Essential Oils for Sciatica Pain Relief – Have you ever woken up to a feeling of agonizing pain sensation from your upper thighs to your feet? Do you often feel a nagging lower back pain that spreads through your buttock to your lower body? Has the pain become recurring?
If you answer yes to all these questions, you are probably dealing with Sciatica pain.
Sciatica pain is a painful throbbing that occurs in your lower back and limbs. The pain goes down the body and may be a symptom of spinal stenosis. While the pain usually starts in the lower spine and may come and go, it is a source of significant discomfort.
Since the sciatic nerve is the biggest single nerve in the body, it can disturb your daily activity.
However, there are natural remedies for relieving back pain that treats sciatic nerve pain and improves spine health. One of these is using essential oils for sciatica pain relief. Keep reading this article for more information on sciatica nerve pain and essential oils for sciatica pain relief.
Read Also: 10 Essential Oils That Can Seriously Relieve Arthritis And Joint Pain
What Is Sciatica?
Sciatica pain is caused by an irritation of the sciatic nerve, which is the thickest and largest single nerve in the body. It stretches out from the lumbar spine to your feet. This means that if irritation or inflammation occurs in this nerve, the pain will spread from your lower back to your feet.
This is one of the markers of sciatica pain. It usually starts with an ache in the lower back, which progresses through the buttocks into one or both legs. Typically, most people who suffer from sciatica nerve pain claim that leg pain is more intense and handicapping than the back pain.
On its own, sciatica is not a sickness; but a symptom of an underlying ailment. An inflammation occurs the nerve is stressed or pinched. This can happen if you sit in a chair for long, if you are obese, or live a sedentary lifestyle. It can also occur if you suffer an injury or fall that affects sciatica.
Rare causes of sciatic pain include spinal stenosis, herniated lumbar, degenerative disc disease, or spondylolisthesis. While it is rare for these conditions to cause permanent damage to the sciatic nerve or spinal cord, it can cause debilitating pain.
Symptoms Of Sciatica Pain
There are a wide variety of signs that point to sciatica pain. The presence of more than one of these symptoms is most likely an indication that you are suffering from sciatica nerve pain. Symptoms include:
- Dull pain in the lower back that travels from the buttocks to the legs.
- The presence of persistent pain in one or both buttock and the legs.
- Pain in one leg that travels from the buttock, into the thigh, and reaches the knee or feet.
- Leg pain that feels like a burning sensation.
- Cramps and numbing in one or both legs; leading to weakness and mobility problems.
- Intense pain when sitting.
- Throbbing pain that runs through the entire leg to the foot and toes.
- Difficulty standing up and walking.
- Change in walking gait because of mobility problems.
With natural treatment like massaging the back with essential oils for sciatica, the pain mostly gets resolved in a few weeks or months. If you are experiencing other symptoms apart from the above listed, you need to see a doctor immediately! This is especially true if the symptoms include:
- Loss of appetite
- Bladder or bowel dysfunction
- Fever and chills
- Numbness in the genital area.
How Can Essential Oils Relieve Pain in the Sciatic Nerve?
Essential oils are potent plant essence extracted from leaves, roots, seeds, barks, etc. through the process of steam distillation. Each of the oils has compounds that help the body in diverse ways.
While some contain anti-inflammatory properties, others are great for anesthetic purposes. Some essential oils also have antispasmodic effects that relieve muscle spasms and keep you relaxed.
As sciatica pain is pointed out by inflammation, using essential oils for sciatica pain is effective than most over the counter drugs that offer a momentary reprieve.
Not only does it soothe the affected area, but it also helps to reduce muscle pain and inflammation; while numbing irritated nerves. Also, the oils control anxiety and depression that often accompanies chronic pain.
Furthermore, using essential oils for sciatica helps to improve the circulation of blood. Proper flow of blood transports more oxygen to the affected area. Since their molecules are very active, these oils penetrate tissue and reach the blood a few minutes after application.
The molecules help the body to relax, lessen inflammation, and so much more. This means that essential oils can perform acts of pharmaceuticals. The best part is that it does this without any risk of a side effect. The duration of treatment may be longer as oils are not as quick-acting as drugs are.
Where To Buy Essential Oils
Knowing where to buy essential oils is important as some sellers do not sell a pure, organic variation of it. So, while it may look like an easy task, it is often hard to differentiate between sellers who offer the purest variant and those who do not.
This is why I get my bottles of pure essential oils from Plant therapy’s Amazon page. They offer diverse kinds of essential oils at really cheap prices. You can also get yours at the lowest prices you can trust there.
6 Best Essential Oils For Sciatica Pain Relief
Here are the seven best essential oils for the treatment of sciatica pain. These oils have been proven to help provide relief from body discomfort. Whether you choose to use one of them or blend two or more oils, you are sure to get assistance from back pain.
1. Peppermint Oil
This oil has a distinctly refreshing scent because it contains menthol properties. It also works as an antispasmodic. The oil can be used for its analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties.
This is why many products include peppermint. The oil has a cooling sensation that calms nerve tension accompanying sciatica and calms muscle spasm.
