Tight Hips, Low Back Pain & Sciatic Shenanigans: What Your Nervous System Is Trying to Tell You

Show of hands — how many of you have struggled with tight hips, low back pain or discomfort (chronic or otherwise), and or sciatic shenanigans?

Also, show of hands — how many of you are experiencing or have experienced nervous system dysregulation?

Ok, maybe don’t give me a show of hands.

If you hadn’t noticed, nervous system regulation is trending now. Healing the body does that, you know. We all collectively begin to experience a physical breakdown of sorts, and chat with one another, and quantum being what it is, all of a sudden, 8 billion people are healing one area of their bodies. Ok, maybe not 8 billion, on account of many countries don’t have the luxury we enjoy of focusing on themselves— those folks are just tryna survive.

Which I find so interesting because when it comes down to it, if you raised your hand, apparently your body and soul did not get the memo that you do not, in fact, live in a 3rd world country (I know, that’s not how we categorize things now, just go with it).

If you have the above symptoms and your nervous system is or has had a full blown come apart, the truth is you, dear one, have not properly asked yourself what emotions these areas have been clinging to for dear life.

It happens.

A sum total of no one goes back after having walked through massive trauma and assesses how they are emotionally. Well, I do now, but only because I’ve learned it’s unfruitful to ignore the fact that I experienced something unsavory, and perhaps just maybe there may be an emotion that’s going to literally bite me in the ass down the road.

To save you the deep dive, I’ll give you 5 main emotions/experiences that cause the tight hips, low back pain, and/or sciatic pain.

1. Suppressed fear

Not a panic type fear, but more of the low level hold it all together but underneath is a bubbling vortex of mass concern.

If you’ve ever said: “I’ll deal with this later” (Ok Scarlett),“I can handle it” (You sure?),or my personal fav,“I don’t have time to fall apart,”

then you might have some stuck suppressed fear. You’ve got yourself a holding pattern in the lower region.

2. Carrying more than your load

Ok, I’ll admit this is not an emotion per sa, but my word does it create a host of other emotions like resentment, frustration, anger etc.

You, dependable, always emotionally steady Eddie for others, and the ever popular “don’t want to burden anyone” — this one’s for you.

Your body is very likely bracing itself to hold your life together.

3. Control (ahem… control freaks)

For us control freaks, we are known for hip issues. Like Labradors, but theirs is a breeding issue, ours is denial. sigh…

The hips in this case often hold this weird tension of wanting stability vs needing flexibility, as well as not knowing when it’s safe to relax.

Have you ever felt guilty for “just sitting”? I see that hand…

Sis, you’re not stiff; you have guarded mobility.

4. Unexpressed anger

For my friends who consider sarcasm their second language, your hip, low back issue is likely from unexpressed anger.

But here’s the tough part — you’ve dealt with it through sarcasm as mentioned, but mostly as resignation, sort of an “It is what it is” mantra.

This one nestles deep in the glutes and sacral tissue.

5. Decision fatigue & stress

And finally, the decision impaired folks. You’re not, by the way — you are experiencing decision fatigue and stress. There’s a massive difference.

Our hips are all about forward motion, yet when moving forward becomes scary, hard to decide, or you’ve had to make so many of those forward decisions that your body taps out, fatigue sets in.

Decision fatigue is a real issue.

As an unintentional single mom here, I can fully attest to the sheer exhaustion that comes when you feel like all the decisions are up to you. Oh, and the immense stress and fear that comes from making sure you’ve made THE right one.

Now frfr show of hands — are you ready to really deal with that discomfort?