Over 40% of America are affected by sciatica at some point in their lives, making the condition a common issue. A bone spur, herniated disc, and spine narrowing can compress your sciatic nerve causing radiating pain. The Las Vegas sciatica specialists say that the pain begins in your lower back and radiates to your thigh and legs through the buttocks and hips. Although the pain can significantly lower your quality of life, treatments are available. You can find pain relief with proper at-home treatments or seek expert help when pain persists. Here are some strategies to help you overcome sciatic pain.

Self-Treatment

You can cope with sciatica at home, especially if your symptoms are mild. However, there are different causes of sciatica, and you better get an accurate diagnosis before taking the matter into your hands. You can take several measures to alleviate your symptoms, like resting your back for the first days of your symptoms. You can also take over-the-counter painkillers with the guidance of your doctor. You can manage sharp pain with a cold compress or try soothing dull pain with heat. Gentle stretches of the painful area muscles can provide some pain relief also.

Consult Your Doctor

Sciatic pain can persist despite your self-treatment efforts. It could indicate a serious underlying condition, and it is time you seek an appointment with your doctor. Although serious issues requiring emergency care rarely arise, watch out for numbness in one leg, sudden loss of bladder and bowel controls, or pronounced weakness. Your doctor will evaluate your symptoms and get to the bottom line to get cues on the possible causes of your symptoms. They can perform physical examinations and order imaging tests like x-rays to accurately diagnose your problem.

Prescription Medications

Your doctor can prescribe strong painkillers to help ease your sciatica symptoms. Please ensure you take the medications strictly as directed by your doctor to avoid severe side effects from the strong painkillers. Your provider can recommend oral steroids to release anti-inflammatory effects to ease your pain around the sciatic nerve. They can also prescribe narcotic pain medications or muscle relaxants to ease the pain.

Steroid Injections

Sufficiently severe pain can be better managed using oral steroid injections. Although the treatment minimizes inflammation and irritation around your sciatic nerve, oral steroids are more effective. It provides sufficient pain relief to help you push through your daily life.

Surgery

Your doctor can get to surgery if all the noninvasive options do not sufficiently help you. Remember that the aim is to restore your life’s quality and live painlessly. Also, your doctor can recommend surgery if the underlying cause of your symptoms requires surgical interventions to correct. Two surgical alternatives are often necessary for sciatica. Microdiscectomy can be employed when dealing with a herniated disc, which involves removing the part of the herniated disc interfering with your nerve. Also, a lumbar laminectomy can be recommended when dealing with lumbar stenosis. It involves a major process of reshaping the hard disc.

Try Physical Therapy

It is critical to work with a physical therapist no matter the treatment option that works best for you. Physical therapy is critical in delivering permanent pain relief from sciatica. It can help you recover from surgery and preserve your strength and stability.

You do not have to endure sciatic pain. Get in touch with the McNulty Spine specialists to explore your treatment options. Schedule your consultation appointment today by calling the office or using the online tool to get started.