Osteopath for broken coccyx

[Wallingtonhall]

I fell and damaged my coccyx 6 months ago and it’s still painful. Osteopath has been suggested. I read that they can massage, manipulate the area to fix the pain. Would they really have to be prodding around in my bum crack? I guess they would!

not sure I fancy that at all! Anyone here sought osteo help for coccyx pain?

A bruised or damaged coccyx can be painful for months while it heals. I doubt prodding it or moving it will make anything better. Just get ring shaped cushion to sit on.

Not a ring shaped cushion. You need a sacral cushion. Look on Amazon. It has a U shaped cut out at the back to completely remove pressure from the coccyx. Ring shaped is completely wrong for coccyx pain.

I had awful coccyx pain for years and went to a London osteopath renound for coccyx work. Ppl travel across the world for him. He didn’t just rummage in my bum crack, he manipulated me after inserting fingers, er, inside. It was agony and didn’t help. All that helped was a time and a pain management course to help me focus less on the pain.

@Wallingtonhall hi, ex-physio here...please ask your GP to refer you to physio (or your surgery may have direct access physio) ...there are various things that can be done, sometimes to do with the muscles and ligaments in the area(pelvic floor dysfunction can result from an injury), and yes sometimes mobilisation techniques that involve a finger somewhere hence why it can need a fairly specialist physio!(i certainly have never done that internal technique!). the advantage of going the nhs route via your surgery is that the physio may think a referral to orthopaedics is necessary (but any private physio or osteopath should know the signs of it needing to be referred on) i don't know if you had an XR or were seen by a medic at the time to confirm it wasn't fractured?

I did see a doctor at a and e but wasn’t x rayed.

will go back to my gp. Thanks.

I had a coccyx injury, was in agony for months. I was referred to the pain team and the consultant did a mua (manipulation under v light ga) to realign the coccyx and inject a steroid plus LA to reduce inflammation.

I would avoid exercises and physios and osteopaths you need a very experienced person to realign it.

In the meantime all you can do is avoid all pressure on it so sit on one bum cheek and use a horseshoe shaped cushion so the coccyx is not in contact with any surface.

Good luck. It is miserable you have my sympathy but I've not had a twinge for years now so it is fixable (🤞🤞).

Get an xray and try some comfrey oil..known as knitbone herb

I would urge you to see a proper physiotherapist not an osteopath.

I would be very happy to see my highly qualified and registered osteopath. She is the fourth osteopath I have seen as I've moved around the country. None of them would have touched any injury they couldn't help.

They all have given me good advice on the back issue have been dealing with and it has never taken more than a couple appointments to sort my issue.

Prior to finding osteopathy, I went down the physiotherapy route. I wouldn't do it again.

As long as you wear sensible clothing to an osteopath, ie, leggings, yoga pants, etc, you don't need to remove clothes. I don't you'd need to worry about your 'bum crack'.

You need to know what the injury actually was / is. Osteopathy is pointless IME. I broke mine falling down stairs and it took over a year to recover.

I would second @eloelo123 , you need someone highly specialised if you are going to have the area manipulated.

If you are in the UK I would be very surprised if you managed to get an x-ray of the coccyx unless it was through a very experienced referrer and had gone through a radiologist first. It's not an area that is x-rayed as standard. I would certainly return the request to the majority of referrers and would want to speak to whoever was requesting it if they were very senior. Just as a response to those suggesting getting an x-ray.

Why are x rays not usually done on the coccyx in the uk? My relative fell down the stairs twice in as many weeks and is still in pain almost 2 years on but no x ray was ever done. Surely an x ray would at least have shown if the tailbone has been damaged.

@Mydoghealsmyheart Everything in x-ray is benefit vs risk, it boils down to the dose versus the use the images could be. The pictures won't change the management of the patient much compared to the clinical picture the doctors already have so no need to give a dose of radiation to the reproductive organs for not much reward. It's the same with rib fractures, as long as everyone is happy about the lungs you are just going to have to live with that pain until it heals, an x-ray won't change that. Hope that makes sense!