Pinched Nerve In Lower Back? Surprisingly Simple Solution You Need To Know
If you’ve ever been told you have a “pinched nerve” in your lower back, you’re not alone. Many of the patients I treated over the years had been given that same diagnosis—often after enduring burning, stabbing, or radiating pain that disrupted their sleep, movement, or ability to work.
I understood their frustration deeply—because I experienced it myself.
My own battle with back pain began during my first pregnancy. As my belly grew, so did the pain in my lower back. Walking became difficult. Bending over was agony. Even rolling over in bed sent sharp pain through my back. After my daughter was born, I had to carry her upstairs seated on the steps pushing myself up with my feet. The pain was almost constant, and, at times, it was disabling.
What I didn’t know at the time was that this would become a 37-year struggle—and that the cause of my pain wasn’t what anyone thought it was.
Why “Pinched Nerve” Isn’t Always the Answer
Most people—and most doctors—assume that if you’re having nerve-like pain in your lower back or leg, it must be coming from a herniated disc pressing on a spinal nerve. But medical imaging often tells a different story. In fact, over 90% of low back pain cases are diagnosed as “nonspecific,” meaning no visible damage shows up on an X-ray, CT scan, or MRI.
That was my experience as well. Nothing showed up on the scans. But the pain was still there.
Years later, through personal research and my clinical practice, I discovered something that explained not only my pain—but the pain of thousands of patients I saw:
The real problem was coming from my pelvis.
The SI Joint: The Hidden Source of So Much Pain
Your sacroiliac joints (SI joints) sit at the base of your spine, where your sacrum connects to your pelvic bones. Because your pelvic bones have to carry the weight of the whole upper body which pushes them away from the sacrum where they attach, these joints are under enormous pressure—especially for pregnant women, due to a hormone called relaxin, which loosens the ligaments holding the joints together to prepare for birth. In my case, those loosened ligaments never fully recovered, and my pelvic bones slipped out of alignment.
When the pelvic bones shift, they overstretch the ligaments that hold them in place, triggering pain signals to the brain. But that’s not all. The body recruits surrounding muscles to stabilize the area, which can irritate or compress the sciatic nerve, even when the spine is perfectly healthy. There is a nerve that gets pinched when pelvic bones are displaced. That nerve travels just in front of the pelvic bone, in the tendon that joins it to the pubis. When it is squeezed, it sends nerve pain, tingling, and loss of sensation down the front and the side of the thigh that it supplies. At times, it communicates its irritation to the nerve below it, and the nerve pain spreads down the side of the leg and the foot.
A displaced SI joint can trigger:
Shooting pain down the leg (often misdiagnosed as sciatica)
Groin pain when lifting your leg
Burning, tingling, or numbness on the front or side of the thigh
Sharp pain with sitting, walking, or rolling over in bed
These were all symptoms I experienced—and I met countless patients who had the same. Many had already been through spinal surgery, injections, or years of therapy with no lasting relief.
But once we corrected the alignment of their pelvis, the pain disappeared—usually within minutes.
The 2-Minute Solution That Changed My Life
After years of living in pain and treating others with similar symptoms, I developed a technique that changed everything.
It’s a simple lunge-based stretch that repositions the pelvic bone and resets the SI joint. Once I started using this method myself, I experienced more relief than I had in nearly four decades.
I taught it to my patients—and saw the same results over and over. One woman I treated during a hike had spent years limping despite chiropractic care. Two minutes later, she stood up pain-free. Another patient on a cruise ship had already undergone spinal fusion and was still in agony—until we did the two-minute stretch, and she smiled with complete relief for the first time in years.
How to Tell If Your SI Joint Is the Problem
Here’s a quick self-test:
Stand straight and find the bony bumps just below your waist in the back (called the PSISs).
Place a finger under each bump.
Push down just below the bony bumps. If you are tender where you just pushes, that is because that joint is displaced.
If one is higher than the other, your pelvis is out of alignment—and likely the root of your pain.
That misalignment can strain the ligaments surrounding the joint, irritate nerves, and strain the muscles working at keeping the joint well aligned.
What to Do If the Pain Comes Back
Because my ligaments had been weakened by pregnancy and time, I needed ongoing support to stay pain-free. That’s why I also recommend:
Wearing a Serola Belt, which supports the pelvis low across the hips, for all activities like walking, running, lifting weights, etc.
Sit on a donut to keep the Sitz bones (which are part of your pelvic bones) together or avoid prolonged sitting.
Prolotherapy—a treatment I used myself that strengthens ligaments through regenerative injections
That combination—realignment, support, and healing—is what finally gave me long-term freedom from pain.
Why This Often Gets Missed
Because your hip joints are inside your pelvic bones, every time your foot hits the ground, your pelvic bones and the attached SI joints are jolted. Your SI joints are your body's shock absorbers. To absorb this shock, unlike all the other joints, which are smooth, the SI joints are full of irregularities. They are so irregular that they do not show up well on imaging, and most health professionals are never trained to examine them. That's why so many people are misdiagnosed, sent for spinal surgery, or told the pain is "in their head."
But it’s real. I lived it. And I’ve helped hundreds walk away from it—often in just one session.
A Message from My Heart
Though I’m now retired, I continue to teach this method through my writing, videos, and course—because no one should suffer for years the way I did. If someone had shown me this solution during my pregnancy, I could have prevented decades of unnecessary pain and disability.
If your scans are clear, but your pain is still real…
If you’re tired of pills, procedures, and platitudes…
Please know: You are not broken. You are likely just out of alignment.
And the solution might be surprisingly simple.
Want to Learn More?
Get my book: “Low Back Pain, 3 Steps to Relief in 2 Minutes” by Clicking Here
And
🎥 Register for my free webinar: Live Without Pain
If you’ve been told your pain is a pinched nerve—but nothing’s worked—this free class will help you understand what’s really going on and what to do next.
Wishing you strength, rest, and real relief,
— Hélène Bertrand, MD (retired)
CLICK HERE TO RECEIVE LOW BACK PAIN RELIEF in 2 MINUTES!
Disclaimer: This content is for informational and educational purposes only and does not substitute professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your healthcare provider before starting any new treatment or making changes to your health regimen. Although Dr. Bertrand is a retired medical doctor, she is not practicing medicine or providing medical care through this website.
