Can anybody help - debilitating leg pain

[LaBelleSauvage123]

A week ago I was diagnosed at our local back clinic with Greater Trochanter Pain Syndrome after months of worsening buttock, thigh and knee pain. The doctor I saw advised me to do an 8-12 week programme of heat, massage and stretching and to come back if things hadn’t improved. In the past week I’ve had multiple episodes of pain spasms which have left me unable to bear weight on my right leg. The pain seems to be triggered by walking for more than about ten minutes ( but comes on a few hours after I’ve done the walking). Today, any attempt to bend which stretches my right side has caused agonising pain in my right leg and again, inability to weight bear. I’ve got a pretty high pain threshold but it makes me cry out. Sitting or lying down relieves the worst of the pain and after a few minutes I can walk again. Then the moment I bend or twist it all starts again.

I’ve googled Greater Trochanter Pain Syndrome and nowhere does it say it causes this kind of pain.

What do I do? Ring the back clinic and ask to go back? See a physio? A chiropractor?
Or just carry on with the exercises and hope it gets better?

If anyone has any experience or knowledge of this Id be very grateful.

Anyone?

I would try 111 and see what they advise, sorry don't know myself but sounds like it needs help urgently.

Your GP at the very least.

I hope a fix (for want of a better word!) is made very soon.

Thanks. Today I haven’t done much walking and took two ibroprufen at 3pm - no spasms at all, though my leg and knee are aching as usual this evening.

I'd not heard of this condition until I read your op, however, I'd never heard of an inflamed Psoas muscle either until I developed one.

Please just let me explain a little about mine first.
The Psoas muscle arises from the spine, passes through the pelvic girdle and attaches to the upper thigh bone. There is one each side of the spine, and passes very close over the sciatic nerve.
Mine has been caused by too much sitting down causing pressure onto the sciatic, to the point where I was being woken early in the morning by pain that made me scream out loud, and like the info you read about yours, I didn't read that the pain could be that bad either. But then, the text books don't want to scare anyone unduly - do they!

Your pain is triggered by walking - mine by sitting - the irony is ....deafening, is it not, op? and please, please know you have my full understanding and sympathy, it's beyond awful.

Mine started late last year, and I stuck it out until going to see a fabulous osteo earlier this year, who gave two treatments close together, and then a set of exercises, interspersed with monthly follow up treatments. Now, 6 months later, with short exercise sets each morning and night, and a walk every day if I can manage to, I'm fine.

So now you Op. I'm not a Doc, but can only speak from what I've experienced.
Heat, massage and stretching sounds good, so keep doing it.I use those in various amounts throughout the week in addition to my exercises to help keep my muscles/joints loose.
A big YES to the exercises. I would say it took a couple of weeks before I could sit down with bearable pain, and three or more months before I had no pain at all. I also still see the osteo once a month as a maintenance thing. I also know that If I stop walking/exercising it will return. So stick with them, even if there seems to be no improvement to begin with. Painkillers helped me too.

My decision to not see my doc over my problem and to go straight to the osteo, is because I would have just been sent to a physio anyway, so I cut out the middle man. The choice as to whether you go see one or not is yours .

I really hope you can sort this.

Thank you Peapod, that’s so helpful. Strangely, mine seems to be triggered by too much sitting as well as too much walking - though the very painful spasms, when I can’t weigh bear, are relieved by sitting for a while. I think I will go to a physio or osteopath to see if they can help more.