Is The Piriformis Entrapping Your Sciatic Nerve?

👉 The piriformis muscle is a small muscle in the buttocks that helps with hip rotation and pelvic stabilization during movement.

👉 Tightness and spasms in the piriformis muscle can compress or irritate the sciatic nerve, which runs through or under the muscle in some people.

👉 This compression or irritation can cause sciatica pain, which can radiate from the lower back down the back of one or both legs.

The piriformis muscle is a small but crucial muscle located in the buttocks, connecting the sacrum (lower back) to the top of the femur (thigh bone). Its primary function is to help rotate the hip and stabilize the pelvis during movement. Due to its location and function, the piriformis muscle is susceptible to tightness and spasm, which can lead to nerve entrapment and pain.

When the piriformis muscle becomes tight or spasms, it can compress or irritate the sciatic nerve, which runs through or under the muscle in some people. This compression or irritation can cause sciatica pain, which typically radiates from the lower back down the back of one or both legs. Sciatica pain may also be accompanied by numbness, tingling, or weakness in the affected leg.

To alleviate piriformis muscle tightness and prevent nerve entrapment, stretching and strengthening exercises can be helpful. Massage therapy and chiropractic adjustments may also be beneficial in reducing muscle tension and relieving pain. It is important to address the root cause of piriformis muscle tightness and nerve entrapment, such as poor posture, overuse, or injury, to prevent future issues.

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[KindnessInChaos]

Lying down at night ( sleeping) actually triggers my pain sometimes. I have a knee pillow to allign my hips/spine but it hasn’t helped. I just figured out I have “piriformis syndrome.” I hate that it shoots down to my left ankle 😢

[Nitephall]

I asked my orthopedic doctor about my piriformis muscle being the cause of my sciatica and he said "it's extremely rare, " and then proceeded to not do any checks at all that might confirm it or rule it out. They put me on gabapentin, which hasn't done shit for my pain. I told him if this goes on too much longer I'm gonna be in a wheelchair. He said no, you're nowhere near that bad. Oh yeah doc? Have you seen me trying to walk through a grocery store? Do you have to sit down and rest after literally two minutes of activity?

[Newnamehere]

My flares up while standing walking.. i feel better lying down.. it's a nightmare pain

[PNWrambler]

ok. 50% wrong. I had the most nightmarish sciatic imaginable. Stretching it or anything pissed it off. The one thing I was able to do for brief periods of time was simply air squats. it’s caused by a muscle imbalance which creates either a tight or a loose piriformis. In my case, it was a loose piriformis. you wouldn’t think so considering there was so many knots. The second I’d get one worked out another one would start and spasm. try this. Use a resistance band around your knees and try to force your knees OUT against the band as you do squats and try to get in as many as you can. If it hurts when you squat with good posture. Ignore everything I said. if you notice it hurts a little less roll with it and keep on it. Your glutes need to build strength and the loose piriformis needs to be worked to regain its proper tension.

[ricosimmons]

There are workouts and stretches you can do for the inflamed piriformis. I've done physical therapy twice for my back and it wasn't until I took matters into my own hands and did research that my pain got better. Check out a couple of YouTube stretches they worked wonders for me. Also you should probably strengthen your psoas and and ql muscles I take 40 minutes out of my morning for PT and it's been effective. Hope this helps someone Ive been in agony for 2 years and my life changed for the better after applying a couple of exercises to my life.

[MichelleLyn]

As someone in the medical field people greatly underestimate physical therapy!!! They’ll go a couple times and get frustrated, they won’t do their homework, they don’t want to be active because it hurts, but working through a certain amount of pain which the physical therapist typically should specify to what extent. (FINDING GOOD PT IS ALSO LIKE FINDING A GOOD DOCTOR TOO) Do your hw, be your own advocate, just don’t rely on medicine fully. Your quality of life is not going to just be improved by medication alone. Easy way out and a lot of people take it unfortunately.

[techytrendysolutions]

Can you post science based study regarding massage sciatica.

[robertmcmaster]

Check the psoas out on the anterior spine....

[jessesaldana]

Thank you for your video and also all of the constructive comments. I have been suffering from this terribly for 2 months now. In addition to having been diagnosed with Polymyalgia Rheumatica and being on prednisone for that, this additional pain has made life almost unbearable. I am a land Surveyor and need to walk for a living. Thank you again for the comments as I will try some of these suggestions provided.

[ramboma]

Looks like my sleep paralysis is gonna have kill me just for this to get better

[cheylou]

That explains why I have no pain laying down watching this video

[xpnemml]

Thanks miss..for good explaining..from Suriname

[KarenHargrove]

I had sciatica got so much relief after having acupuncture & massage

[ElysiaOConnor]

Yeah, usually on the left because that's the side where back side of the pelvis (posterior outlet) typically gets compressed because that side is usually perpetually stuck in swing phase. Stretching it won't really do anything most of the time, Good luck getting any change to stick with a stretch, and could just piss it off. You need to learn how to shift back into that left hip with a left heel, left hamstring, Left ischiocondylar adductor, and contralateral right inferior glute max to push you over to that side so you know how to get into it.

[TheDotransporter]

My right knee buckles with no pain, no accidents, it started 8 years ago, doctors cant find what it is, the last test was the nerve test and doctor claims is not the nerves. All this time, I still think is my sciatica. 😢

[dreamingacacia]

Taichi Qigong will gradually help you fix this problem. Just do it regularly and be gentle with your body.

[halhilou]

My symptoms only appear the moment i start driving. I'm told that it's piriformus syndrome. It's this true

[whats]

Which nerve is entrapped when the pain is really bad when laying down and moderate pain when standing, but no pain while sitting or walking?

[johnhodgeman]

Mine is not that, I dont think. I have nerve entrapment/adhesion in the TFL area on the side of my hip, very deep, pressing into the nerve and that can cause sciatica going down my leg and I even have felt it go up. My piriformis is actually, probably lengthened from very tight hip flexors and weak glutes. I can do the piriformis stretch with out any resistance on both sides. For me, it spasms when it's asked to shoulder more work, I believe.

[backcountyrpilot]

A chiropractor ran current through my glutes last night and it seemed to help. I just received a “TENS” machine from Amazon for $59.99 and will try it as soon as the battery charges!.🤞