I have treated few thousands of sciatica patients in the past 27 years of Ayurveda practice in India and UAE. From the patient perspective, it is one of the most excruciating and irritating nerve pain. A sciatica patient may feel a pulling type of pain which starts from the low-back radiates all the way to the foot (sometimes both feet) by travelling behind the buttocks, thighs, and calves. This pain also indicates the course of sciatic nerve in our body. On and off pricking sensation, twitching or a pulsating like an electric shockwave; numbness and reduced sensation on legs might be present in some cases of sciatica. The patient usually walks bending their body towards one side and sometimes with an abnormal throwing kind of action on one leg. Pain in a sciatica patient may increase while sitting or lying down or while walking or bending forward or while climbing steps.
The ancient Ayurveda physicians named sciatica as Gridhrasi. Sciatic pain was classified and recorded as a disease in around 700BC itself, by Susrutha (Ayurveda physician who is recognized as the father of Surgery). The Sanskrit word Gridhra means the bird ‘vulture’. The word ‘Gridhrasi’ suggests that the gait of the sciatica patient is like that of a vulture – a gait with abnormal throwing action on one of the legs. Another meaning of Gridhrasi is the deep piercing and dragging pain as if a vulture is eating flesh. ‘Straight leg raising’ will be restricted below 45 degrees (positive SLR) in a sciatic patient.
Ayurveda elaborates 2 types of sciatica presentations; the treatment is slightly different in each type. Vata dominated Sciatica is associated with the classical pain, pins and needles sensation, stiffness of legs and low back; pulsating pain, numbness, and lack of sensation on low back, waist, buttocks, thighs, knees, calves, or feet. In Vata Kapha type of sciatica alongside the sciatic pain symptoms; reduced taste for food, reduced strength or heaviness in the affected leg might be experienced.
Herniated disc, spondylolisthesis, piriformis syndrome, spinal stenosis, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis etc. are some of the usual causes of sciatica. The primary line of treatment of sciatica is to treat the cause which compress our sciatic nerve. Causative factors like old-age, overweight and obesity, sedentary lifestyle, weight lifting, diabetes may increase our risk of sciatica. In herniated disc, the gel like center portion of our doughnut shaped spinal disc may prolapse through it’s cover and may trap on the nearby nerve roots. Wear and tear changes of our spine can narrow our spinal canal (termed as spinal stenosis) and can put pressure on the sciatic nerve roots. Wear and tear can also result damage of our intervertebral discs, contributing to nerve compression. Spondylolisthesis is the slippage of one vertebrae over the other one, which can cause irritation to sciatic nerve. Our Ayurveda doctor in Kerala, while treating a case of sciatica, might recommend you to abstain from dry foods, lentils, cold food and drinks, excess consumption of spicy, bitter, astringent foods, untimely eating habits, improper dieting & fasting, overdoing exercise, lack of night sleep, suppression of natural urges, uncomfortable sitting and sleeping postures, and to manage emotional distress. Ayurveda recommends herbal medicines like decoctions, pills and tablets, medicated ghees to reduce the inflammation on sciatic nerve.
Nerve tonics like Aswagandha, Gorochanadi gulika etc are added in some cases to address numbness and tingling sensations on the legs. We also advocate heat therapies and oil treatments for the relief of sciatic pains. Administration of medicines through anal tract (Vasty) and Agnikarma (thermo-cautery) are other extensive treatment approaches for the Ayurveda treatment of Sciatica.
At Back to Roots Ayurveda hospital in Kerala, our vaidyas firstly targets to relieve the nerve pain, reduce inflammation, and tries to improve mobility of the sciatic patient. Back to Roots Ayurveda retreat in Kerala has a unique approach to the management of sciatica with Panchakarama therapies like Vasty, Virechana and Raktamoksha. Pacifying treatments like snehana, Swedana (various form of Ayurveda massages like podikkizhi, elakkizhi, naranga kizhi etc), dhanyamla dhara, Kati vasty (retaining warm medicated oil in lower back inside a dam made of dough) based on patient condition. The expert panel of Ayurveda doctors at Back to Roots Ayurveda Hospital in Kerala, strive to not only manage symptoms of sciatica, but also address the underlying imbalance that results in sciatica.
