetic patients are suseptable to nerve damage, and joint-related diagnoses like osteoarthritis can cause pain and pressure on your spine and sciatic nerve.
• Occupation/Daily activities. Trades that require lifting heavy loads for long periods, frequent bending and twisting, or driving (causing the up-and-down movement and vibration of the body) can cause sciatica.
• Lifestyle. Lifestyle habits like a “couch potato” daily routine or smoking can cause inflammation and weakness.

What Sciatica Treatment Options Do I Have in Weldon Spring Heights, MO?

There are a variety of treatments that are often used for sciatica patients. Different treatment solutions, which run the gamnut from conservative recommendations like cold and heat applications to surgical operations, vary in their accepted level of efficacy. The one thing that medical professionals agree on when it comes to sciatica treatment is that physical activity is an essential part of managing and treating sciatica. This is contrary to outdated recommendations to confine sicatica patients to bed rest, which is no longer an accepted treatment fo sciatica as it does not improve disabiity or pain in patients.

Remember that it is your responsibility to consult with a licensed medical professional prior to taking any actions related to your medical care. Our Weldon Spring Heights, MO area physical and occupational therapists with Axes Physical Therapy have dedicated our careers to guiding individuals of all types in the Weldon Spring Heights, MO area to optimal movement health. For you, that means studying your medical history, sciatica symptoms, and other key details. Your dedicated Axes Physical Therapy treatment provider near Weldon Spring Heights, MO will perform a complimentary screening before treating you so that we can truly understand your condition and formulate a personalized treatment plan for you.

In addition to a history of success in the Weldon Spring Heights, MO treatment of sciatica, our experienced Weldon Spring Heights area providers have what it takes to give you the care you need. We apply our knowledge and experience working with kinesiology and the musculoskeletal system toward providing people like you in Weldon Spring Heights, MO with many forms of care. Learn more below.

• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy

Treatments Options for Sciatica in Weldon Spring Heights, MO

The medical community and especially medical professionals who are specialists in spinal care recommend some of the following as treatment of sciatica for certain patients. Your primary care doctor, Weldon Spring Heights, MO Axes physical therapist, and all other members of your treatment team will collaborate to lay forth and carry out the most promising sciatica treatment plan for you.

• Medications. There is some conflicting information about which drugs are effective for patients with sciatica, but as with any other drug, pharmaceuticals come with the risk of side effects, which can be severe. Largely used in mitigating the experience of sciatica symptoms, some drugs that can be used for sciatca patients include:
  • Anti-inflammatories
  • Muscle relaxers
  • Antidepressants
  • Corticosteroids
  • Anticonvulsants
  • Opiod pain medications
• Physical therapy. Physical therapy is a powerful treatment for sciatica that should be included in most sciatica treatment plans. Your physical therapy will involve a wide range of treatment methods that target comprehensive movement health and directly heal the source of your sciatica pain. With the help of a qualified Weldon Spring Heights, MO physical therapist and participating in your care can allow you to obtain freedom from pain, improve your mobility, become physically healthier, halt or prevent permanent disability and nerve damage, and prevent future injuries or sciatica flair-ups. Your Weldon Spring Heights, MO physical therapist will treat your sciatica pain with treatment methods that improve your posture, bring your body into balance, increase flexibility, improve strength, and release pressure.
• Injections. For some patients with sciatica, a provider might try administering one more more injections to the affected area. If you are considering injections for your sciatica, your options include nerve root blocks, which are used to inject a steroid and local anesthetic directly to the affected sciatic nerve root, or epidural injections, which aim the steroid and anesthetic to the epidural space enveloping the nerve. As a sciatica sufferer in Weldon Spring Heights, MO, you may use injections as a way to temporarily supress the irritation of the nerve to provide pain relief and maintain the ability to function. The effects can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to several months.
• Surgery. Because of the risk involved, a surgical operation is usually not considered unless you have severe symptoms or your condition has not responded well to more conservative approaches. There are a number of surgical procedures that can be used to address sciatic, such as a microdiscectomy to remove a herniated disc or a laminectomy where the surgeon removes part of the vertebral bones to remove direct pressure on your sicatic nerve. For best chances of success, operations should be paired with pre- and post-operative physical therapy care.
  You may be a candidate for sciatica surgery if:
  • you have loss of bowel or bladder control
  • imaging shows that you have bone spurs, known as spinal stenosis, pressing on your sciatic nerve
  • you have significant neurological dysfunction
  • other treatment methods have not helped or are no longer effective

Benefits of Weldon Spring Heights, MO Physical Therapy for Sciatica

One of the best things you can do for your sciatica is to move. Practicing physical activity, stretching, and performing exercises designed to help address sciatica are essential in the treatment of sciatica for anyone in the Weldon Spring Heights, MO area.

Coincidentally, these are all major elements to any physical therapy care we provide Weldon Spring Heights, MO area sciatica patients through the Axes Physical Therapy network of physical therapy offices. By working with a physical therapist near Weldon Spring Heights, MO, you can strengthen and mobilize tissues in the lower back, pelvis, abdomen, buttocks, and thighs and find true relief from your sciatica.

The goals of physical therapy and exercise in treating sciatica are to:

• Improve functional movement
• Relieve sciatic nerve pain
• Reduce muscle spasms
• Restore function of the lumbar spine and the sacroiliac joint
• Improve mobility of the lower body
• Foster a better healing environment in the lower back
• Restore overall balance and proper posture in the back and legs
• Promote neurologic adaptations to reduce the perception of pain
• Prevent future pain flareups and permanent nerve damage
• Foster confidence in your ability to move pain-free

In order to restore your movement health and deliver you sustainable relief from sciatica pain, your Axes physical therapist in the Weldon Spring Heights, MO area might include a number of different treatment modalities in your sciatica treatment plan, such as:

• Hot and cold therapies
• TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stiumlation
• Ultrasound
• Flexbiliby and strength exercises
• Joint manipulation
• Soft tissue mobilization
• Dry needling
• Education and training for posure, safe technique, and activity modifications

Trust your spine and musculoskeletal expert at Axes Physical Therapy to identify the sciatica treatment modalities you would benefit from most. Your Weldon Spring Heights, MO physical therapist will work together with your larger healthcare team to help you manage your sciatica symptoms, alleviate the underlying irritation of your sciatic nerve, and reclaim the strength, flexibility, and full range of motion of a healthy individual. Speak to a specialist in Weldon Spring Heights, MO now to explore your sciatica treatment options, including a quality, tailored physical therapy plan.

Get Relief for your Sciatica in Weldon Spring Heights, MO Now

When the excruciating pain and alarming limitations of sciatica get in the way of doing the activities that are important to you, get quality care for your sciatica right away. Timely and proven physical therapy for your sciatica in the Weldon Spring Heights, MO area can relieve your pain and return you to optimal mobility.

Access convenient, effective sciatica treatment from Axes Physical Therapy near Weldon Spring Heights, MO today. Our fifteen Missouri physical therapy locations make it possible for you to get the care you need. Find the location nearest you or request an appointment online right now.