Low back pain is the most common physical ailment in the country, and sciatica affects more than three million people in the US each year. For many people dealing with sciatica, it is a debilitating affliction, inhibiting their basic way of life and ability to enjoy day-to-day activities. The pain is often severe, in many cases leading to a dependency on pain medication, and in some cases, requiring extensive surgery. Luckily for most, physical therapy is safe, healthy option, and Impact Physical Therapy is among the best in the Valley at it.
A Different Class of Care
Dr. Eric Heferon founded Impact Physical Therapy in Arizona over six years ago with the belief that patients deserve a better healthcare experience than what he had experienced in the high-volume PT clinics where he started his career. “I wanted to create a model of healthcare that was patient-centered,” he says, “a place where physical therapists can thrive by treating their patients with all available tools rather than treating patients based on what the insurance can dictate.”
Today, Impact Physical Therapy boasts two locations (Scottsdale and Peoria), thousands of impacted patients and hundreds of five-star reviews from people who found a new lease on life thanks to the careful and attentive professionals at the clinics. They help people who are experiencing knee and foot pain, shoulder pain, neck pain, headaches and so much more. They help people recover from car accidents and help firefighters and police officers recover from the immense physical strain of their professions. For many, Impact Physical is a life-savers.
Treating Sciatica
But of all the ailments they treat, none are more common than low back pain. “Eighty percent of the population will have back pain at some point, and it’s the number one cause of disability in the US,” Dr. Heferon says. Within that diagnosis, sciatica is very common. If you are unfamiliar, sciatica manifests as pain radiating along the sciatic nerve, which runs down one or both legs from the lower back. It’s usually caused when a herniated disk or bone spur in the spine presses on the nerve.
“There could be several causes of sciatica and not every case is the exact same,” says Dr. Heferon. Performing a comprehensive examination involving someone’s lifestyle, movement patterns, mobility and strength is essential when it comes to pinpointing the exact cause (or causes). “There are common characteristics that we see in patients with sciatica including tightness in the hips due to prolonged sitting or traveling, overexertion with lifting activities and asymmetries in other areas of the body causing an abnormal gait pattern resulting in sciatica,” he says.
Dr. Mikki Williams is part of the team at Impact and commonly treats sciatica. “Common symptoms of sciatica are sharp, shooting pains running down the back of the leg often described as burning or stabbing,” she says. “The pain may be localized to the glute area or run all the way down the back of the leg…in some cases people feel numbness, tingling, burning up and down into their foot and may lose motor function such as the ability to lift their foot when walking.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing low back pain, it is important to know that physical therapy can help before turning to medication. “Most patients want to avoid surgery, pain pills and injections,” says Dr. Heferon. “At Impact, we perform all-natural and effective ways to reduce pain and get patients back to the things they love to do most.” Treatment begins on the patient’s first visit and may involve dry needling to reduce muscle and nerve pain, cupping to decrease tightness in the back and hips, soft tissue work to the low back and leg to improve tissue mobility and reduce pain along with corrective exercises to correct strength and flexibility deficits.
Tools for Success
The professionals at Impact then put together a comprehensive treatment plan to get people back to feeling and functioning like themselves. In keeping with Dr. Heferon’s unwavering pledge to provide a better, more patient-centric treatment approach, the goal is not to keep people coming back, but rather to provide them with the tools to continue improving their overall health and live pain-free long after treatment ends.
According to Dr. Williams, the best way to prevent sciatic nerve flare-ups post-treatment is by maintaining core and postural strength through maintaining a regular workout schedule. “The most common thing I hear from people with disk injuries or sciatic nerve irritation is that they have stopped exercising and that they do not have a regime or program that they follow anymore,” she says. “This is usually the wake-up call that patients require that gets them back in the gym and maintaining healthy habits.”
The results from physical therapy and adhering to stretching and exercise routines at home and post-treatment can be life-changing. “Nothing makes me happier than to hear from former patients that they are back to doing the activities they love and enjoying life again free from pain,” Dr. Williams says. And the professionals at Impact Physical Therapy stand behind their level of care. “Our brand promise is that this will be the best physical therapy experience or your money back,” Dr. Heferon says.
To learn more about how Impact Physical Therapy can help treat sciatica and low back pain to improve your quality of life, visit impactptaz.com or call at 623.208.7575 for a free consultation.
7727 W. Deer Valley Rd., Ste. 210
Peoria, AZ 85382
20801 N. Scottsdale Rd., Ste. 105
Scottsdale, AZ 85255