sciatica

[essexgirl58]

I have today been diagnosed with sciatica. I have heard it can be very painful but mine is not that bad. I can walk fine but when I sit down I get painful twinges and then as I go to stand up it is quite painful but once I am up an on my feet and walking again it is fine and the pain has gone.

The hospital doctor said no two people are the same and whilst one person has it very badly, another has it mildly. I was given naproxen but it has not helped at all. I wass also given co codamol but am reluctant to take it because the side effects are drowsy and dizzy and I do not wnt either of those.

I do have some Anadin Ultra which I got from the chemist over the counter and I am wondering if that would be better at easing the pain. I am sat up in bed at the moment and if I try not to move too much its ok but if I suddenly move I get painful twinges.

Any advice. ? On a scale of 1 to 10 , my pain is about number 4 which is not tht bad compared to some who say theirs is horrendus. Mine is more annoying than anything

is anyone still responding to this thread

Some people find Epsom salts helpful but I’ve never used them so can’t advise. I’ve used a heat pack which I find helpful. I don’t time it. Just use until it’s cooled down.

In Davina's 7 minute fit there is a 7 minute stretching routine that I do when sciatica raises it's head. It's painful the first time around but by the third it feels a lot better and sciatica goes.

Over the past couple of years I've taken naproxen, gabapentin, coodamol, multiple muscle relaxants - they all make me tired initially then it wears off the more you take it. If your pain is enough to manage I wouldn't bother, I take them when I'm sweating in pain.

Worth trying physio style exercises - lots on YouTube

ok well my sciatica flares up if I sit too long. I was told not to keep sitting long but get up about every 5 to 10 minutes and stretch and sit back down again. I am still not on any painkillers because when moving aroun I have no pain. It is easy for me to ssit down and whilst sitting I feel no pain and forget that I have to get up after 10 minutes an then when I do I am in a lot of pain like last night. I was also sitting on the wrong chair which wa too hard even with a cushion.

As for the Epsom Salts, I do not feel they have done me the slightess good so I will not use them anymore. I think they are a gimick if I am perfectly honest. So.... I know exactly what to do in order to feel ok. an that is

1. Not sit for too long periods at a time

2 Do plenty of strething in between sitting

I do dancing and whilst dancing is exercising the muscles which is good for sciatica I have to be careful My osteopath wanted to know what movements I do in my dancing and I told her and so she said do not go until I say you can because as listed below one of the movements is a high impact aerobic activity.

I am convinced my sciatica was brought on by poor posture sitting at a desk because I work from home an do not have proper desk chair so I make do with my kitchen table and chair so I work slumped forward and I hae been working from home for over a year and the more yu slump forward it will eventually harm you and cause sciatica. My work are getting me a proper office chair where I can sit upright and adjut the back. A friend of mine said if that is the caue of yur sciatica why have you only jut got it after a year and I I said this

Sciatica can come on suddenly or gradually. It depends on the cause.

Avoid any movements that apply pressure to the lower back, hips, and thighs. This includes exercises that bend or twist from the waist, squats, and high-impact aerobic activities.

I will only know if I am totally better when I can sit for long periods without getting spasms. It is what it is an I just have to cope with it until it is gone. My GP said it will be gone in a week. Even though mine is quite mild it will still take three weeks or so to go and then once I get this new office chair it should not come back. I think if I was still working in the ofice then I would not hae got this sciatica. I am aged 58 and have never ha back pain ever before

Yanno this really isn't the big a deal you're making it out to be OP. You've pinched a nerve in your back, stretch it out and be mindful of your back in the future. I wouldn't even bother the GP for mild sciatica.

@gamerchick

Yanno this really isn't the big a deal you're making it out to be OP. You've pinched a nerve in your back, stretch it out and be mindful of your back in the future. I wouldn't even bother the GP for mild sciatica.

ok so do you think seeing an oteeopath is a wate of time as well?

Definitely see a physio. Everyone's different but my GP recommend physiotherapy after diagnosing sciatica and i went to s private one the next day. It cost about 65.00 but worth it. I followed the recomended exercises and was pain free very quickly. Yoga cat- cows were particularly helpful and I have continued to do this snd other yoga based stretches every day to maintain.

