While doctors where pushing for surgery, I was able to use natural remedies like essential oils for sciatica pain relief. Today, I’m completely sciatica-free and I’m a living example of how you can you’re your life around by using the healing gifts of nature.
When Sciatica Strikes
Sciatica is a type of back pain that stems from trauma of the sciatica nerve, which begins at the lower back, passes via the pelvic-buttock area and runs down the leg. It is the largest and longest single nerve in the entire human body, which is why even a small damage to it creates debilitating pain.
Some of the causes of sciatica include:
- Chronic poor posture
- Poor sleep posture/ improper mattress
- Damage to the discs
- Spondylolisthesis
- Pregnancy
- Being overweight and wearing high heels often contribute to sciatic nerve irritation
The medical treatment for sciatica involves oral medication such as NSAIDS and other painkillers and surgery to correct spinal problems to remove part of the disc and to relieve the vertebral compression that is causing sciatic trouble.
My Sciatica Story
I was going through a really stressful time in my life, although I was barely 20 years old. Chronic stress laid the foundation for a series of pains, aches and random health conditions attacking my body without a season of rest! It reached a point where I would think,
“Would whoever has my voodoo doll PLEASE give it a rest!”
From sudden knee pain to plantar foot pain, abdominal pains, gastric trouble, deteriorating vision, wrist pain and constant anxiety, there was no day I truly felt ‘happy’ or ‘healthy’.
I had been to several doctors in a period of less than 6 months and got a variety of blood tests, including a test for rheumatoid arthritis, and x-rays. It was pure torture not knowing what was going on with me. I lost all motivation to do anything. Even getting out of bed become a painful chore.
Finally, after so many months of agony, a wonderful doctor found what seemed to be the cause of all my problems: vitamin D deficiency. Apparently my vitamin D levels were beyond shocking (9 instead of at least 40) and I got 2 shots of 50,000 IU Vitamin D3 over the course of 10 days plus oral vitamin D supplements to take over 3 months.
I was elated! The source of all my woes had been found! – Or so I thought. Within days of my vitamin D diagnosis, something terrible happened to me. I was simply sitting on the floor waxing my legs and when I was done, I stood up and didn’t make it. I had a crippling, shooting and debilitating pain deep in my left buttock that shot down to my left leg. I could neither sit back down nor stand up. I was shocked and confused. Biting my teeth through the pain, I somehow managed to limp to the bed, where I curled myself up and wondered how I was going to work tomorrow.
Long story short, I found out I had sciatica nerve pain. I struggled with this for many, many months. One of my good friends, who also suffered from disc trouble and a whole range of back pain issues was also with me. His doctor immediately scuttled him away for spinal surgery to remove part of the disc. As for me, I had been to enough doctors and was fed up of the system. I decided that I was going turn to Mother Nature instead.
Today I am completely sciatica-free. That means no sudden relapses, and no fear of irritating my sciatica nerve. Conversely, my friend who went through surgery, has to tread carefully with his back for fear of hurting it and being confined to bed for days. Despite my advice, he’s even considering ANOTHER surgery to fix his ‘problem’.
Note: This article does not in anyway condemn medical treatment or surgery for back pain/sciatica. When you have back pain, it is best to get evaluated thoroughly by a qualified doctor. Suppose your doctor sends you home with nothing but a bunch of painkillers (like mine did), then by all means, seek out natural remedies and incorporate the sensible use of essential oils to nurse your back back to normal!
Top 10 Essential Oils for Sciatica
These are the 10 essential oils I routinely used to nurse my back pain and sciatica back to youthful health. You do not have to have all of them on your road to recovery. Even if you have a few of these, you can still make a big difference to your spinal well-being. Of course, there are many other lifestyle changes you have to add into your daily routine (which we will cover at the bottom of this article).
1. Frankincense (where to get it)
2. Camphor (where to get it)
3. Ginger (where to get it)
4. Lemongrass (where to get it)
5. Wintergreen (where to get it)
6. Lavender (where to get it)
7. Geranium (where to get it)
8. Vetiver (where to get it)
9. Rosemary (where to get it)
10. Roman chamomile (where to get it)
How Did I Overcome Sciatica With Essential Oils?
1. Velvety Vetiver Massage Oil
I actually bought this amazing, though pricey, massage oil containing vetiver and aside from the fact that it smelled so spectacular, it was also wonderfully relaxing and pain relieving on the back. I quickly ran out of the oil and neither had the time nor money to buy it again. None the less, using very few ingredients, I was able to create something very similar.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Castor oil – 1/2 cup (where to get it)
- Vetiver essential oil – 10 drops (where to get it)
- Cedarwood essential oil – 5 drops (where to get it)
- Geranium oil – 5 drops (where to get it)
- Camphor oil – 2 drops (where to get it)
In a large glass jar, measure out and pour all the above ingredients. Stir or shake to get them all well-combined. You can now use this velvety vetiver oil to massage onto the sciatica-affected region.
