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Sciatica During Pregnancy
Pregnancy is a journey that will take from highs to lows with many side effects involved. Sciatica during pregnancy is one of the side effects that women may sometimes feel. While this condition is not related specifically to pregnant women, it can affect many women while they carry their child.
About the Sciatic Nerve
The sciatic nerve starts in your lower back and follows a path through your buttocks, down your legs and into the feet. One of the many jobs of a nerve is to carry nutrient rich blood to your muscles. When the sciatic nerve becomes compressed this flow is stemmed and symptoms of pain or numbness and tingling set in. If the muscle is deprived of nutrients for long enough weakness may start to set in.
During pregnancy many women will develop symptoms of sciatica. Sciatica is not a direct result of pregnancy, but a result of pressure during pregnancy being placed on the sciatic nerve. Sciatica during pregnancy is typically felt as lower backache or other discomfort.
It is a common misconception that sciatica during pregnancy is caused by the baby pressing on the sciatic nerve. This is not true at all, as most of the time sciatica during pregnancy is the result of damage to a vertebral disc in the spine. Women who are pregnant carry more weight and are generally more prone to disc injury.
Symptoms of Sciatica during Pregnancy
The following symptoms are common to sciatica during pregnancy:
- Pain that shoots or gives a burning sensation in the buttocks or lower back and radiates into the legs
- Numbness /pins and needles sensation felt in the lower back, legs, and possibly the foot
Sciatica During Pregnancy Treatments
Often sciatica pain and discomfort will disappear as the body naturally heals itself. For this to happen, you may be waiting for about six weeks. Visiting a physical therapist and learning proper ways to stretch or exercise your core muscle may also help alleviate your pain. Exercise has two great benefits for helping back pain. The first is that you release endorphins into your body that act as nature’s pain killers. The second benefit is that you will strengthen your core muscles creating much more stability and support in your lumbar spine. When more stability in developed in this area there is a reduced chance of the sciatic nerve being compressed due to spinal instability.
Other women that develop sciatica during pregnancy find that a therapeutic massage helps to relieve pain caused by inflammation.
If you are concerned that you developed symptoms of sciatica during pregnancy don’t hesitate and schedule an appointment to see your doctor as soon as you can.