The most common sciatica symptoms are pain and discomfort that are felt along the path of the large sciatic nerve. This nerve runs from the lower back down the leg.  Here are some of the symptoms of sciatica, Pain. The constant burning sensation and shooting pain begins in the lower back, goes through the buttock, and radiates down the leg. You can feel the pain in the front or back of the thigh, leg, and/or feet. Numbness. Most often, this pain is accompanied by numbness in the back of the leg. And some people will have tingling and/or weakness as well. One-sided symptoms. For the most part, only one leg will be affected for the most part, and both legs will rarely be affected together. Posture-induced symptoms. Usually, symptoms of sciatica will get worse when sitting, lying down, or coughing. This is because you are bending or twisting the spine, which puts more pressure on the sciatica nerve.