Sciatica - help!!

[DistantSkye]

I know this probably belongs in health somewhere rather than AIBU but thought I might get more traffic here.
I have inflammatory arthritis in my spine and pelvis which is really well controlled. Had a niggle in my lower back on one side earlier in the week and suddenly out of the blue got a searing pain through my back/hip/leg and the whole of my outer leg and foot went numb. Couldn't manage to lie, sit or move without crying. I managed to get a GP appt and they signed me off work for a week and gave me diazepam and cocodamol, which have taken the edge off so I am sore but able to get by. But the whole of my outer leg and my foot is totally numb and cold and walking is really difficult because my leg keeps giving way!

Short of keeping on with the painkillers and referring myself to physio is there anything else I can do? I'm trying to get up and potter around the house where possible so I don't stiffen up but the back spasms and weird leg feeling is making it really hard. I gave birth with no pain relief and honestly feel like that was less painful than this has been!

Stretch. Stretch and more stretching. Google sciatica stretches and you'll get a few to ease it.

Do you have a hard foam roller? Rolling your buttock over provides relief.

The physio should manipulate the nerve in the spine though which will make recovery quicker.

I sleep on a memory foam lumbar back support which makes a huge difference, but it does depend on whether your sciatic nerve is being pinched at the spine or hip. Might be worth a try though

TENS machine. I've just come to bed after an evening in front if telly being wired up and zapped. It helps

I find Tom Morrison helpful for my back, he has loads of videos on YouTube. I also have a TENS machine, which although it doesn't make the pain go away, it sort of distracts from it.

Ooh I could write a LOT on this (sciatica for years, developed cauda equina, had surgery) so I'll make it short

Keep moving regularly and gentle
Don't bend or twist or start lifting stuff
Don't sit - either stand or lie
Use a pillow between your knees on your side or under knees on your back, think keeping spine straight
Google log roll in/out of bed
Heat can help - thermacare hip and lower back wraps kept me sane
Painkillers consistently, I took diazepam, codeine, paracetamol, naproxen and morphine
Don't get constipated with pain relief as that's the last thing you need

ANY bladder or bowel changes go to a&e
Not just can't go - my symptom was lying in bed and it felt like warm water running down my legs
I debated for a bit whether to go and then did

Warmth seems to help, hot water bottle or heated blanket. I also rub ibuprofen gel on my back/leg although tbh I'm never quite sure which bit of me to rub it on. I try to move around, so don't sit for too long. I find it hurts less if I'm not still for longer periods. Im seeing an osteopath and the days I go the relief is amazing. I also have an exercise programme she gave me. She also recommended specific exercises for when I wake up, mines worse first thing, they are called sciatica neural glide exercises if you want to Google. I sympathise. It's a horrid thing to have.

Ice helps mine. I got a back ice pack thing that attaches with velcro. And stretching - agree with Tom Morrison mentioned up thread and yoga with Adrienne also has some good sciatica stretches.

Try applying heat or ice to it to see if it helps. There is a website called versus arthritis that includes exercises for various parts of the body which may help until you can see a physio

Look up “Bob and Brad” on YouTube. American physios, brilliant at the ailments they have helped me with over the years, especially sciatica.

You need to be pain free enough to move and stretch . Definitely physio, even if you go once and get some exercises to do at home.

Heat should help. Doing hot and cold alternate can be good.

If you can swimming, Pilates , walking and yoga can all help.

You need an nsaid such as ibuprofen for inflammation (check if it's in your current drugs)

Check what strength cocodomol you have. Are you on high strength? If it's not doing enough there tramadol, tapentadol or morphine. Apparently gapentin can be good for nerve pain. These are all short term pain blockers.

If it persists you could ask about a steroid injection.

If you get any numbness in your saddle, lose of bowel/bladder you need to go a&e to rule out equina cauda

Don't rush to get back by to work but do keep moving/stretching

Thanks everyone 🙏
I actually do have a really good physio programme because of the arthritis, and I was weightlifting and running regularly until this just came on out of the blue the other day.

I'll try some sciatica specific stretches when I get more mobile. It's the leg pain and numbness I'm struggling with - i keep going over on my ankle because I can't feel my foot! And the sort of crawling/aching sensation down my leg is horrible. It's the worst time of year to be off and my boss seemed surprised I was off for a week "with a sore back" but I'm worried about falling if I go back with dodgy balance!

So sorry to hear that so many of you have struggled with this. Will definitely keep an eye out for any cauda equine symptoms, which the GP warned about too.