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It isn't an exaggeration to say that I thought I would be wheelchair bound and would never be back on my feet the rest of my life. The pain in my right leg was that severe. ...one day in the summer of 2007, I noticed that some numbness and tingling pain in my right leg just did not go away. Not only that, it became worse and worse. When I walked a little, the pain in the back of my thigh down to the outside of my right calf to ankle got so severe, I had to stop, sit down, and wait until the pain subsided. The distance between the rests got shorter and shorter to finally down to 10 steps. It was the worst kind of pain that I have felt, so intense it was like poking my brain with a needle...I allowed myself to be chair bound for almost a month... He (Dr. Morris) gave me a through examination, asked me a hundred questions, and instructed me to have MRI taken to confirm his diagnosis...A little over 3 months later, I am writing this to let the world know that my pain level is a humble 1 out of 10! (10 is the most severe) When I first met Dr. Morris, I gave him my pain level was easily over 8. I can walk with my friends in a shopping mall, do grocery shopping, and will be back in my dance class soon...All these were unimaginable 3 months ago. If anyone is in the same condition as I was then, I know how it feels. And I am very fortunate that I met Dr. Morris and his great team of professionals; Dr. Tang, Marcus and Michael, and Mario. Thank you and hope there will be more patients like myself who find you and your incredible practice. --Yuriko Imashuku Language Instructor Click Here To Read Letters and Watch Videos From Other Patients  The Sciatic Nerve is the largest nerve in your body (as you probably can tell from the pain your feeling down your leg right now!). It leaves between the vertebrae in your lower back, travels through a group of muscles in your buttocks, and may refer pain down the back of your thigh or all the way to your foot. The pain usually flares-up with bending over, running, sitting and many other of your favorite, everyday movements. The problem usually is caused by the lower back vertebrae moving out of alignment and pinching the nerve directly or by pushing the disc into the nerve. Sometimes the back isn't the culprit but rather the muscles deep in your buttocks. They'll cramp or spasm and choke the nerve (see the picture in the next column), sending the pain from your buttocks down to your leg. These cases are often mistreated and respond only temporarily to injections, surgery and most physical therapy. In fact, most treatments for Sciatica (the name we use to describe an irritated Sciatic Nerve)incompletely treat the problem with medications to stop pain or swelling and a non-specific series of exercises that are as likely to hurt the sciatic nerve as it is to help it. How Should Sciatica Be Treated? The alignment of the lumbar spine and pelvis must be carefully checked and corrected. Very specific spinal adjustments- combined with physical therapy, muscular balancing and lengthening of the shortened muscles-must be provided in an exact manner. Often a "Double Crush" phenomenon occurs meaning that the Sciatic Nerve is pinched by two or more structures. These are more complicated and often fail other attempts at treatment. Our office specializes in finding ALL areas of nerve impingement and releasing every one--only then will the pain go away and stay away. If a disc is herniating into the nerve and is n ot being resolved by traditional treatments, then non-surgical spinal decompression allows the disc to resume it's proper function and placement and relieve the nerve pressure. It's important that all these options are available to you in the low back center you choose. We are remarkably successful. Click Here To Find Out How We Treat Discs That Cause Sciatica Sciatica, Disc Herniation, Failed Laminectomy and Drop Foot If you have signs of nerve damage (numbness, leg or foot weakness or pain that continues down your leg below your knee--seek treatment as soon as possible to avoid possibly permanent nerve damage |
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 John Pae Student Sciatica Herniated Lumbar Disc      These are side view x-rays of the low back. Notice that when the disc narrows, there is less room for the nerve to leave between the vertebrae. Our non-surgical techniques are designed to prevent disc narrowing and to remove pressure from the entrapped nerve. Farzad Hakim Dancer Herniated Disc Sciatica |
