9. Epidural Injections

The use of steroid injections to deal with lower lumbar back pain can be seen as far back as 1952. As one of the most common forms of non-surgical pain relief from sciatica, often times the injection alone is enough to silence acute back and leg pain. While injections have been shown to relieve pain by anywhere from a week to a year, the real benefit is that by using epidurals, patients can undergo more rigorous stretching and rehabilitation which pain had previously disallowed.

While there has been a lack of controlled studies leading the medical community to regard epidurals with some skepticism, roughly half of recorded patients have had noticeable pain reduction when using this method. Not only does an injection allow for a more focused pain relief but the shots also contain anti-inflammatory agents which allow for more mobility, aiding in the healing process.