Sciatica that
won't stop radiating.

It starts in the back or glute and runs down your leg — sometimes sharp, sometimes burning, sometimes just heavy and numb.
Sitting makes it worse. Standing doesn't help.
You've been told it's a disc.
Maybe it is.
Maybe it isn't.

Many cases of 'sciatica' are actually muscular — and they respond to treatment that most providers never try.

Book Your First Visit Call or Text (201) 786-8060
01
Not Always a Disc
A significant percentage of sciatic-pattern pain is caused by myofascial trigger points in the gluteus minimus and piriformis — not by disc herniation. These muscular causes don't show on MRI and don't require surgery.
02
Piriformis Compression
The piriformis muscle sits directly on top of the sciatic nerve. When it harbors trigger points, it can compress the nerve directly — producing pain, numbness, and tingling down the leg indistinguishable from disc-caused sciatica.
03
Treatable Without Surgery
When the cause is muscular, dry needling can deactivate the trigger points compressing or mimicking the nerve.
Acupuncture calms the nerve inflammation.
Resolution without injection or surgical intervention.

It took over your leg.
It started somewhere else.

Sciatica doesn't just hurt — it takes away trust in your body.
You can't predict when it will flare.
Sitting through a meal, a meeting, or a drive becomes an endurance test.
You've reorganized your day around a nerve that won't quiet down.

If the pain keeps coming back after treatment, the true source hasn't been reached.

Pain that radiates from the low back or glute down the back or side of the leg
Numbness, tingling, or burning sensation in the leg or foot
Pain that worsens with sitting, driving, or bending forward
A heavy or dead feeling in the affected leg
Difficulty finding any comfortable position
Previous treatment for disc-related sciatica that only partially helped

What started as nerve pain is already rewriting how you sit, stand, and move.

Two modalities targeting
every layer of sciatic pain.

Sciatic-pattern pain involves nerve irritation, muscular compression, and a nervous system that has amplified the signal.
Acunatomy identifies whether the cause is discogenic, muscular, or both — and treats accordingly.

Acupuncture

Calms nerve inflammation and resets the pain signal

Targets the inflammatory cascade along the sciatic nerve pathway. Regulates the nervous system's amplification of radiating pain. Restores circulation to compressed tissue in the lumbar and gluteal region.
Reduces the hypersensitivity that makes every position uncomfortable.

Dry Needling

Deactivates the muscles compressing or mimicking the nerve.

The piriformis, gluteus minimus, gluteus medius, and deep lumbar musculature are the primary muscular drivers of sciatic-pattern pain. Dry needling reaches these muscles directly — releasing the compression on the nerve or eliminating the trigger points that mimic nerve pain. The referral pattern down the leg clears.

Together

Acupuncture calms the nerve.
Dry needling removes the compression.

Used together, acupuncture reduces the nerve inflammation that keeps the pain radiating, while dry needling releases the muscle pressing on the nerve. That's why patients who hadn't found relief elsewhere often respond here.

Why It Works When Other Treatments Don't

Your MRI may not tell the full story

Disc findings on MRI are common in people with no pain at all. Meanwhile, trigger points in the gluteus minimus can reproduce the exact radiating pattern of disc-caused sciatica. Acunatomy assesses both the structural and muscular picture — and treats what's actually active, not just what appears on imaging.

A meta-analysis of 1,842 patients found acupuncture significantly more effective than conventional medicine for sciatica — with fewer side effects. Piriformis syndrome, a muscular cause of sciatic symptoms, is treatable and frequently underdiagnosed.

★★★★★

"Eugene has been fantastic in helping me with sciatica issues. He listens to all the issues going on and what you have tried to help alleviate it in the past. He comes up with a plan to help you move forward with your recovery."

Jim O.

Common questions about sciatica treatment.

Yes. Even when a disc herniation is confirmed on imaging, the pain is amplified — or in some cases primarily caused — by trigger points in the piriformis, gluteus minimus, and lumbar paraspinals. These muscles compress or mimic sciatic nerve irritation. Acupuncture calms the nerve inflammation and regulates pain signaling, while dry needling releases the muscular compression. Many patients with confirmed herniations find significant relief through this approach.

Intermittent sciatica usually means the nerve isn’t constantly compressed — the irritation is triggered by specific positions, movements, or muscle tension patterns. That’s actually a good prognostic sign. It means the dysfunction is largely muscular and positional, which responds well to treatment. The risk of leaving it untreated is that each flare reinforces the pattern, and over time the episodes become more frequent and harder to resolve.

Acute sciatica that’s been present for weeks typically shows meaningful improvement within 2–3 visits. Chronic sciatica that’s been recurring for months or years takes longer because the compensation patterns are deeper — but most patients still notice a shift in the first few sessions. The goal is to reduce the nerve irritation first, then systematically clear the muscular dysfunction that perpetuates it.

A typical treatment timeline.

Visit 1
Assessment + First Treatment
Full assessment of your sciatic pattern, history, and movement. Treatment begins in the same session. Most patients feel reduced intensity of radiating symptoms before they leave. 60–75 minutes.
Visits 2–4
Progressive Resolution
Each session targets the next layer of compression or referral. Sitting tolerance and leg symptoms typically improve between visits. The gluteal and lumbar trigger points sustaining the pattern are progressively deactivated.
Visits 5+
Resolution or Maintenance
Muscular sciatica often responds faster than expected — 4–6 sessions for significant resolution. Disc-involved cases may take longer and benefit from concurrent care. The goal is elimination of radiating symptoms.

Every case is different. This is a general framework — your treatment plan will be tailored to what we find in your assessment.

The longer the nerve stays compressed,
the more the numbness becomes normal.

The muscles around it won't release on their own.
The tingling is the window. Sensory loss is what's on the other side.

What you still feel you can still fix.

What resolution looks like
for your sciatica.

Not a marginal improvement. A different baseline.

Standing up from a chair and waiting for the leg to stop buzzing

Standing up and walking. That's it.

Sitting through a meeting with the numbness building from minute ten

Sitting as long as you need to without watching the clock.

Avoiding the car because 20 minutes of driving makes it flare

Driving wherever you need to go.

Never had acupuncture before? →

Your sciatica has a source.
Let's find it.

Out-of-Network Insurance Accepted: Empire BCBS · Oxford · United Health Care · Cigna · Aetna · Self-Pay Available