I think I have sciatica....

[Nonestopcaberet]

My lower back hurts, more on the left than the right. When I walk my left knee cap hurts. If I press on my lower back whilst walking, the pain in my knee eases.
Under normal circumstances, I am at the point of wanting to see a doctor about it. ( never go to the doctors about anything normally, I just get on with it). I’m not in serious pain, just niggling pain that is stopping me doing certain things, exercise wise.
At the moment, I don’t really want to see a doctor, and thinK I’d just be fobbed off with painkillers anyway.
Does this sound like sciatica? What can I do to ease it?

I guess everyone is different but for me sciatica is very painful a mild does will affec my lower back bum and the top of my thigh a bad case it will go from my just below my shoulder blade to my ankle but in either case its always the back of my leg where all the main muscular groups are and always on my right hand side .
But the most telling way is that no matter what position you sit, stand or lie in the pain does not change , nor does rubbing it applying heat or cold or all but the very strongest 'script pain killers .
very gentle exersize can help too

There are other things that can mimic sciatica.

Look up 'piriformis syndrome' which is sometimes called 'fake sciatica'. This is where the sciatic nerve becomes pinched or irritated, and you can usually get rid of it with targeted exercises and self massage.

You can also have weakness in the sacroiliac ligaments which can cause a milder pain, that some people confuse with actual sciatica. The best thing for this is actually exercise to strengthen the ligaments in that area.

Finally there's plain old 'knots' or trigger points in the gluteus maximus. When these develop they can mimic sciatica because they are close to the sciatic nerve and the area can become sore and inflamed. You can usually feel it as well. Move your fingers over the area and if you hit a really tender spot that is more resistant to being pressed that the surrounded area, it's most likely this. Best thing for this is self massage (or get someone else to do it!) with some linament (Deep Heat or whatever) anything that increases heat and blood flow to the area and irons out the 'knot'.Really knead it with your knuckles (sounds painful, but it does work as I know from experience. A hot water bottle also helps.

Before you assume it's sciatica - which is excruciatingly painful and can really affect day-to-day life, do look at some of the alternatives.

Thanks you for two really useful replies. I suspected that I wasn’t in enough pain for it to be sciatica, but the symptoms suggest it is. Off now to look at Fake Sciatica and find some exercises to do.