Night Pain in the Centre of the Buttock ???

It's been a tiring day, you have either standing for long and you think of getting a good night sleep; you lie down and try to turn to other side and OUCHHHH; you get a sharp pain in the center of the buttock . What just happened to you , well the culprit here is the piriformis muscle, which in long term affects the movement of your sacroiliac joint (SI Joint).

This is more likely to affect females 6 times more than the males, reasons are anatomical where women typically have a smaller SI joint surface area compared to men, resulting in a higher concentration of stresses across the joint. Also women tend to have more standing hours as compared to men.

The pain from the buttock can spread to the back of the leg till knee in long term. The piriformis muscle can get tight, or there might have been some injury, can happen during or after pregnancy , this can further irritate your sciatic nerve and can give sciatica like symptoms also.

How to identify if it's Piriformis Muscle

1. Changing positions while sleeping becomes difficult & can give sharp pain.

2. Standing keeps giving a nagging pain in the buttock.

3. While walking as soon as your heel strikes the ground , pain rushes throughout the leg up to hip

What to do

1. Ice / Cryotherapy gives you an instant relief.

2. Applying any analgesic gels when in pain.

3. Stretching piriformis ; followed by strengthening is very helpful for this.

4. Releasing the muscle using foam roller or massage balls is very beneficial.