Sciatic Nerve

Growing up my mom would tell me every day: “Sari stand up straight.” I wonder if it was my asthma that made me slouch, or my lack of confidence. Whatever the cause, my poor posture eventually led to pain in my sciatic nerve. Today, it affects me the minute I lose awareness of my posture. Right now writing this, I know if I don’t sit upright, my sciatic nerve will start chatting.

Have you noticed how much you can tell about person’s wellbeing just by how they stand or walk? People with straight spine and a perky chest seem very confident and if you add a smile to that “Wow! It screams health. I can say this from the bottom of my heart that yoga has changed my life so completely and given me that wellbeing even with my troublesome sciatica. So to help get past this obstacle, I have created sciatica asana program for you.

Posture

Backbone

But first I have to tell you how important it is to have a good posture with any lower back problems. Sciatic nerve aggravation is caused most often by a herniated disk in lower lumbar. The sciatic nerve runs through L4, L5, S1, S2, and S3. Any disk problems at those vertebrae can cause pressure on the sciatic nerve causing pain or burning sensation. Sometimes there will be a numbness or tingling radiating from lower lumbar to buttock, hip and all the way down behind your leg to your foot. Damage to the sciatic nerve can cause weakness, difficulty walking and reflex abnormalities. If you take care of your back every day then there should be no reason for your sciatic nerve to start acting up.

 

Some Advice

  • Your disks lose fluids because gravity compresses the disks. I recommend 2-4 liters water every day to keep the disks hydrated, especially if you sit a lot.
  • Shift your position at the desk occasionally to prevent tightness in the spine.
  • Be aware of the position of your pelvis when sitting or standing. If the top of the pelvis moves backward it forces the flexion at the L5-S1 and L4-L5 joints, which pushes the disk’s nuclei backward somewhat. This puts too much pressure on the spine and soon it will start hurting.
  • When lifting something, always bend your knees keeping your back straight, so you use your thigh muscles instead your back.
  • Focus on strengthening your core and back muscles. And then immediately stretch your back after these exercises.

Your Yoga for Sciatica Daily Program

These three poses are from my recent sciatic program here at Shri Jasnath Asan. All of my students suffered from sciatica. The results were promising. One male student with a very severe sciatica symptoms said that he feels more length in his spine. I was delighted because the more space is kept between the vertebrae the less chance there is for compression and this means bulging disk are less likely to aggravate the sciatic nerve.

Here are the three asana:

Repeat these poses in order few times a day and let me know if they are helpful for your sciatica. Leave your comments below. I’d love to hear about your progress.

Best Wishes and Love,
Sari

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