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Post by Patter on Jul 8, 2019 10:16:38 GMT
UPDATE 7/25: The MRI results for my sciatica showed that I have: *Spinal stenosis *significant degenerative disc disease *arthritis I am being referred to a pain specialist but I also have asked for a referral to a neurologist that teaches at my daughter's medical school. He is a spinal stenosis expert, and she says he is amazing! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I need wisdom, ideas, and help. I have been to the doctor twice, and she has now ordered an MRI. I have had this for 6 weeks, and it is consuming my life because it is so bad. Everything she has prescribed, I have done with no relief. Is there anything I am missing that I could try? My pain runs a 5-10 daily. It's on my right side in my buttocks, behind knee, and calf. My calf and toes are always tingling. Here is what I have done/am doing but my pain still runs high: 1. Prednisone pack 21's (worked only for two days then tapered down and pain started again). 2. Muscle relaxer (doesn't touch the pain or even make me sleepy). 3. Stretches, foam roller, and walking (do daily and is probably helping some but not near enough). 4. Ice (doesn't help). 5. Anti-inflammatory (helps some but not near enough). 6. Bath with epson salt and peppermint essential oil (did nothing). 7. KT tape and biofreeze cream (doesn't work either). I pray I am not doomed to suffer until an MRI done and results received. This is miserable. I miss myself.  I miss having fun, getting things done, being "bubbly," etc., and I hate waking up in pain. I feel for those of you that suffer with daily pain (including two of my daughters). It truly is awful. Hugs to those of you that suffer from any kind of daily pain, and thank you all for any ideas/help you can give me. |
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MDscrapaholic
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,375
Location: Down by the bay....
Jun 25, 2014 20:49:07 GMT
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Post by MDscrapaholic on Jul 8, 2019 10:23:13 GMT
Acupuncture? I have a friend who swears it helps her.
im sorry you’re dealing with this. I had it while pregnant and it’s not fun.
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wellway
Prolific Pea
Posts: 8,769
Jun 25, 2014 20:50:09 GMT
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Post by wellway on Jul 8, 2019 10:24:28 GMT
Would you consider acupuncture?
I have a niggling back pain, on my right side as well,that was off the scale at one point. My doctor suggest the acupuncturist that she had used. She stuck six pins in and it was a great help. Once I was at a better place pain wise, I took up yoga which was great at stretching out the muscles and ligaments.
Hugs to you. I hope you get some relief soon.
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Post by christine58 on Jul 8, 2019 10:28:21 GMT
Chiropractor???
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Post by littlemama on Jul 8, 2019 10:29:29 GMT
-Chiropractor
-There is a stretch that helps, but it is hard to explain- lay on your back, bring your knee up and twist your torso to the opposite side. If you have soneone who can help push your leg higher, that helps.
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Post by papercrafteradvocate on Jul 8, 2019 10:29:48 GMT
I would try the following:
Massage, focusing on the sciatica nerve,
Lay on floor, butt against the wall, swing kegs up wall (like you’re sitting on the wall). You can put a towel or pillow to raise your rear —sit like that for 10 minute increments,
Tennis or racquet ball—lay on floor and place the ball under your rear finding your sciatica nerve and use your body weight to press into your sciatica nerve-slowly roll the ball to the next point along the nerve as you feel the pain releasing, (this is my favorite)
I’ll lay on the floor or bed with my soles of my feet touching (frog legs) and a towel rolled up under each knee, I’ll focus on breathing from my belly and stay in that position for 30 minutes just working on relaxing my lower torso,
My hubby will take his thumb or fist and push into my rear, locating my sciatica by my scream of pain (lol) and apply pressure until it releases. He will then keep moving along the nerve applying constant pressure until I feel better.
In the morning before I get out of bed, I’ll lay on my back, swing my leg up to the ceiling-sole to the ceiling and hold it in a stretch, alternating pointing my toes. I then pull my knee to my chest and hold that for 30-60 seconds, release and do again to take pressure off my lower torso.
These all provide instant relief and I have less and less issues , because I had constant regular weekly massages addressing it. (I was plagued with so much sciatic pain for a few years until I got regular massages). Now, all these helpers above give me relief—with no meds.
Good luck I know how much it hurts!!
