Can You Have Sciatica Without Back Pain? | Mira Mesa, CA
Yes. You can have sciatica without having lower-back pain.
A patient may have pain deep in the buttock, burning down the outside of the leg, numbness in the foot or tingling in the toes—and very little discomfort in the lower back itself.
Dr. Cassidy James Boelk, DC has treated disc injuries and sciatica for more than 22 years and has performed more than 100,000 spinal decompression treatments. One thing he has learned is that nerve problems don't always present the way patients expect.
Some patients come in saying:
“My back doesn't hurt. Why are we looking at my back?”
Because the location where you feel the pain isn't necessarily where the problem starts.
The nerves involved in sciatica originate in the lower spine and travel into the leg. When one of those nerves becomes irritated or compressed, the symptoms can show up farther down the nerve—even when the lower back itself feels relatively normal.
That's why Dr. Boelk wants to know much more than whether your back hurts.
Where does the pain start? Where does it end? Is there numbness? Which part of the foot? Does sitting make it worse? Walking? Bending? Coughing or sneezing? Is the leg getting weaker?
Those details can help tell a much bigger story.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Patient Experience
Joshua T. had constant low-back pain and sciatica for more than eight months before coming to Dr. Boelk.
“Dr. Boelk has been a lifesaver.
I suffered from constant low back pain and sciatica for more than eight months. Pain medications didn't help, and I was headed toward multiple injections in hopes of finding relief.
After beginning treatment with Dr. Boelk, everything changed.
Today, my pain is completely gone.
As a firefighter who depends on his body every day to help others, being pain-free has made a tremendous difference in both my career and quality of life.
The results I experienced were absolutely worth it, and I highly recommend looking into what Dr. Boelk and his team can do for you.”
— Joshua T., San Diego, CA
Joshua had back pain along with his sciatica. Other patients Dr. Boelk sees have almost no back pain at all.
What matters isn't whether you fit one exact pattern.
It's figuring out why you're having the symptoms you're having.
Start With a No-Charge Consultation With Dr. Boelk
If you're in Mira Mesa or the surrounding San Diego area and you're dealing with persistent leg pain, numbness, tingling or burning, you don't need to know the diagnosis before calling.
You can start with a No-Charge, No-Obligation Consultation personally with Dr. Cassidy James Boelk, DC.
During your consultation, Dr. Boelk will:
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Listen to how your problem started and how it has changed.
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Go through exactly where your pain or other symptoms travel.
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Discuss any numbness, tingling, burning or weakness.
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Review what makes the symptoms better or worse.
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Discuss previous treatments and what helped, what didn't, and how long any relief lasted.
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Review your actual MRI images and report, if you have them.
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Compare the MRI findings with your actual symptoms.
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Discuss whether further examination or imaging may be appropriate.
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Determine whether Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression may be an option.
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Tell you if he doesn't believe you're a candidate.
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Answer your questions so you understand your options.
No MRI? That's okay. You can still schedule the consultation.
There is no charge and no obligation to begin treatment.
Why are these consultations limited?
Because Dr. Boelk personally performs them.
He doesn't simply have someone look at your MRI report and tell you that you need treatment. Dr. Boelk takes the time to hear your history, understand your symptoms and review your available imaging himself.
He does that while also treating the patients already under his care.
So there are only a limited number of No-Charge Consultation appointments that can be set aside in the clinic schedule.
Call 619-298-0800 and ask about the next available No-Charge Consultation with Dr. Cassidy James Boelk, DC.
“If My Back Doesn't Hurt, How Could This Be Coming From My Back?”
It's a reasonable question.
Think about what happens when you hit your “funny bone.”
The sensation may shoot down your forearm and into your fingers even though you didn't injure your fingers. You irritated a nerve farther up the pathway.
Sciatica can work in a similar way.
If a lumbar nerve root becomes irritated or compressed near the spine, you may experience symptoms farther down the nerve.
Depending on the nerve involved, those symptoms might include:
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Buttock pain
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Pain down the thigh
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Burning in the calf
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Tingling in the foot
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Numbness in part of the foot or toes
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Weakness in the leg or foot
Some patients have all of those symptoms.
Others have only one or two.
And some have significant sciatica with very little lower-back pain.
Be Specific About Where Your Leg Hurts
This is one of the most useful things you can do before an evaluation.
Don't just think:
“My leg hurts.”
