What Can Be Done to Relieve SI Joint Pain?

The sacroiliac joint (or SI joint) connects the base of the spine with the pelvis. Not surprisingly, the sacroiliac joint rests between the sacrum (S1 - S5 vertebrae) and the ilia bones (hips). The SI joint helps to protect your pelvis from fracture or damage due to the stress and torsion that using our legs on a daily basis can cause. Many people may experience pain from their SI joint. This often manifests as lower back pain above the buttocks. And the vast majority of these cases are caused by inflammation of the tissues around the SI joint. However, a lot of medical professionals are reluctant to recognize SI joint pain since the joint doesn't really move very much, however, slowly many of them are realizing that the pain is in fact very real. If you’re experiencing any sort of SI pain, then maybe you’ve seen a doctor about it and he has recommended surgery to fuse the joint. That sounds kind of scary and dangerous, and it is! Oftentimes, you can resolve the problem with simple exercise to reduce inflammation. After all, why do an extreme surgery when the real problem isn’t the joint, but inflammation around the joint? Here are some simple exercises you can do to get started. But first it is important to stabilize and neutralize the spine first to make sure that you don’t make any sort of misalignment worse. To do this, simply stand against a wall. Normally, only your shoulders and buttocks will touch the wall leaving a space between the lower back and the wall. Move your navel back into the wall so that your entire back touches the wall and rests flat. Okay, now we’re going to do what are called “Wall Sits.” When I was a kid in elementary school, my gym teacher would make us do these to punish us for misbehaving. These are difficult, but give them a shot. They might be just what you need to fix your SI joint pain. Keep your back flat against the wall, like you did above. Now lower yourself down so that your thighs stick out 90 degrees from the wall and your knees are bent 90 degrees. Your knees should be directly over your ankles and your knees and feet should be pointed directly forward. Hold this position for as long as you can. The tops of your thighs will likely start to hurt soon, but continue to keep the position as long as possible. Remember to keep your back flat against the wall while you’re doing this. This should help with the pain you’re feeling. Remember though that the pain is most likely caused by muscle imbalances that have pushed the pelvis or SI joint out of alignment and placed added stress in that area. You will still need to take care of these muscle imbalances or else the pain will come back sooner or later.