For some people, sciatic nerve pain is a mild but persistent nuisance. And for others, especially during flares, sciatica that it derails their whole day. Thankfully, sciatica stretches can both ease the pain of flare-ups and help prevent them, experts say.
To keep nerves healthy and functioning properly, they need consistent movement, space and blood supply, Colleen Louw, physical therapist and program director at Evidence In Motion and spokesperson for the American Physical Therapy Association, tells TODAY.com. That includes the sciatic nerve, which runs from the lower back all the way down the back of each leg into the heel of each foot.
Sciatica occurs when this anywhere along that route. Anti-inflammatory medications might help relieve nerve-related pain, like sciatica, to some degree. "But then you have to start moving that nerve," Louw says.
"And you've got to create space so that we can get blood flow back in and around the nerve itself." That's where a regular stretch routine comes in handy. Gentle stretches and exercises can and relieve tension in the muscles around the nerve, which may also be contributing to that discomfort.
There are a few sciatica stretches in particular that experts recommend to relieve and prevent pain. Sciatica is a type of pain that can occur anywhere along the sciatic nerve, which goes from the all the way down the legs. There are two common causes of sciatica, Trevor Delaney, physical therapist and certified primary spine practitioner at t.