What We Treat

Lumbar traction in San Clemente.

The pain that spikes the second you sit down. The burning that runs down your leg and won’t quit. Pressure on a lumbar disc or nerve is fixable, and it starts with a cause-first evaluation, not a guess.

Herniated disc Sciatica Nerve compression Talk to a Specialist

Sound Familiar?

Does this sound like you?

  • A burning or tingling line that runs from your low back down one leg
  • Pain that spikes the moment you sit down and eases when you finally stand
  • Relief the second you lie down flat, and dread when it’s time to get back up
  • Morning stiffness in your low back that takes the first hour to loosen up
  • A leg that feels heavy or slightly weak, like the signal isn’t getting through
  • Pain that worsens the longer you stay planted in your desk chair

Two or more? Keep reading.

Why It Happens

Low back pain is a symptom. Something causes it.

Your low back doesn’t hurt for no reason. Often a bulging or worn disc in your lumbar spine is crowding a nerve root right where it exits, and that’s what sends the burning, the tingling, or the heaviness down your leg. Hours of sitting, repeated bending and lifting, and deep muscles that quietly weakened after your last flare-up keep reloading that same irritated spot before it can settle.

None of that shows up on a quick glance. It takes a real, cause-first evaluation to find which level and which structure is actually pinching. Gentle lumbar traction can ease that pressure off the disc and nerve, but it’s one tool inside the plan, not a magic machine. We only reach for it once we know it’s right for your back, and we always pair it with hands-on care and strengthening so the relief holds.

Physical therapist assessing a patient's low back to check for nerve compression before lumbar traction

The Honest Truth

Waiting on a back doesn’t make it wait on you.

If you keep waiting

  • The tingling down your leg turns into numbness, and numbness is harder to reverse
  • A disc under constant pressure keeps flaring, and the flares get closer together
  • You move less to avoid the pain, which weakens the exact muscles supposed to protect your spine

If you start this week

  • You know which disc or level is actually pinching by the end of visit one
  • Traction and hands-on work start taking pressure off the nerve
  • You get a plan with an endpoint: a real one, not an open tab of visits

Nobody regrets starting too early. Every week, someone in our clinic says they regret waiting.

How We Fix It

The same four phases. Built for your back.

Every plan has an endpoint. Traction lives in the early phases; here’s how the four fit together for a low back.

Weeks 1–2

Pain

Take pressure off the nerve.

Gentle lumbar traction and hands-on techniques decompress the irritated disc and calm the leg symptoms, starting your very first visit.

Weeks 2–6

Prime

Get your low back moving again.

Continued traction keeps the disc decompressed while targeted mobility restores motion in the stiff segments that have been quietly guarding the injury.

Weeks 6–10

Perform

Build a back you can trust.

Progressive core and hip strengthening rebuilds the support your spine was missing, so the relief traction created actually holds.

Weeks 10+

Prevent

Keep the pain from coming back.

Your lifting, bending, and sitting mechanics get retrained under real load before you’re cleared to go all-in: that’s the endpoint, not just another appointment.

Traction can calm an irritated disc and nerve quickly, but lasting results come from what we pair it with: hands-on care and progressive strengthening built around your cause.

The DSC Performance approach · Low back

Nerve pain that flared the moment he sat down

Traction paired with hands-on care and strengthening that keeps the door open

Low back & sciatica Cause-first plan

Related Conditions

Pain rarely stays in one place.

Compensation patterns often show up nearby. Here’s what else we treat.

1

Back Pain & Sciatica

The burning that shoots down your leg mid-drive. It starts in your back, not your leg.

Learn More 2

Hip & Knee Pain

When your low back offloads onto a hip or knee, the ache travels down with it.

Learn More 3

Neck Pain

The same decompression approach, one level up: traction for a pinched nerve in the neck.

Learn More

Questions, Answered

What people ask before booking for lumbar traction.

In the right hands, yes. Lumbar traction gently eases the space around a compressed disc and nerve, and it’s applied one-on-one by a Doctor of Physical Therapy who dials the amount to your back and stops well short of anything sharp. It’s never forced. If traction isn’t the right tool for your case, we simply won’t use it. The goal is to take pressure off the nerve, not to push through pain.

Honestly, no, and any clinic promising a machine will cure you is overselling it. Traction relieves the pressure on an irritated disc and nerve, which can calm your symptoms quickly, but lasting results come from what we pair it with: hands-on care and progressive strengthening that rebuild the support around your spine. Traction opens the door, and the strengthening is what keeps it open.

Many people feel the leg pain and stiffness settle within the first 4–6 visits. A full plan runs through all four phases, Pain, Prime, Perform, and Prevent, typically over 8–10 weeks, depending on how long the nerve’s been irritated. Either way, you get a plan with an endpoint: you’ll always know which phase you’re in and what’s left, not an open-ended string of appointments.

Book Your Visit

Ready when you are.

Request a time and a real person calls you back, usually within two business hours. No phone tree. No ‘someone will reach out.’ Just a plan.

  • Hours Monday - Friday: 7am - 7pm
  • (949) 388-5692 Prefer to talk now? Call us.
  • Same-week appointments available

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Care this good, this close.

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