Pay attention to the route the symptoms take.
Does it begin in the buttock and stop at the knee?
Does it continue into the calf?
Does it go toward the top of the foot?
The outside of the foot?
Which toes feel numb or tingly?
Is the symptom pain, or is it more of a burning or electrical feeling?
Does the leg feel weak?
Different nerve roots can produce different patterns of pain, sensation and weakness.
Those patterns aren't perfect. Real patients don't always look exactly like an anatomy textbook.
But they can give Dr. Boelk useful clues about which nerve may be involved.
Sitting Can Be Miserable Even When Your Back Feels Fine
Another clue is what happens when you change positions.
Some patients tell Dr. Boelk they feel reasonably good standing, but sitting in the car causes the leg pain to build.
Others can sit comfortably but can't walk very far without pain or numbness developing.
Someone else feels relatively good throughout the day but wakes up in the morning with significant leg pain.
These differences matter.
Dr. Boelk wants to know what happens when you:
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Sit
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Stand
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Walk
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Drive
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Bend forward
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Get out of bed
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Exercise
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Cough or sneeze
He isn't asking those questions just to document your pain.
He's looking for a pattern.
Your MRI Is Important—But It Isn't the Whole Diagnosis
Patients sometimes arrive worried because their MRI report lists several abnormalities.
Maybe it says:
L4-L5 disc bulge.
L5-S1 disc herniation.
Degenerative disc disease.
Foraminal narrowing.
It's easy to look at a report like that and assume everything listed must be causing the symptoms.
That's not necessarily true.
Dr. Boelk wants to see whether the findings on the MRI actually make sense with what you're experiencing.
If you're having numbness in a particular part of the foot, for example, does the MRI show something that could affect the nerve associated with that area?
If the MRI shows an abnormality on one side but all your symptoms are on the other side, that's worth paying attention to as well.
This is why Dr. Boelk prefers patients to bring the actual MRI images along with the written report whenever possible.
He wants to look at the patient and the MRI together.
Not treat a piece of paper.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Patient Experience
Calder Pearce came to the office after dealing with lower-back problems for more than five years and seeing multiple doctors.
“Dr. Boelk and his team are the best in the business! I have had lower back problems for over 5 years and been to 6 other doctors seeking options other than surgery. I came in early January not able to bend and walking with a limp. By February I was able to bend again with minimal pain and by March I am now able to bend without any pain and am able to walk normally.”
— Calder Pearce, San Diego, CA
One of the things Dr. Boelk pays attention to in stories like Calder's isn't simply whether the patient reports less pain.
It's what the person can do again.
Walking normally matters.
Sleeping matters.
Being able to drive matters.
Going back to the gym matters.
Getting through a workday without constantly changing positions matters.
Being able to travel matters.
Pain scores are useful, but they're not the only measure of how much a problem is affecting someone's life.
How Much Are You Already Working Around Your Sciatica?
People are remarkably good at adapting.
At first, you stop sitting in a particular chair.
Then you stop taking long drives.
Maybe you quit walking as far.
You change your workouts.
You sleep in one position because every other position wakes you up.
You stop golfing, surfing, hiking or doing something else you enjoy because you don't know how your leg will react.
And because you're still functioning, you keep telling yourself:
“It's manageable.”
Maybe it is.
But another useful question is:
How much of your life are you managing around the problem?
If the list keeps getting longer, waiting has a cost too.
Don't Ignore Numbness or Weakness Just Because the Pain Is Tolerable
Sometimes the pain isn't what concerns Dr. Boelk most.
Numbness and weakness can be important neurological symptoms.
Tell Dr. Boelk if:
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Part of your leg or foot is persistently numb.
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Tingling is spreading or becoming more frequent.
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One leg feels weaker.
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You're having trouble lifting the front of your foot.
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Your foot starts slapping the ground.
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You're catching your toes when you walk.
And don't assume everything is improving simply because the pain decreases if the weakness is getting worse.
Most sciatica is not an emergency. However, rapidly progressing weakness, new bowel or bladder dysfunction, difficulty urinating, or numbness around the groin or saddle area requires prompt medical evaluation rather than waiting for a routine spinal decompression consultation.
Could Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression Be an Option?
It may be.
First, Dr. Boelk needs to determine what's actually causing your symptoms and whether you're an appropriate candidate.
