Chinese Medicine provides an effective Sciatica Pain Relief
We experience painful sciatica pain when the sciatic nerve becomes irritated or inflamed.
Usually affecting only one side of the body, sciatica back pain radiates to the hips and down along the back or side of a leg, in severe cases all the way to the ankle even toes.
This kind of back and leg pain can be burning and sharp, but it can also be dull, making some areas feel numb, and there could be difficulty in controlling movement.
Sciatica symptoms can be constant or occasional, and is often affected by damp and cold weather.
Acupuncture for Sciatica Pain
Not as analytical as Western Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) aims to penetrate into the cause of pain as well as the person’s environment in order to understand and treat any pain or disease.
We ask, Is this Internal or External condition, is it Hot or Cold, Excess or Deficiency, and finally how do the symptoms relate to the overall Yin/Yang state of the person, since the ultimate goal is to establish complete balance for the whole being?
By visiting a well-trained Chinese Medicine doctor in your area you could learn about your body’s strengths and weaknesses. By asking questions you would know which of the patterns of disharmony is predominant in your particular situation and could receive further suggestions for your sciatica pain.
Patients who present lumbago or sciatica symptoms in a TCM clinic are usually diagnosed as suffering from a type or a combination of the following Bi syndromes:
Wandering Bi, which relates to wind
Painful Bi, which relates to cold
Fixed Bi, which relates to dampness
Febrile Bi, which relates to heat and feverish conditions
All of them involve blocking or slowing down the Chi or/and blood flow, often in the lower half of the body. Weakness and/or a serious injury to the back are often important factors underlying a sciatica pain. Since ancient times Bi syndromes have been considered to be the influences of cold, damp, and wind. Because this kind of lower back pain’s tendency is to radiate down the leg, the condition is frequently attributed to a combination of cold and damp, which are Yin factors with a natural downward course.
Wind, as an external pathogenic factor, contributes to the wandering nature of the pain, particularly if the surface Chi or vital energy of the body is weak. Kidney ‘domain’, which includes all urinary and sexual functions as well as the bone marrow and the brain, is the foundation of life according to TCM. These functions can become weakened, and what is first Kidney Chi deficiency can develop into Kidney Yang deficiency seriously upsetting the Yin/Yang balance of the whole body. This happens usually by a loss of sperm through excessive sex (in men) or other factors and advancing age in both genders. The body may not be able to ward off the cold and damp affecting the lower body, therefore creating a Yin excessive condition, which for the lack of movement ‘stagnates’. In this case, the external wind may not be the main factor, but with cold and damp can exacerbate it and make it appear as if the symptoms wander.
Finding relief is our number one priority when experiencing any kind of pain whether it is acute, chronic or episodic. And today many people search for alternatives to prescription drugs for sciatica pain relief. Acupuncture is a growing trend. As a part of TCM practice, the art of acupuncture involves unblocking Chi, the body’s Vital Energy Force that flows through channels continuously. If Chi is blocked or weak, physical or mental illness develops. The purpose of acupuncture is to restore a healthy flow of Chi throughout the body in order to have perfect balance and harmony in all its functions. In the case of sciatica symptoms, when the channels are opened they have their natural warmth, the dampness is overcome and the whole body strengthened to withstand wind, cold and damp.
A new Nano Acupuncture is a non-invasive, gentle therapy for the clinic or home use. This acute and chronic pain relief system utilizes Tourmaline stone treated with nanotechnology and was developed, tested and is already used in many hospitals in China. These remarkable stones are designed to replace needles in acupuncture. When used according to the accompanying instructions the Holistic Healing Disks:
Are easy to use
Are safe
Are convenient
Are effective
Are non-invasive
Are Economical
Have no side effects
Are portable
The healing Disks offer a natural pain relief including for lower back and hip pain because they can be applied locally to the painful areas in addition to using them according to the acupuncture theory.
Not losing their potency, they last for years and their use can alleviate most disharmonies, including many stress-related illnesses such as anxiety, insomnia, depression etc.
Chinese Healing Herbs for Lumbago and Sciatica Pain
Herbal Remedies as a sciatica pain relief target to warm the kidney yang, to dispel cold, to clear dampness by invigorating the spleen function and to resolve the overall wind-cold-damp influence.
There are many useful anti-rheumatic herbs and certain ones are especially good in lumbago and sciatica treatment. One of the formulas containing them is ‘Du Huo Ji Sheng Wan’. You may purchase it from a Chinese Herbalist, who may suggest others especially suited for your needs.
Other painful conditions of the lower limbs, such as gout and knee arthralgia are treated with similar herbs and formulations.
Many patent formulas are now available from North American manufacturers. Please see the recommendations below.
DMSO is a Western natural product used topically. Gently rub a few drops of it to the painful area. Penetrating through the skin, it flushes out toxins and excess fluids, therefore easing the pain.