come and diagnose me

[narmada]

An open invitation because I've run out of ideas.

I am 23 weeks pregnant with second child. During my first pregnancy I had horrid backache which was, well, a pain, but I could deal with that. The real issue was at night. From 20 weeks I could not sleep on my back as it made me feel faint and breathless (bubba pressing on some vein or other apparently...) but neither could I sleep on my sides for longer than about 30 minutes at a stretch. After that period, I would wake up and have this horrible, dead, creeping pain in my buttocks (and down the outside of my legs). Turn over onto other side, 30 minutes later, wake up again, and hey presto repeat, repeat repeat all night long. By the time my DD arrived, I was really, really chronically sleep-deprived. Discomfort gone almost straight after giving birth cos I could sleep on my back again.

And now I fear it is happening again. The last couple of nights I have been waking very frequently and having to turn over....and over and over. Pillows, painkillers, waterbottles, some really crap chiropractic nonsense, nothing seemed to help last time and so I am really scared.... don't want to have all that again.

Does anyone have any ideas what might be going on with my legs and bum??!

My GP and midwives are kind but have just put this down to 'just one of those things in pregnancy'... surely this can't be normal??? Sorry this is long by the way.

sciatica?

I'd also go with sciatica. If it only happens during pregnancy the hormonal softening of ligaments (rather than weight of child, especially) might be leading to poor support of the vertebrae and compressing the sciatic nerve.

Maybe a way forward would be to pay particular attention to supporting the spine and strengthening your back muscles? Interestingly, the NHS Choice website cautions against prolongued bed-rest as it makes the condition worse. Walking and gentle stretching exercises are recommended. Physiotherapy might help.

dooit and Chil1234 thanks for the suggestion - doctor has said not sciatica, as bilateral (both sides) and pain in wrong place e.g., down outside of buttock and leg rather than down the centre-back of legs and bum. But.... maybe he is wrong. Have also wondered about it being some kind of compressed nerve.

I definitely think walking helps, and am going to get physio ASAP this time. Thanks guys.

I thought sciatica was in your buttock and down one leg?

I can't personally see the distinction between 'outside of bum and leg' and 'back of leg and bum' personally but then I'm not a GP. Maybe not the sciatic nerve, then, but a "nerve extremely close by and serving roughly the same area"... let's be generous And if walking helps then keep walking and hope the physio can recommend other exercises. Obviously you'd lay off the stillettos for a while

Stillettos, hahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaa! The last time I wore stillettos was, ooh, about 15 years ago when my legs were good enough .

I think it's probably a nerve too,e ven if it's not my sciatic one. So I'm going with that theory. Just gotta get it sorted now then

I feel your pain. This was me in my first pregnancy from about 18 weeks onwards and by 30 weeks I was sleeping for less than 3 hours (in bits) per night and still trying to work full-time. Before getting pregnant again, I went to a chiropractor (gentle kind - McTimoney I think?) and continued seeing him all the way through the pregnancy. It didn't happen at all and I slept double each night what I got the first time round. The physio I also saw thought I had undiagnosed SPD and treted me for that too so who knows, but I definitely send my sympathies. Good luck.

HI I had exactly this with SPD and each night my legs bum etc were numb. I ended up getting a loan of a memory foam matress and padding my bed with that and blankets, then a slidy sheet of satin on top of that to try to ease the pressure. HOwever, as my SPD progressed I could no longer lie on my side and had to end up for the last 12 weeks of pregnancy sleep in a sitting up position propped up with lots of pillows. HTH, not easy I send love x

oh indigobarbie I was really hoping that no-one would mention the possibility of SPD.... Your experience sounds especially horrible,as does yours bethylou. I am wondering if it's that now. I have pain around my pubic/ inner thigh area this time as well, hurts a bit to get up off floor, can't get up unaided etc.,

Off to buy a memory foam topper and see that physio. indigobarbie don't suppose by some stroke of genius you l ive in SW london area, and could tell me the name of the chiro you saw? I went to one during 1st preg and she was absolutely rubbish, so not going back to her....!

PS bethylou similar experience - I was also sleeping hardly at all and had to work full-time. Thank goodness I am only 2 days a week these days!

SPD (not called that anymore).

Oh no! I'm sorry. I think forewarned is forearmed. I kept on going when I was in so much pain hobbling into work as my midwife told me it was 'normal'. I too had the inner thigh strain/pain feeling and thought I had to stretch them to make them feel better - couldn't have been more wrong.

Here are a few websites for you:
good tips

I now know that if you follow the Julie Tupler method of abs exercises (easy peasyish sitting in a chair) that they help to keep your abdominal muscles that slot into the top of the pubic bone firmly in place tupler site

I think if I ever get pg again I will at least know hoe to manage this a bit better. Walking did help a little but it also then made me worse. I really hope you find a chiro in your area who can help - it was a great source of relief for me during my pg albeit pricey. I am now seeing an NHS physio who is realigning my hips and pubis symphsyis joint and I hope that one day they will stay in place. Still hormones in my system I think....Good Luck! and as lucie says it's Pelvic Girdle Pain now, but I still call it SPD. PS please please please take it easy and don't overdoit

loadsa links

good one about PGP/SPD

I wasn't being funny - just that if you google pelvic girdle pain as well, you'll get more hits.

Hiya,

Could be meralgia paraesthetica (pinching of a nerve in the thigh)

orthopedics.about.com/od/hipinjuries/a/meralgia.htm

Difficult to tell without examining you - ask your GP what they think. It's not dangerous and will likely go away after pregnancy.

ooh lovely, thanks for all the great links everyone. HOpefully one will provide the magic answer as this is getting right on my nerves, no pun intended.

I had sciatica in both cheeks and both legs, barely got any sleep for the last few months of pregnancy. Good news was it disappeared the day I gave birth.

its horrible, you have my sympathy.

ugh, it's got so much worse these last few days. I am feeling so . Not knowing how I am going to get through the rest of this pregnancy, and feel so cheated. Had 17 weeks of extreme morning sickness, and now this sorry to moan.

Physio thinks it's a problem with piriformis muscle and nerve running through it, has suggested some exercises and maybe a belt. I am wondering for good measure whether to go back to docs and press for steriod/ anasthetic injection I had once for something similar called trochanteric bursitis.... it just occurred to me that's what it might be.

Thanks again everyone.