Sciatica

For me, one of the simplest things in the world is effective.

Lying down next to a coffee table on the ground on my back with my butt against the end and my legs up on the table top, almost like I'm sitting on the side of the table.  

take the pressure off and let's the muscles relax.

that and core strengthening to keep it from happening.

feel better, lumber truck, back pain blows.

Do you know what's causing it?

A few years ago I had hip and sciatic issues that went on for months and were brutal. Doctors, chiro, Rolfing and physical therapists did nothing.

I went to a new chiropractor who specializes in sports injuries. During my initial exam he pressed on a spot just above my pubic bone, and it brought instant pain. "Old groin injury," he said, "It's causing everything else to be out of whack."

He did a bout of deep pressure on it and showed me how to do it myself. I'll be fucked, two days later I had zero hip or sciatic pain! It was that easy.

Muscle relaxers and get in a sit up position with your knees up. Then flatten the small of your back to the ground. You can also start a crunch sit up but hold it once you get your head up off the ground about 6-12". And as mentioned above work on that core

Sleeping with a pillow between my legs / quads helps.

Have found that an all cotton / traditional futon mattress is the best for me ... finally got a king sized one delivered the other day.  Went through just about every type of mattress I could find, including every different "firmness" of memory foam and traditional box spring.  Generally speaking, the firmer the mattress the better my scatia pain ... but virtually all modern traditional mattresses have some layer of foam ... which creates a body impression "pit" where my butt sinks in (making things worse).

Likewise, most modern futons sold in the US will have either foam or springs inside ... creating the same issue.  All cotton (or maybe wool) will also create an impression, but not as bad ... there's something about the way it compresses (well).  And if after a few days / week(s) you do get a deeper impression in the mattress, you can just flip it over / spin it/ beat it out (I believe there's even a traditional "stick" to do this with).

Everyone is going to be different, but I can't say enough how affected by lower back / scatia pain & numbness is affected by what Im sleeping on ... it's very noticeable after a 2-3 days.  It might not cure your pain altogether, but it might shave off a decent percentage of how sedentary posture (while sleeping) can make things worse in the long run. 

OC, as you can see, there are a lot of ways to relieve the pain. For me, though, I wanted to find the underlying cause. Those too are varied, and are hard to diagnose. I went to two doctors, physical therapy, Rolfing, and it was my second chiropractor that figured it out.

I was already doing a ton of core work and stretching. It helped a little, but not much. The same for NSAIDS. Muscle relaxers did nothing. It was an old groin pull that had adhered, and deep pressure to pull it off the fascia was all it needed. But that was me. Honestly, if you want to figure it out and not have to use drugs, it may take a lot of work to find the right diagnosis. Maybe look for a really good sports chiropractor in your area, someone who knows their shit.

Good luck.

I'm not sure of the cause <<<

Mine was caused by Bulging discs L4-L5  and After 2 years Of This Sucks ! I Finally had Surgery - Hope it Heals Lumber with Time P/T or whatever means.

Lumber also Try a Compression Sleeve they have helped me and i still use it when i have Flare Ups ( right leg )

https://www.tommiecopper.com/men-s-recovery-compression-calf-sleeve-2

I got an inversion table a few years ago for sciatica, chiro and therapeutic massage only made matters worse and cost an arm and a leg.(I was literally shopping online for walkers it was so bad) but the inversion table works like a dream for me.

First tinge of the sciatica I hit the table. About 30 second hangs at 60 degree angle is all I do. Usually I'll do three or four 30 second hangs over a few hours and it's darned near miraculous. I haven't had extreme sciatica pain since I got the inversion table. Great for back aches too. Best $200 I've ever spent. Totally worth it.

Since I got a sleep number bed and I set it to 100, really firm, my back rarely flares up to were the pain runs down my leg. At times, especially after playing golf I can feel the pain in the side of my back, but it settlles down in a few hours after playing. Like Rob I had two bulging disc that caused a lot of problems from a basketball injury. A guy took me out when going up for a lay up by going across my chest to try to block the shot, landed flat on my back, total cheap shot.  i then spent a month and a half on my back on the living room floor rehabbing. I have also had a torn rotator cuff, and torn a bunch of ligaments in my right ankle from playing basketball. Also had a neck fusion from degenerative disc. Always thought I would shoot jump shots till the day I died , but now I cant even hit the rim from 5 feet away, or swing a hammer very hard, but wtf I had some fun

sciatica is an inflammation.  ant-inflammatory drugs are given by pain management docs.   sciatica is impervious to opiates. 

in addition to injected drug treatment i eat foods that have an anti-inflammatory effect in the body.

organic turmeric powder.  pickled ginger.  pickled horseradish.

consumed daily these foods build up in your bloodstream providing continued anti-inflammatory response.

it helps w/ tree pollen & joint inflammation.  IMO

hope you feel better soon.

