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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

Original poster

Sciatica

10 replies

bessie26 · 04/01/2011 15:03

I've had a bit of an achy buttock for the last couple of weeks & my midwife reckons it could be sciatica, so I've got myself booked in to see the maternity physio in a couple of weeks time.

In the meantime, does anyone know anything I should/shouldn't be doing to stop aggravating it? I think the hour I spent in the garden this morning was a bad idea, I only did a bit of tidying up & some light pruning, but my poor buttock aches now!

OP posts:
1Catherine1 · 04/01/2011 20:14

Monitor what sets it off and don't do that. Sounds fairly basic but you have to listen to your body.

I was referred to the physio for this reason pre-pregnancy but by the time I got an appointment with them I was pregnant. Your physio will give you some exercises to help your body cope with this problem but I can help you out with some of the advice she has given me. I was reading though often people are mis-diagnosed with sciatica when really it is Pelvic Girdle Pain. So please check out the linked article just in case.

General advice

  1. apply heat to affected area that are causing you pain - this will help you relieve the pain for a while and is safe in pregnancy.
  2. take small steps - this can be difficult when you have a demanding job but you need to slow down and focus on health of mum and baby so take it easy. Smaller steps reduce pelvic movement which could be the cause of your problem.
  3. do not stand/lie/sit for too long. Changing position will be helpful and make you feel generally better even if you are feeling a little achey.
  4. when forced to stand for any period of time find something to rest your foot on that is slightly elevated - I don't know why this helps but it seems to make me feel better.
  5. Good posture is the key - If possible make sure your work chair and work area supports good posture.

This is all general advice that I have received regarding my acheness which unfortunately doesn't limit itself to my bum. It is the bottom of my back down to the bottom of my left leg. Since however, I was referred by my GP because it was a sciatica problem I think the information will still be helpful for you.

I hope you feel better soon.

CrazyChristmasLady · 04/01/2011 20:28

Achy bottom doesn't really sound like sciatica. I have it and it more an agonising shooting pain through my hip where I can't bear any weight on that leg until it has passed, maybe some people get it differently.

Anyway, support belt is good, physio will give you one or you can buy them. I am also having to use a stick now. My midwife said a hotwater bottle would be good for easing the pain and when you get up from laying, you need to roll on to your side and roll off the bed.

Original poster
bessie26 · 04/01/2011 21:12

crazy I've previously had some kind of sciatica (can' remember what exactly) & I had pain around my achilles, so think it can affect you in different places.

catherine that's very interesting - I had problems with my pelvis in my last pregnancy, so perhaps it's that again. The maternity physio sorted me out then, so hopefully they'll be able to do their magic again!

I don't know what caused the achy buttock originally, but it definitely got worse today after gardening, but I have no plans to do that again for a while!

OP posts:
lilly13 · 05/01/2011 09:56

if you have ever done yoga, the best thing would be to sit in a double pigean posture for several minutes several times per day and do a few inversions if these feel right to you. i posted a detailed list of links on best postures to practice to beat sciatica a while back if you do a search these will come up. hope you feel better.

ozzysocks · 05/01/2011 10:51

I suffered with sciatica in a previous pregnancy (shooting pains down legs, but started with achy buttock) and eventually found it hard to walk for a while. I saw physio and tried support belts but the only thing that got rid of it completely was yoga!
I don't know what the positions are called but just lunging forward and stretching out leg behind was the key position that helped. Am 32w now and have had occasionally had an 'achy buttock' and couple of lunges/stretches gets rid of it immediately :)
Hope this helps.

Original poster
bessie26 · 05/01/2011 21:36

Thanks for the yoga tips (I've been doing yoga for yonks so just up my street)

You have reminded me that I did loads of half pigeon poses in my pregnancy yoga classes last time round (I start the classes again on sat Grin). An old yoga teacher of mine used to get us to do double pigeon loads & I remember it feeling really good for my hips, so will defo be giving that a go too

lilly - what kind of inversions would you suggest? Downward dogs or (easy) shoulder stands? - I really like shoulder stand, (and I figure it must be good for varicose veins!) but my regular yoga teacher told me I shouldn't be doing them while I'm pg so I stopped - have you been told they are ok?

OP posts:
lilly13 · 06/01/2011 12:01

Hi Bessie, I have been doing regular shoulder stands and these do help a lot. Many pregnant women do headstands. The general advice is that if these postures feel right to you, and you have been doing them prepregnancy, then you can carry on. The most important thing is listening to your body. For my body type, headstands just somehow did not feel right after I fell pregnant, but shoulder stand has been quite beneficial. If you are not comfortable with a shoulder stand, then you can lie down on your back and lift your legs up the wall (safe to do this till 34 weeks or so, if you feel ok lying on the back), or you can do a shoulder stand with legs bent and up the wall as props (this is safe in later pregnancy if you feel ok). Another good excercise for sciatica is spreading you legs wide open while sitting on the floor and bending to each leg with your arms straight up. Double pigeaon is still my favorite for beating hip pains, though. A couple of minutes and it is gone.

Original poster
bessie26 · 08/01/2011 22:14

wow - thanks for all the links lilly!

I didn't like headstands before I was pg, so defo won't be doing them now! Will try an easy shoulderstand against the wall next time I'm feeling limbered up & see how it feels...

I started my "pregnant yoga" classes today. We did some pigeon in that & my hips did feel much better afterwards Smile, so will be trying hard to remember to do some every morning and evening!

OP posts:
lilly13 · 10/01/2011 18:41

no worries! hope you feel better. there is one more thing regarding the links above -- remember that if you are in your 2nd/3rd trimester, you should avoid cobra or modify it in a way that you never lie on your stomach and also avoid very deep bends (eg, bridge pose is okay and you can even put a brick under your back bone, but avoid the full wheel).

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