What Is The Sciatic Nerve?

In this quick video, Dr. Rowe (St. Joseph, MI chiropractor) goes over what is the sciatic nerve and some really effective ways to treat sciatica without risky drugs, injections, or surgery.

Anyone who currently suffers (or has ever suffered) from sciatic nerve pain knows what REAL pain feels like. In this quick video, I’m going to go over what is the sciatic nerve, and some really effective ways to treat sciatica without risky drugs, injections, or surgery.

Hi everyone, I’m Dr. Rowe. Here at SpineCare Decompression and Chiropractic Center in St. Joseph MI, we’re great at treating low back and sciatica pain. The majority of my patients actually suffer from this, so we’ve been able to help a lot of people find long-lasting relief.

So let’s dive into “What is the sciatic nerve?” Sciatic nerve pain affects millions of people. The pain can range from a minor nagging pain to a debilitating condition. Despite it being a common problem, there’s still a lot of confusion about exactly what is the sciatic nerve and how to treat it. To help get you up to speed, here is what you need to know about both the anatomy of your sciatic nerve and the pain associated with it.

Your sciatic nerve is the longest and largest nerve in your entire body.  Its width can be that of your finger at its widest point. It begins as a bundle of nerve fibers (also called the nerve roots) in your lower spine. These nerve fibers exit through holes in the bones at the back of your spine.

The sciatic nerve travels through your pelvis and down the back of your leg. When your sciatic nerve reaches your knee it divides into two separate nerves: the Tibial nerve and the Common Peroneal nerve. The Peroneal nerve travels sideways along the outer part of your knee and then down to your upper foot. The Tibial nerve travels downwards toward your heel and the sole of your foot.

​The first thing to know about the pain associated with your sciatic nerve roots is that sciatica is not a medical diagnosis. Rather, sciatica is a SYMPTOM of an underlying medical disorder. Sciatica refers not only to symptoms of pain but also to numbness or weakness felt along your sciatic nerve. The most common disorders that cause these symptoms may include: degenerative disc disease, a lumbar herniated disc, spinal stenosis, and piriformis syndrome.

In a previous video, I went over the main causes of sciatica pain. If you’re interested in getting a breakdown of each, definitely check it out. To see the video, click here. 

At SpineCare, we combat sciatic nerve pain using many treatment methods in our arsenal and sometimes a combination of multiple treatment techniques. A chiropractic adjustment is the most common treatment used to relieve irritation to the sciatic nerve caused by misalignments in the spine or pelvis. For my patients, I recommend using flexion-distraction. It’s a hands-on, traction-based chiropractic adjustment that helps relieve sciatica without the snap, crack, or popping sensations from more traditional chiropractic care.

For more severe conditions, such as disc herniation, spinal stenosis, or advanced spinal degeneration, I use Spinal Decompression Therapy. Spinal Decompression uses computer controlled traction that helps relieve lower back and sciatica pain by taking pressure off the spinal discs. So those discs that are herniated or bulging may retract, and be brought off pinched nerves.

With thousands of individual sciatica pain treatments given over the years here at SpineCare, I can confidently say to you that REAL relief can be experienced, sometimes as early as your very first treatment session.

If you’re suffering from low back pain and sciatica, come talk to us. Give us a call today and see if we can help you get on the road to recovery. Thanks for watching!

Chiropractor in St. Joseph MI — Dr. Michael Rowe

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