Watching Bull Riding - those Riders Must End Up with Serious Back Problems Later in Life = Gnarly !

Break down and go to the dr!

I waited two months before going for my shoulder.

Turns out no surgery, PT did the trick.  Last session tomorrow and the pain is gone.

Embrace science!

I had sciatica last year, took six months for it to finally subside. Most persistent shooting and annoying pain ever.

I don't know, frozen shoulder blew sciatic pain out of the water.

I partially tore 2 rotator cuff tendons, the bicep tendon and the glenoid labrum, all in one fell swoop.

Instead of going to the doc, I nursed it for 6 weeks and didn't move it. Big mistake! Frozen shoulder was horrible, unreal even. I'd move my arm in my sleep and wake up screaming.

Christ, this getting old thing sucks! Right now I have tendonitis in the other shoulder and a really sore adductor. It never ends!

I am dealing with two frozen shoulders as I type this.

Last year I went to put on a shirt and bam....wtf? Never felt so much pain in my life. Figured it would go away but it never did. Finally went to doctor and found out it was frozen shoulder. 16 pt sessions later and I had some improvement.

Fast forward to this year, I went to put some dishes away and pop, there goes my left shoulder. Since this has occurred, my right shoulder is now bum again.

Here's the deal, it is very, very painful when you place your arm in a certain position. A lot of my family just think I'm making my pain scale up. But I have almost cried trying to.....hmm....finish up using the restroom (as well as just normal motions). Not only does it hurt your shoulder, there is pain in elbow and other areas. At least in my case.

Hope you all feel better!

brian is wise here... find the real issue... things just dont pop up for no reason....

please avoid all pharmies, including ibuprofin....

After my MRI, the orthopedic surgeon gave me my first piece of advice: stop going to PT immediately.

He was absolutely right. The PT would move my arm well past the point it wanted to go (which was virtually nowhere). In doing so, it was creating more adhesion. It then made total sense that I went two steps backwards after every PT session.

The idea is to keep your arm moving, but never to the point that it's locking up. It just takes time.

Oh, and he did give me a 10cc cortisone shot, which really allowed it to start healing. I then spent 5 days a week in the gym doing the proper rehab and strengthening of the supporting muscles. That shoulder is now stronger than ever. The other one is always kind of bum from repeated football, snowboarding and kickboxing injuries.

And yes, avoid all pharmaceuticals if at all possible.

No surgery necessary for the patial rotator cuff tears?

They were more concerned with the labrum tear. He said, "It really doesn't matter what the MRI says. If in 6 months it's still impeding your lifestyle, we'll then talk about surgery."

Although it was healing, the one thing that I was unable to do was swim. That was the tipping point for me. The thought of not being able to swim or play in waves would have pushed me to surgery. But, as last summer wore on I got more and more strength and mobility, and I could swim.

Like I said, I rehabbed incessantly and did everything I was told. It sure as hell beat surgery!

> The PT would move my arm well past the point it wanted to go (which was virtually nowhere). 

What the hell. Sucks when you can't trust PT. I'm about to  - or was about to - start PT. Got a cortisone shot last week, didn't do much o help, and I'm trying to avoid shoulder surgery - there's a host of shoulder damage* besides the frozen shoulder.  Likely that after I injured my shoulder and started to rest it, the frozen shoulder set in. Getting a 2nd opinion next week. 

The surgeon I met with was talking  stretching  the shoulder to release the stiffened joint capsule - intense  manipulation - under anesthesia in combination with arthroscopy to repair some of the other damage. 

Ya think this will heal without surgery? 

*REPORT: Tendinosis supraspinatus with bursal surface fraying.  Tendinosis  

infraspinatus.  Subscapularis intact.  Teres minor intact.  Biceps tendon  

identified in its groove.  Biceps labral anchor SLAP 2 tear with extension into  

the anterior superior and anterior labrum.  Remainder of labral tissue intact.   

Acromioclavicular joint mild bulbous degenerative changes with lateral downslope  

posterior tilt type II acromion.  Bone marrow minimal cystic changes posterior  

superior lateral humeral head.  Surrounding soft tissue demonstrates minimal  

joint effusion with thickened edematous appearing axillary pouch suspicious for  

adhesive capsulitis.  