2. Steaming Sciatica Sitz Bath
Granted, if you have severe sciatic pain, you may not even be able to get up, walk and sit in a sitz bath, but when you do – you’ll feel so invigorated! Why a sitz bath and not a normal bath? Well, with a sitz bath, you’ll be able to put your plastic tub on top of a stool and then sit in it. The added height will help you sit comfortably in the bath without having to squat and get in, as you would in a normal bath tub. What’s better is getting a custom sitz bath tub that you can fit on the toilet and sit comfortably.
Secondly, with a sitz bath you’ll be using much less water and essential oils, since it’s smaller in size than your normal bath tub. And lastly, you may need to do a sitz up to 3 times a day, which is much easier to do in a smaller sitz tub than filling up the entire bath tub.
You’ll need:
- Sitz bath tub (where to get it)
- Hot water to fill the tub
- Baking soda – 1/4 cup (where to get it)
- Bentonite clay – 1/4 cup (where to get it)
- Grated fresh ginger – 2 tablespoons
- Essential oils – geranium, lemongrass, lavender – 3 drops each
Begin by putting your sitz bath on the toilet and fill it with warm-hot water from the tap. Mix in all the other ingredients with your hand. Now gently sit into the tub and soak for 15 minutes, 3 times a day.
The ginger will greatly help reduce inflammation. The baking soda will help detoxification and the clay is a powerful way to draw out excess fluid and toxins from the spine. The essential oils will help promote blood circulation, encourage healing of damaged tissues and alleviate the pain. Note, you can use ginger oil, instead of scraped ginger, too.
I absolutely love this bath recipe and I love soaking in a similar gingery bath and the end of a long day. It just feels so wonderful for the back.
3. Pain Relieving Poultice
You’ll need someone to help you for this one, as it involves wrapping your lower back with a DIY bandage containing a potent poultice. Poultices are normally made with herbs rather than the essential oils but this poultice contains the oils and is potent and effective, plus it’s much less messier. This essential oil poultice can greatly help alleviate pain, reduce inflammation and stimulate healing.
To make a pain relieving poultice for your back, you’ll need:
- A long, wide strip of cotton cloth or cotton gauze (enough to go around your abdomen 3 – 4 times)
- Dry ginger, powdered ginger – 1 tablespoon (where to get it)
- Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon (where to get it)
- Activated charcoal – 2 teaspoons (where to get it)
- Bentonite clay – 1/4 cup (where to get it)
- Coconut oil – 2 tablespoons (where to get it)
- Essential oils – peppermint (2 drops), roman chamomile (2 drops), vetiver (2 drops)
In a glass bowl, mix in all the ingredients until you form a really thick paste. If you find your paste is too oily, then add in some more clay to make it thick. From here, ask your helper to apply the paste on your lumbar region or whichever point you feel the most pain. Now wrap the long cheesecloth or cotton strip that you have tightly and firmly all around you back. Use a plastic cling wrap to wrap and secure around the cotton strip. Leave the poultice on overnight.
Other Natural Ways to Heal Sciatica
- Professional Myofascial Massage Professional therapeutic massage and physiotherapy are recommended alternative treatments for sciatica relief, as many find no relief from pain from NSAIDS. By getting a professional massage, you can help align the muscles and discs, which can help put the sciatic nerve back in place.
- Sciatica-Releasing Stretching – To understand sciatica, it helps to know that your nerve is either being pinched or compressed by a disc, or is somehow out of place. Simple leg stretches that are done while lying on your back can do wonders to re-align your discs and release a pinched nerve.
- Tennis Ball Relief – This is a famous sciatica-releasing massage, where you manipulate a tennis ball by lying onto of it and slowly manipulating the ball all over your lumbar region. The best part about this technique is that you don’t need professional supervision and you can do it yourself.
- Drink Plenty of Water – Often times lack of water and dehydration heightens the sensation of pain and increases the chance of muscle spasms, which add extra back pain. Staying hydrated can greatly help reduce pain levels.
Caution
Before using essential oils, please take a look at Caution & Safety When Using Essential Oils
What’s your sciatica story? Have you tried using natural remedies like essential oils to relieve sciatica? Is your sciatica recurrent or non-recurrent? Please share in the comments below to help others struggling with sciatica nerve pain.