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lesley
Drama Llama
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Posts: 7,180 
Location: Scotland, Scotland, Scotland
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Post by lesley on Jul 8, 2019 10:34:54 GMT
I used to get dreadful sciatica, and I remember being off work for six weeks once because I couldn’t move, couldn’t sit or lie or think about anything other than the pain. I visited an osteopath who made it worse. I took anti-inflammatories which barely scratched the surface, so moved onto codeine which was much better. If I remember correctly, massage and gentle exercise, especially swimming, gradually made a difference. I struggled with sciatica for several years, but I don’t get it anymore. I traded it for rheumatoid arthritis instead!  |
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twinsmomfla99
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,987
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Post by twinsmomfla99 on Jul 8, 2019 10:35:53 GMT
I have had sciatica for 2.5 years, and yes, it is miserable!
A chiropractor helped when I first got it. Once that first round of severe pain was under control, I stopped going and haven’t had to go back.
I try to do stretches daily to keep it from coming back, but I do have flares ups once in a while. Ice and a TENS unit usually have me back on track in a couple of days. It took me a while to figure out where I needed to put the TENS pads to be most effective (they need to be higher on my back than where I actually feel the pain), but they work so much better than pain medication.
My bad knee aggravates the whole situation because it has thrown of my normal gait, and that is what caused the first sciatica flare-up.
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Post by koontz on Jul 8, 2019 11:29:05 GMT
Yoga? I am not a yoga person but like you, I`d tried everything else  . I bought a yoga wheel and do back stretches on the wheel that really help. I would not recommend doing that without consulting your doctor and/or a yoga instructor, but perhaps it's something you can look into. |
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Post by dewryce on Jul 8, 2019 11:30:25 GMT
I’m sorry you’re dealing with it, it is miserable! Did you go to a PT to learn what stretches to do, how to do them and confirm you are feeling them in the right location/muscle? If not, I would highly recommend that, it can make all of the difference. No other advice other than to be careful behind the wheel of the car, for a while mine would suddenly get so bad I could barely press the brake hard enough to stop even if I pulled quickly over. It happened a few times and then I wouldn’t drive anything over 30 minutes by myself anymore (mine occurred when I drove longer distances or when I was already really tight and then drove). Medication, Vicodin helped take the edge off a little if I took it when I first started feeling the symptoms.
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Post by lisae on Jul 8, 2019 11:42:48 GMT
I'm sorry you are having this awful pain. It is so consuming. When I experienced the most of it a few years ago, I was already doing acupuncture for TMJ - which was very helpful. Unfortunately it did not help my sciatica.
Pay attention to what chairs you sit in, how you sleep. I found that I needed some extra back support and a lot of my soft comfy chairs just had to go or I couldn't sit in them any longer. When mine flares up it is usually because I've been slouching in a comfy chair too long and not moving enough - usually in winter.
Have you tried a heating pad to relax the muscles in your back. Tight muscles will make all this worse.
What helped me the most was physical therapy. Strengthening the abdominal muscles was the best medicine though it takes time. You will probably want to wait until the MRI results though to be sure you don't do anything to make things worse.
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Post by elaine on Jul 8, 2019 11:52:26 GMT
Acupuncture and yoga. The acupuncture to help with the pain immediately and the yoga to help with it over the long run. I’d especially look into taking Yin style yoga classes in which the focus is on holding stretches/poses for 5 minutes at a time, allowing for deep muscle and tendon stretching.
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Post by jjpeapea on Jul 8, 2019 12:03:06 GMT
Sent you a PM
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CeeScraps
Pearl Clutcher
~~occupied entertaining my brain~~
Posts: 3,829
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Post by CeeScraps on Jul 8, 2019 12:16:44 GMT
Chiropractor and foam roller.
For your foam roller it is going to hurt a lot, but work through it. I rolled a minimum of 15 minutes right on the spot and around it. I pushed really hard. I was crying to the point my dog came up to comfort me.
I did this 4 times a day. It finally, finally went away. I couldn’t hardly walk. Once I felt progress I just pushed down harder on the roller. I too had muscle relaxers. They didn’t touch it. It was the roller and the chiropractor that did it for me.
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SabrinaP
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Busy Teacher Pea
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Post by SabrinaP on Jul 8, 2019 12:19:09 GMT
My DH got relief from his chiropractor. He was in such pain and would be bed ridden, flat on his back several times a month. Since seeing his chiropractor, he’s been so much better.
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Post by mustlovecats on Jul 8, 2019 12:21:44 GMT
THE WORST.
My chiropractor fixed it up for me in a couple of weeks. I did the exercises and stretching.
The key is to know if it’s a structural problem such as a disc or if it’s piriformis syndrome because you treat those differently.
