“These 3 moves ended my pain!”
Severe sciatic pain left Elisha Lowe, 43, unable to function at work or in her personal life—until she discovered the simple stretches that changed everything
Elisha Lowe winced in pain as she struggled to hoist her bag into the overhead bin on the airplane. She managed the task…but just barely. Next, she gingerly lowered her body into her seat. The pain felt crippling, and as she buckled her seat belt, she was already worrying, How am I going to get that bag back down? “I was alone, traveling for work and in that moment, I realized just how disabled I felt—my back was wrecked and my legs were killing me. I was stressed, overweight and in constant discomfort. I felt miserable.
Feeling hopeless
“I’d been experiencing muscle spasms in my legs and lower backaches for years. After many tests to confirm that my pain wasn’t related to any spinal defects, my doctor diagnosed me with piriformis syndrome, which occurs when the piriformis muscle in the lower back compresses the sciatic nerve. As the discomfort got progressively worse, I stopped exercising completely. To manage my pain, I took ibuprofen daily for years. At the time, I didn’t realize how damaging it can be to take anti-inflammatory drugs on a daily basis. I’m lucky that I didn’t suffer any side effects.
“Even with OTC meds, it got to the point where the shooting pains down my legs made it difficult to stand or walk, so I gave up my job as a registered nurse in hospital intensive care units. Instead, I took a position
outside of the hospital as a healthcare consultant, working with clinicians to adopt new medical products. The job involves a lot less standing, but requires a heavy weekly travel schedule. I thought it would be easier on my back, but constant sitting puts pressure on the sciatic nerve, and my discomfort only worsened. I wasn’t sure what else to do, so I constantly had to put on a good face to hide my distress. It was as exhausting as it was painful.
Total turnaround
“With my 40th birthday approaching, I began to ask myself if I wanted to be able to walk when I’m 80 years old. The answer was yes, so I forced myself to start going on short walks around my neighborhood and on business trips. It wasn’t easy and it didn’t feel good—my muscles had really atrophied after I stopped exercising. But I knew moving regularly was essential if I wanted to recover. Once I got a little stronger, I worked with a personal trainer who taught me some gentle Pilates-based exercises to help alleviate my back pain and increase my ability to move freely.
“These mat-based exercises were a game-changer. At first, it was hard. I felt stiff and achy even though I started with just 10 or 15 minutes of simple, gentle moves. But within about six weeks, I felt my core getting stronger, which really eased my back pain, and I started seeing toning effects throughout my body, especially around my waist. My balance and flexibility also noticeably improved.
“Even better, doing these mat-based moves helped me get into a pattern of working out regularly without putting pressure on my joints. Gradually, I got strong enough to take hour-long exercise classes at the gym. Between my workouts and changing my diet a bit, I ended up losing 30 pounds.
“I have less pain, better flexibility and longer endurance, which really helps me keep up with my
work schedule”
“Five years later, I still do these same mat moves once or twice each week—whether I’m at home or on the road traveling for work. They have helped me keep my back healthy, and now I’m fit and living an active lifestyle. I have less pain, better flexibility and longer endurance, which really helps me keep up with my heavy travel schedule. Now instead of popping ibuprofen every day, I rely on deep muscle conditioning to stay ache-free.
“I look good, and most important, I feel good because I’m lean and toned. In my work, I do a lot of presentations to large groups of people, and because of these changes, I have a greater sense of confidence and I move more powerfully. Clients have really responded to that, which has helped me be more successful in my career. I feel energized in all areas of my life!”