Sacroiliac Exercises

Sacroiliac exercises are one of the most common treatment options for diagnosed sacroiliac joint (SI) pain. Patients can perform these exercises alone or with the assistance of a professional physical therapist. There is considerable controversy if true SI pain really exists and if so, will exercises do anything to provide SI relief.

Sacroiliac Exercises and Stretches

Pain in the sacroiliac region is most often blamed on too much or too little movement in the actual joint. Either way, treatment is usually identical. Exercises are designed to either strengthen and tighten up the joint or loosen and relax it. Stretches are prescribed to firm up ligaments or to loosen overly tight ligaments. It seems strange and illogical that two diametrically opposed causes will share the exact same treatment.

Sacroiliac Exercises Theory

Medicine uses physical therapy for almost all musculoskeletal conditions without truly having any concrete idea what this modality is supposed to do. In the case of sacroiliac symptoms, the actual source of pain is almost always due to oxygen deprivation of the nerves and muscles in the lower back region. If no spinal abnormality if discovered, piriformis syndrome or SI joint dysfunction will usually be blamed for the pain. Doctors rarely diagnose ischemic back pain so it is no surprise that millions of back pain patients spend years in therapy without EVER finding a real cure for their pain. Treatments directed at a misdiagnosed condition have little or no hope of ever working�

Recommendation on Sacroiliac Exercises

I am a strong advocate of exercise. However, I have less and less confidence in it as a specific treatment for most types of back pain. If you are one of the few that actually has true SI joint pain due to poor ligament condition, then exercise might just be the right treatment. Chances are that your pain is not from your SI joint, regardless of diagnosis. If you suffer from unresolved SI joint pain and are wondering about your next choice of treatment, let me give you some valuable advice�

STOP thinking about treatments and START thinking about the real reason for your pain. You are not getting better because your diagnosis might be incorrect!!!

Consider that your pain, like the majority of patients might actually be from some psychological cause. Once you can accept the real nature of your pain, a cure is only a short step away�

Sacroiliac Exercises to Back Pain Home page 3/6/07 Revised 4/21/08