@Whatwouldnanado

Definitely see a physio. Everyone's different but my GP recommend physiotherapy after diagnosing sciatica and i went to s private one the next day. It cost about 65.00 but worth it. I followed the recomended exercises and was pain free very quickly. Yoga cat- cows were particularly helpful and I have continued to do this snd other yoga based stretches every day to maintain.

wow my osteopath is cheaper than your physio. Yes everyone is different. I tend to overthink things when in fact if I follow the guidane given I am fine. When you say you were pain free very quickly, do you mean you could sit? I am pain free except when sitting for very long.

I was told by the osteopath at the first visit not to do any exercises on my own at home for the moment. She wants to see how I resspon to her treatment first. I think she is good and good value for money

I had sciatica, now have sacroilitis so sciatica is a walk in the park! Etoricoxib is similar to naproxen but works better for some people. With some stretches and getting used to it you'll be fine, it's not a death sentence

@HelplesslyHoping

I had sciatica, now have sacroilitis so sciatica is a walk in the park! Etoricoxib is similar to naproxen but works better for some people. With some stretches and getting used to it you'll be fine, it's not a death sentence

no its not a death sentence its a walk in the park

Number 1 and number 6 of these stretches. Also, don’t lie on your front or back. Always on your side with a good firm pillow between your legs. If your very sore lie with the sore side facing up. Pillow between legs. You’ll feel relief.
Remember if you’re taking any of the anti inflammatories you must take some medicine to help your stomach too. They can irritate your stomach and cause an ulcer, see it all the time at work

I was with the physio for almost an hour. The sciatica came on after I was in bed bery poorly for several days with a reaction after a general anesthetic. She examined my posture, concerned about a preexisting problem with my SI joint, tilted pelvis seems to be the culprit. I went from having to be helped up onto the examination bed to moving much more comfortably within the session and it improved day on day as I did the exercises. The pain was bad but ibuprofen and paracetamol was all i could take at the time.

I thought my sciatica was getting better because I went somewhere today which involved sitting down. I was able to sit down for quite a while with no issues because I was sitting on a soft paded chair. However when I got home I tried sitting on the hard wooden cair with a metal back and could not do it. As soon as I sat downn, in less than a minute i ha sever spasms in my lower back and down the right leg. This chair is also a lot lower than the paded chair I sat on earlier. This means the wood chair at home is no good for me and it indicated that my sciatica is by no means ok. I got up from that chair and did some stretching and walking and the awful stabbing pains have now gone. I am due to go back to wor tomorrow from home and work are supposed to be getting me a proper office adjustable chair. I will hase that up but it is clear that I can no longer sit and do my work on that hard wooden chair. Even with a cusion on the seat, it gives me an awful lot of pain.

I will discuss this with my osteopath and I took a ouple of photos o the chair just to show her what kind of chair it is. She will say ditch it.

So my sciatica is not really any better because if it was then I should be able to sit in any chair whether it is soft or hard with no issues

I've had sciatica, and my advice is this- walk and stand as much as possible. I take naproxen but have done for years for another issue so I can't comment on the side effects that you have experienced.
Little thing, but very important, don't bend from the waist, bend your knees. When you're getting the washing out of the washing machine, for example, BEND YOUR KNEES. Don't lean over and stretch to the back of the machine to get the washing out, it's so easy to keep doing that (I caught myself doing it even when I knew I shouldn't).
I had physio exercises given to me which I did religiously, it took a long time for mine to go but it did eventually. Good luck.

@Curlygirl06

I've had sciatica, and my advice is this- walk and stand as much as possible. I take naproxen but have done for years for another issue so I can't comment on the side effects that you have experienced. Little thing, but very important, don't bend from the waist, bend your knees. When you're getting the washing out of the washing machine, for example, BEND YOUR KNEES. Don't lean over and stretch to the back of the machine to get the washing out, it's so easy to keep doing that (I caught myself doing it even when I knew I shouldn't). I had physio exercises given to me which I did religiously, it took a long time for mine to go but it did eventually. Good luck.

i do not have side effects from naproxen. Not sure why you thought I did. Anyway how do you get your wasing out? So many people do not bend from the knees I see it time and again. I do bend from the knees. I dance and one of the hardest thing is not doing the dancing at the moment I know it is physical exercise and movement but the osteopath said not to do it for the moment because some of the moveents would caue more harm than good for sciatica.