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Post by Patter on Jul 8, 2019 12:23:54 GMT
Thank you all for your responses. Sorry that some of you have suffered so also. I can tell you totally get the excruciating pain part. It's awful! And I am not interested in trying a chiropractor but may be willing to try acupuncture after I get the MRI and results. papercrafteradvocate, thank you for the stretch info. I have seen and tried some of those. The one up the wall is really hard for me to do but I will continue to try. I also do several others you have mentioned. I haven't tried the tennis ball thing. I think I need a video. I am a visual person. I will see what I can find. littlemama, I do that particular stretch you describe each morning before I get out of bed. My daughter is in medical school (D.O.), and she has done a few things for me but they haven't helped, and she is not here all of the time to help with certain positions/stretches. lisae, I tried the heating pad once. I might need to try that again. It's so inconvenient though to use. CeeScraps, what foam roller did you use? Maybe I need to try something different. dewryce, yep, driving is so hard. I also think being so short has caused more problems. My whole life I have driven with my toes because my legs are so short. Also, my feet never, ever touch the ground in a chair. They dangle with the backs of my knees at the ends of chairs. It's awful. Nothing ever fits me, and this does not help. I need to go buy some miniature chairs! Thank you all again, and keep the ideas coming. I pray this does NOT last years. I don't know how some of you have done it. Hugs!!!! |
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CeeScraps
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~~occupied entertaining my brain~~
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Post by CeeScraps on Jul 8, 2019 12:29:39 GMT
Thank you all for your responses. Sorry that some of you have suffered so also. I can tell you totally get the excruciating pain part. It's awful! And I am not interested in trying a chiropractor but may be willing to try acupuncture after I get the MRI and results. papercrafteradvocate , thank you for the stretch info. I have seen and tried some of those. The one up the wall is really hard for me to do but I will continue to try. I also do several others you have mentioned. I haven't tried the tennis ball thing. I think I need a video. I am a visual person. I will see what I can find. littlemama , I do that particular stretch you describe each morning before I get out of bed. My daughter is in medical school (D.O.), and she has done a few things for me but they haven't helped, and she is not here all of the time to help with certain positions/stretches. lisae , I tried the heating pad once. I might need to try that again. It's so inconvenient though to use. CeeScraps , what foam roller did you use? Maybe I need to try something different. dewryce , yep, driving is so hard. I also think being so short has caused more problems. My whole life I have driven with my toes because my legs are so short. Also, my feet never, ever touch the ground in a chair. They dangle with the backs of my knees at the ends of chairs. It's awful. Nothing ever fits me, and this does not help. I need to go buy some miniature chairs! Thank you all again, and keep the ideas coming. I pray this does NOT last years. I don't know how some of you have done it. Hugs!!!! The roller I have is thick, about 10” in diameter. I got it at Sports Authority years ago. Try Dick’s Sporting Goods to see if they have them. It was costly, but worth every penny I spent. When I have a pain I use it. Now, if I truly were good I’d use it daily. It gets to tissue like I’ve never felt before. Mine is white, but I’ve also seen blue ones. Color I don’t think makes a difference. It is durable and can also be sat on to roll my booty!! |
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cakediva
Drama Llama
Making the world a sweeter place one cake at a time!
Posts: 7,444
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Post by cakediva on Jul 8, 2019 12:37:46 GMT
I was seeing a chiropractor for a neck issue when my sciatic issue started (when I was down to a once a month adjustment). She started focusing on lower back/pelvis. And suggested I see a massage therapist in her office.
It has worked wonders. The massage therapist does assisted stretching first. Then she massages both legs and butt cheeks well. Lots of pressure. I was seeing her every other week (only twice so far) and then she was away so it will have been a month when I see her next week.
My pain was on and off, not constant, and mostly end of day after standing/sitting while working on cakes.
Hope you get some relief!
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Deleted
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May 18, 2024 23:21:44 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2019 12:44:14 GMT
I had something similar a few months back. After the MRI it was determined that I had a cyst on my spine...after they drained it and injected prednisone...I got immediate relief ... Good luck
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peabay
Prolific Pea
Posts: 9,618
Jun 25, 2014 19:50:41 GMT
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Post by peabay on Jul 8, 2019 12:46:14 GMT
Please see a physical therapist. I had it and I understand the pain. I learned several stretches and exercises and tips on how to sit, stand, lay down etc... that helped. I've also gotten relief for other issues from acupuncture, so I would also recommend that.
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peppermintpatty
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea #1345
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Post by peppermintpatty on Jul 8, 2019 13:01:31 GMT
I'm not sure why you wouldn't be interested in seeing a chiropractor. In all honesty, that would help much more than acupuncture. Chiropractors are not all about cracking you. You should check out chiro's that went to New York Chiropractic, they have a different approach which is wonderful.
