I have been asked by a lot of my patients on how to get some relief from sciatic pain. This occurs a lot during pregnancy, people who have to sit a lot for work as well as people who do a lot of driving. I have a couple really helpful things I tell everyone to do:
1. When sitting in a chair, start off by crossing your left leg over your right in a big figure 4. Take your right shoulder and bring it down to your left knee. Sometimes to create an even bigger stretch I pull up on the knee to bring it closer to my body. Repeat on the opposite side. Cross your right leg over the left in a big figure 4 and bring your left shoulder down towards the right knee and pull up. Hold on each side for 10-15 seconds and repeat 5-6 times a day. This is a great stretch because it is easy for people who work at a desk all day to get some stretching in! You can do it anywhere!
2. During pregnancy it can get harder to do the seated stretch mentioned above when you are further along. The pigeon stretch is a wonderful stretch and I modify it so that it is not as difficult to get up and down during pregnancy. So I suggest doing this with a sturdy table or a bed. You line up next to the surface and bend one leg inwards and prop it onto the bed or table and lean into the stretch. Repeat on each side. Repeat 5-6 times a day holding for 15-30 seconds.
3. Find a tennis ball. Place the tennis ball under your glutes while sitting on a hard surface. Roll around until you find the spot that is really tense. Hold for 5-10 sec. Repeat as needed. If it hurts a lot, chances are you are doing it right.
Good luck! The piriformis muscle often gets tight, putting pressure on your sciatic nerve causing a lot of pain. Even with stretching and releasing the tension you need to address the underlying condition that is causing your piriformis to get so aggravated. A lot of times this is caused by an imbalance in motion in your pelvis which can be helped with chiropractic care. If you have any great tips that have helped you with sciatic pain, post them below!