To use the oil, massage it into the affected areas ensuring that you dilute it first with your chosen carrier oil. These include olive oil, jojoba oil, coconut oil, or any other carrier oil. Since peppermint oil has a stronger effect than most oils, it is essential that you dilute it well to avoid allergic reactions.
Also, you should do a patch test by applying it inside your elbow before using it on the affected area.
2. Ginger Oil
While it is already famous as a digestive aid, not many people know of the soothing and warm properties of ginger essential oil. It is a potent oil for treating sciatica nerve pain.
This oil is extracted from fresh ginger rhizomes and contains an extremely potent anti-inflammatory phytocompound known as Zingibain. It is also great as a mild analgesic for soothing pain in the muscles, joints, and nerve.
3. Eucalyptus Oil
Eucalyptus oil is famous for its therapeutic ability. It also has a potent anti-inflammatory effect that gives a cooling sensation when topically applied. Its cooling effect reduces irritation of the sciatic; including pain and inflammation sensations. The oil acts as an analgesic, making it ideal for relieving ache and stiffness.
Before using the oil, make sure to dilute it with a carrier oil like almond oil, olive oil or coconut oil before applying it to the skin.
4. Chamomile Oil
There are two varieties of the chamomile essential oil, namely: Roman chamomile and German Chamomile oil. Although both are extracted from different plants, they have similar therapeutic effects on the body.
Both oils have analgesic properties that can be used to treat joint or muscle pain. However, of the two, German chamomile has a more potent anti-inflammatory property and is more effective for severe back pain. The Roman chamomile variety is best for calming nerves and recovering balance.
Irrespective of the variety you choose, both chamomile oils must be diluted with a carrier oil before massaging it into the skin.
5. Lavender Oil
Arguably the most studied and popular essential oil, lavender is a multipurpose oil that is a natural remedy for diverse conditions.
A clinical review posits that lavender oil can help to relieve headaches and muscle pain. This effect may be potent on back pain or sciatic nerve pain as well.
Lavender oil is particularly useful for relieving stress, fatigue, and anxiety. It is also useful for soothing restlessness and hyperactivity. Although the oil is not as hot or warming as others in this list, it possesses anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties that are effective for treating pain.
6. Rosemary Oil
Like lavender, rosemary oil is a multipurpose oil. It is potent in the treatment of aches, pains, arthritis, and many more conditions. It has analgesic and tonic properties that make it a top-ranking oil for every kind of pain. The oil also contains antispasmodic properties that make it useful for treating sciatica pain.
How To Use Essential Oils For Sciatica
Essential oils are potent; hence, they should only be used after diluting with a carrier oil like coconut oil, olive oil, or argan oil. This is to avoid irritation of the skin and swelling.
While these carrier oils absorb the EO’s potency, they do not lower their therapeutic abilities. Generally, the ratio for dilution is six teaspoons of carrier oil to 15 drops of EO of choice.
Here are methods of application:
1. Massage: EOs can be used as massage oils. The oils penetrate the skin to relieve pain while the massage helps to relieve tension. Get someone to do the massage for you as self-massaging your upper back can be challenging.
2. Add To A Bath: Bathing with essential oils is a luxurious way to soothe stiff muscles and ease the irritation of the sciatic nerve. To do this, dilute 12 drops of your preferred EO with an ounce of carrier oil and add to the water in your faucet.
3. Use With a Cold or Warm Compress: Compresses are popular for aiding pain relief, swelling, and inflammation. For more effectiveness, add an essential oil of your choice. Here’s how to make one:
- Fill a bowl with water and add diluted essential oil to it.
- Then, place a towel in the water and leave it until it completely soaks the liquid.
- Gently squeeze the excess water from the towel and apply the cloth to the affected area.
- Leave the towel on the affected area for 15 minutes before dropping it back in the water. You can rewarm using a microwave.
- Reapply the towel throughout the day. Be sure to avoid burns.
Effective Back Pain Essential Oil Blends
Here are our recommended blends for the effective treatment of back pain. The oils in these blends are popular, and you are likely to have them in your collection already. Remember to dilute the mix with a carrier oil.
Blend 1:
- Ten drops of Eucalyptus oil
- 10 drops of Lavender oil
- Ten drops of Ginger oil
Blend 2:
- Ten drops of Rosemary oil
- 10 drops of Basil oil
- Ten drops of peppermint oil
Blend 3:
- Ten drops of Lavender oil
- Five drops of Rosemary oil
- Ten drops of Ginger oil
- Five drops of Marjoram oil
Blend 4:
- Five drops of Eucalyptus oil
- Ten drops of Birch oil
- 20 drops of Almond carrier oil
Conclusion
There is our list of the best essential oils for sciatica pain, how to use them, and blends for back pain relief. With these oils, you get quick relief from pain, and you are left feeling more mobile quickly.
If you have used essential oil for sciatic nerve pain relief before, drop an opinion in the comment section below.
Did you use any of these oils and blends? Then, drop a review below in the comment section. You can also add your personal favorite to the list.