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kelly8875
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Post by kelly8875 on Jul 8, 2019 13:03:56 GMT
Not sure why you won’t consider a chiropractor, but at least give it some consideration. I’ve had it, and my chiro fixed me right up. And for only my $20 co-pagans a couple of visits. Cheaper, and faster than an MRI.
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Post by lisacharlotte on Jul 8, 2019 13:06:04 GMT
Physical therapist. It’s what they do. DH suffers from sciatica but refuses to see a PT to get help. He’d rather take drugs. He did do PT almost 30 years ago and it helped. I don’t know why he won’t do it now.
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Post by vpohlman on Jul 8, 2019 13:14:41 GMT
Don’t see a chiropractor until you have the MRI or at least xrays!!! I went to a chiropractor before I had either of those and it was a disaster! It got worse each time I went, seven times! After I finished a round of that I went back to my regular doctor and she did xrays. I’m missing a piece on one of my discs and it allows the discs to slip apart, pinching the nerve! Then I did PT to strengthen the muscles around it to help keep it together! That and, honestly, Richard Simmons’ Sweatin’ to the Oldies put it back in place! That was about six years ago and I’ve been able to keep it in place with exercise and sitting and standing correctly. It was a learning experience for sure! Good luck, and get those tests done first!
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Post by Darcy Collins on Jul 8, 2019 13:19:52 GMT
I'm honestly shocked that your doctor didn't prescribe physical therapy. You need to schedule an appointment with a physical therapist who specializes in issues with the spine.
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Post by crazy4scraps on Jul 8, 2019 13:37:16 GMT
I'm not sure why you wouldn't be interested in seeing a chiropractor. In all honesty, that would help much more than acupuncture. Chiropractors are not all about cracking you. You should check out chiro's that went to New York Chiropractic, they have a different approach which is wonderful.  I went to a guy that uses this little clicker thing. I was so skeptical at first but everybody who went to him swore by him. No cracking involved at all, and he solved about 90% of my chronic back, neck and shoulder pain in about six months. Then we moved and I see a different traditional chiro guy for maintenance and he adjusts my lower back and hips differently (drop table doesn’t work for me) and the remaining lower back pain I had is also much better now. It may not be for everyone but it sure worked for me. I also agree with looking into PT, that has worked wonders for me for several different issues. It’s important to have someone actually watching you do the exercises and stretches so you know you’re doing them correctly because if you do them wrong you can hurt yourself even more. |
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Judy26
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Post by Judy26 on Jul 8, 2019 13:51:38 GMT
My chiro is worth his weight in gold. The other thing I do is swim. It stretches out all of my muscles and strengthens my core without killing my abs. Finding a chiro who uses X-ray to locate your trouble spots is key. Good luck.
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kate
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Jun 26, 2014 3:30:05 GMT
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Post by kate on Jul 8, 2019 14:16:14 GMT
I had terrible sciatica during my first pregnancy. Everyone said it would go away when the baby was born. It didn't, and I couldn't even carry him around the house because the pain was so bad.
I got relief from the chiropractor (several visits).
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Post by peano on Jul 8, 2019 14:22:34 GMT
This won't be a popular answer, but have you looked into the psychological causes of pain? I've tried multiple go-rounds with different providers of chiro, PT, pain management through epidural injections, acupuncture etc., but I believe that even though, yes, the pain is real, but there is a strong psychological component to how we experience and live with pain.
Dr. David Hanscom, a back surgeon, has written extensively about this, has a systematic program that he makes all his patients follow before he will do surgery on any of them, and this program is available for free on his website.
That being said, I've been seeing a massage therapist weekly for the past couple of months for 1 1/2 hour long medical massage--myofascial release and other modalities, and I'm just starting to see some changes. This is not an entirely pleasant and relaxing massage--sometimes it hurts like an SOB, but I do feel optimistic for the first time in a long time.
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I miss having fun, getting things done, being "bubbly," etc., and I hate waking up in pain. I feel for those of you that suffer with daily pain (including two of my daughters). It truly is awful. Hugs to those of you that suffer from any kind of daily pain, and thank you all for any ideas/help you can give me.
. I bought a yoga wheel and do back stretches on the wheel that really help. I would not recommend doing that without consulting your doctor and/or a yoga instructor, but perhaps it's something you can look into.
I went to a guy that uses this little clicker thing. I was so skeptical at first but everybody who went to him swore by him. No cracking involved at all, and he solved about 90% of my chronic back, neck and shoulder pain in about six months. Then we moved and I see a different traditional chiro guy for maintenance and he adjusts my lower back and hips differently (drop table doesn’t work for me) and the remaining lower back pain I had is also much better now. It may not be for everyone but it sure worked for me.