I a not on any painkillers because when I have a flare up due to sitting too long or sitting in the wrong chair , I know that once I get up and move and walk about the discomfort soon goes. I have had this sciatica for 10 days now and when I first got it it was very painful and I could hardly walk but then again I was not on naproxen. Now I can walk without any discomfort. If I sit in the right type of chair its fine but I was fooling myself into thinking I was more or less better because

a) no pain with walking an
b) no pain sitting in a correct type of chair

However, when I tried sitting in the wrong chair I was in a lot of pain so that proves I am by no means better. Added to which my GP told me that as my sciatica was mild, I would be better in a week. Gosh she is a GP and should not say things like that because people know it takes 4 to 6 weeks to recover from sciatica and I would have thought she would know better. You do not need to be a spine specialist to know that

@essexgirl58 sorry I read it wrongly, Naproxen didn't work for you, not that you had side effects, is that right? How long did you take them for?
When I get the washing out of the machine, I bend (from the knees, so in a squat position) and lean in to drag everything out. Saying that, just caught myself bending over from the waist rather than the knees! It's a hard habit to break. My sciatica lasted months, it was nearly better after I'd been doing the exercises religiously, then my granddaughter knocked me over. I fell on my arse and back on a tiled floor, bugger that hurt and set it all off again but in a slightly different way. I had different exercises then from the physio, again I did them religiously and it finally went about September, so 9/10 months in all. It's miserable, isn't it?

why do you assume naproxen did not work for me? i have been taking it for 6 days.

Can I ask how long peple have seen an osteopat for? Today was my second visit and its costing me £55 each time. She booke me in for another session next week. I really cannot affod any more appointments at this price. She said it can take abut 6 weeks to fully recover. Whilst I get that, I hope she does not want me to keep going week by week for 6 weeks. Twice I have asked her for exercises that I can do at home in between and she said no not yet.

I thik I am being ripped off. Whilst I am happy to pay for three visits, I do not want to pay for any more. She did accupuncture on me today and I was not expecting that and whilst it did not hurt I would have thught she would have said last week that she was going to do it on me this week. I am not qute sure what I am paying for because she massages my lower back quite hard which is fine and then moves my legs run and up and that was fine and then she gave me the accupuncture and that was that.

I am not allowed to run or go to my keep fit class because it is too strenuous and she said it would make matters wors even thugh I am supposed to keep moving but she said yoga is fine.

I think I am going to make next week my last visit and say I just cannot afford any more sessions and look online for some sciatica eercises .

I did suggest that I go to see her every other week and she said oh no dont do that come every week because otherwise it will take longer for you to recover. If she thinks I am going to visit her for 6 weeks she can thnk again because that will come to £300.

I think this ostopath company are conning me and only out to make money so I am leaving

I had three visits to my chiropractor this time.

With a previous issue I saw a chiropractor every week initially and then gradually tapered down. I then went every two months or so just for maintenance.

My old chiropractor used to do acupuncture on me and I found it helpful.

If you can’t afford more sessions you can’t afford it. I don’t think she is trying to rip you off. And she is being sensible with her advice on exercise. Doing something too strenuous or that causes you to move the wrong way could make it worse.

@Peridot1

I had three visits to my chiropractor this time.

With a previous issue I saw a chiropractor every week initially and then gradually tapered down. I then went every two months or so just for maintenance.

My old chiropractor used to do acupuncture on me and I found it helpful.

If you can’t afford more sessions you can’t afford it. I don’t think she is trying to rip you off. And she is being sensible with her advice on exercise. Doing something too strenuous or that causes you to move the wrong way could make it worse.

ok I am fed up today. long story short, the osteopath now thinks I do not have sciatica but a torn lower back muscle. I do not think so because they are vey painul and you feel it tear.

I am seeing my GP on Friday. He does not believe the oteopaths new diagnosis and wants to check me over becaue I have clasic sciatica symptoms and if my lower back muscle is torn I woul be in a lot of pain . The osteopath will give me the medical term for my torn lower back muscle and I will give it to the GP and see what he says.

The osteopath told me not to give this new information to my GP and this GP I am seeing said it is vital we know about this so we can refer you to a hospital becaue torn lower back muscles need surgery