He evaluates patients with conditions including:
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Lumbar disc bulges
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Lumbar disc herniations
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Degenerative disc disease
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Disc-related sciatica
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Foraminal narrowing
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Selected cases of spinal stenosis
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Chronic disc-related lower-back and leg pain
The Spinal Decompression & Chiropractic Center of San Diego uses the DRX9000 exclusively.
But an MRI showing a disc bulge or herniation doesn't automatically mean Dr. Boelk will recommend spinal decompression.
He also considers your symptoms, neurological findings, spinal stability, bone health, medical history and any previous spinal surgery.
Certain conditions may make decompression inappropriate, including an unhealed fracture, significant osteoporosis, unstable spondylolisthesis, abdominal aortic aneurysm, pregnancy for lumbar decompression, certain malignancies and other medical or structural conditions.
Previous spinal surgery also needs to be evaluated carefully, particularly if fusion or metal hardware is present at the level that would need treatment.
★ An Honest “No” Can Be Valuable Too
Toni W. came to see Dr. Boelk, but because of the amount of hardware in her back, spinal decompression wasn't appropriate for her situation.
She still felt the consultation was worthwhile:
“Very nice Dr. and Honest ! I would definitely recommend anyone who hasn't had metal put in there back in a surgery to go to him and give his program a shot. I believe it would definitely help. Just not in my personal case. As I have a lot of hardware in my back. But I'm glad I took the time to meet with him. It was very informative all around.”
— Toni W., Lake Elsinore, CA
That's one reason Dr. Boelk offers the consultation before asking someone to commit to treatment.
Sometimes the answer is yes.
Sometimes more information is needed.
And sometimes the answer is no.
The point is to find out.
Why Patients Choose Dr. Cassidy James Boelk, DC
Dr. Boelk has focused on Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression for more than two decades.
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22+ years of Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression experience
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100,000+ spinal decompression treatments
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Certified Spinal Decompression Doctor
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Certified Pain-Free Performance Specialist (PPSC)
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Founder, Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression Training Academy
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Trains other doctors in spinal decompression protocols and techniques
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Founding Member, American Spinal Decompression Society
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Member, International Disc Education Association
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California X-Ray Radiation Supervisor & Operator
Dr. Boelk's experience with spinal injuries is personal as well.
He suffered an L5 compression fracture at age 16 and later dealt with disc injuries and sciatica himself. He remains active with surfing, hockey and exercise, so he understands why patients often care about much more than simply getting their pain score down.
They want their life back.
Your Back Doesn't Have to Hurt for the Problem to Be Coming From Your Back
If you're having persistent pain, burning, numbness or tingling down one leg, the absence of back pain doesn't rule out a lumbar nerve problem.
It also doesn't prove that you have one.
That's what the consultation is for.
Your No-Charge Consultation Includes:
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A one-on-one consultation with Dr. Cassidy James Boelk, DC
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Review of how your symptoms started
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Discussion of exactly where the pain or other symptoms travel
-
Review of any numbness, tingling, burning or weakness
-
Discussion of what makes your symptoms better or worse
-
Review of treatments you've already tried
-
Review of your actual MRI images and report, if available
-
Comparison of your imaging with your symptoms
-
Discussion of whether further examination or imaging may be appropriate
-
An assessment of whether Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression may be an option
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An honest answer if Dr. Boelk believes you're not a candidate
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Time to ask questions and understand your options
No MRI is required to schedule.
No charge. No obligation to begin treatment.
Dr. Boelk personally performs these consultations while also treating his existing patients. That's why the office can only set aside a limited number of No-Charge Consultation appointments during the clinic schedule.
If you've been waiting for the problem to disappear but you're still changing how you sit, sleep, walk, drive, exercise, work or travel because of your leg, you don't need to keep guessing.
And you don't have to decide whether you want treatment before you come in.
The decision right now is much simpler: Is it worth finding out what's causing your symptoms and whether Dr. Boelk believes he can help?
Call 619-298-0800
Ask for the next available No-Charge Consultation with Dr. Cassidy James Boelk, DC.
Bring your MRI images and report if you have them. If you don't, that's okay.
Come in, let Dr. Boelk review what's going on, and find out whether you're a candidate.
The Spinal Decompression & Chiropractic Center of San Diego
5095 Murphy Canyon Road, Suite 300
San Diego, CA 92123
619-298-0800
SanDiegoBackCare.com
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