IMPRESSION:   

1.  Thickened edematous appearing axillary pouch with paucity of joint effusion  

suspicious for adhesive capsulitis.  

2.  SLAP 2 tear biceps labral anchor with extension into the anterior superior  

to mid labrum.  

3.  Tendinosis supraspinatus infraspinatus tendons without full-thickness tear.  

4.  Mild bulbous degenerative acromioclavicular joint lateral downslope  

posterior tilt type II acromium.  

Nancy, my guy said, "I don't understand why the PTs can never figure it out. If they manually manipulate you, the arm stops moving and the whole body moves, it's frozen shoulder. It's a protective response, and when pulled and tugged it adheres even more."

From  my understanding, frozen shoulder almost always gets better on its own within 9-12 months. If that's the case, Fuck the manipulation under anesthesia.

Go to the gym and put the lat pulldown bar at the highest weight. Hold on to it and put as much weight on it as you can handle, which is probably almost nothing. Hold it for 30 seconds. Do it again at a narrower or wider grip. Do each grip 3-4 times, holding it for 30-60 seconds. Over time you'll find that you can put more and more weight on it. From my research, that's the best thing you can do. Then, work on strengthening all the supporting muscles.

I do, Nancy. My report was slightly worse than yours...slightly. It's pretty much a carbon copy though.

MRI Results:

-          Partial tear of supraspinitus tendon
-          Partial tear of subscapularis tendon
-          Partial tear of biceps tendon, multiple places
-          Labral tear, multiple places
-          Sprain AC joint
-          Frozen shoulder (prob a result of the other stuff)

How did you do yours?

130 Pound puppy did it to me. A 10 month old Bernadoodle. that was 3 months ago.   I was walking her for the first time and was caught off guard - my arm got yanked. HARD. I thought I was doing the right thing by resting it...and then it froze up. Although I didn't *really* rest it. I think I put in a sling for a couple of days, but that was long enough. Reassuing to know that you recovered without surgery. Totally bummed that I can't swim, play tennis, juggle..or get much sleep. 

I believe I have torn or at least partially torn rotator cuff. It's been over a month an still feels like charlie horse and I have to kinda throw my arm to lift it. My left arm is messed up too and in fact I think I was compensating for that messed up triceps tendon that has been giving me greif at least 6 months now. Also affecting my dexterity and grip on both arms. It sucks

I was being a total idiot at the gym. The worst part was that I wasn't even showing off. I was the only one there!

I learned my lesson the hard way.

We could sustain these sorts of injuries - or at least heal quicker - when we younger. I have no patience for this!

I've been forcing myself to not go to the gym for the last few days, so I can rest my shoulder and groin. I also ordered some thigh sleeve for my groin. 

I know what you mean, Nancy. The older I get the easier I break and the longer it takes to heal. On the upside, that shoulder Infucked up is now stronger and more stable than it ever was.

Greg, if I may, Google "rotator cuff exercises." You'll see that there are a ton of reputable sites with how-to's, and that they all have the same exercises. Do them religiously. It will help immensely.

Thanks Brian.    

I found microdoses of thc helped me sleep the night through when my shoulder pain interrupted sleep, nancy. Just 5 mg Valhalla gummy about an hour before bed, and I slept through the night and woke up ready to face the day with no grogginess. Worth a try if you're losing too much sleep. My doctor advised me to stop PT, he said it could make it worse, and for me it didn't really help anyhow.  Go easy on any sort of shoulder exercise, slow and no pain, no pain. Surgery helped my shoulder a lot, still aches, but nothing like before..but any time they cut you is risky. My surgeon sold me on it with promises of 100% recovery, I'd say more like 90%. 

doc gave me a drug called Indocin. dummy me took it for a week before reading up on it. stopped and switched over to pot candies - seems to work for about 4 hours of sleep. I'm so impatient, I don't think I would refuse surgery if second opinion doc says it's necessary. Both my sisters had similar shoulder issues and they went with surgery - 6 month later they were better than new. little sis is back to doing trapeze again, and older sis is back to her work out routine. 

I wish I'd had the surgery sooner, I wasted a lot of time on PT and shots for my shoulder only to get worse. 

I have a bulging disc and have been pain free with this schedule: 28 visits of Chiro per year, massage at least 1 X per month, daily stretching morning and night, water aerobics. 

Great demo of exercises to help calm down that sciatic nerve: https://livelovefruit.com/deep-piriformis-stretch-get-rid-of-sciatica/

Everyone is different. aiq gives good advice. GO SEE A DR.!