Is it Sciatica or my hamstring?  

Many people mistake sciatica for a “tight” hamstring.  This is an easy mistake, but a critical one.  A tight hamstring is treated differently than sciatica, in fact, the treatments are opposite.  You may effectively treat a tight hamstring by stretching but stretching sciatica will ultimately make it worse. Hamstring is muscle, sciatica refers to nerve.

 

How do you know the difference?

 

It is likely SCIATICA if the following are true:

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• It is only one side – tight hamstrings would likely be on both.

• You do not remember how it got injured, or “tight”.

• It feels good, or like “it is doing something” while stretching or doing yoga, but then feels worse later.

• It is worse sitting for a while.

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Sciatica is:  Pain affecting the back, hip, and back and outer side of the leg, caused by compression of a spinal nerve root in the lower back, often owing to degeneration of an intervertebral disc.

 

So – if you have sciatica, your back must be evaluated and treated.  Even if you have NO pain in your back.  It is common to have nerve root irritation in your back from disc issues without the presence of pain in your low back.

 

Additionally, there are some simple tips to avoid worsening the nerve pain and for creating an environment for the area to heal.

 

Enjoy a free consultation from our specialist,

Shawna Jamison, MPT, on how to get BACK to your activities!   Call her at  720-732-5825

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