sciatic pain

68Goldfish · #1 03-17-2009, 07:55 PM

Any of you guys ever deal with sciatic pain. I screwed up my lower back a couple of weeks ago and now I've got this gnarly pain way deep in my right but cheek down to about the knee in that leg. I can't sit and can barely stand to stand. My upper leg basically allmost goes numb. I've been to the chiropracter a couple of times but it's not helping so I went to my regular doctor today and I've got a MRI scheduled for tommorow. There has to be a slipped disc or something. What kind of treatment did you have to have and did it get better? How long did it take? At least I got a prescription for some muscle relaxers and some vicadin. They don't seem to be helping so far but we'll see how the night goes. Bieng an auto tech for ever I'm used to some degree of constant back pain but this is way off the chart. Somebody give me some positive feedback.

()smoke() · #2 03-17-2009, 08:20 PM

i had that kind of thing, it was a herniated disc pressing on my sciatic nerve and there was also a fracture to the vertebrae above the disc--i let it go for a long time thinking i'd just 'hurt' it and it wasn't injured, and finally after a few worse days of my wife having to put my shoes on, i tried to get up during the night to get a drink and couldn't move enough to walk...nothing helped until i got a cortisone epidural and then laid off lifting much, lost 25 pounds and strengthened my abdominal muscles

see what the doctor thinks of the mri, hopefully they can help you out--good luck, i understand what you're feeling man

Grizzly700 · #3 03-17-2009, 08:52 PM

Just noticed your sig, that SVT can't be helping too much.

But anyways, I have a bulging disc in my back already (i'm in high school, i think it was caused by marching a 50 lb sousaphone) and the thing that helps me the most when it starts hurting is to sit upside down on the couch. It pops my back about 10 good times and relieves the pressure, I usually have to do this in the morning right when i wake up.

Good Luck with your problem! I hope you get it sorted out.

ubone · #4 03-17-2009, 09:06 PM

I know your pain very well, several compressed and degenerating disks in my lower back. I refuse to have surgery, and was a regular at the chiropractor's office for years.
Finally found relief thru spinal decompression and lots of stretching. An inversion table works wonders as well. Once you've relieved yourself of the problem then you can start working on Core strength training but build up slowly so as not to re-injure yourself. Loose weight, and NO pills unless they become absolutely needed.

68Goldfish · #5 03-17-2009, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grizzly700

Just noticed your sig, that SVT can't be helping too much.

Touche!
Thanks for the responses guys. Moving the SVT is allways a two person job. This is just a symptom of working on cars all my life. You woudn't believe the way's you have to contort your body to get into some places. I imagine it will boil down to some kind of physical training or something. Don't really want surgery and I won't get hooked on any serious drugs.

Arranger · #6 03-18-2009, 06:32 AM

And... if your general physician does not recommend a physical therapist - tell him to refer you to one. A good physical therapist will get you through the initial injury and prescribe a series of exercises that will help you maintain proper posture. Chiropractic school of thought is not the same thing and this is the reason that general physicians tend not to refer to chiropractors.

My similar injury was addresses solely through physical therapy. Drugs are not the answer.

Downlowd · #7 03-18-2009, 06:57 AM

I used to have a very similar problem when I was a mechanic. It seemed like it got worse when I worked under lifts. I noticed that I seemed to stand up on that leg when working and put more weight on it. I had the same symptoms you do.
The thing that helped me the most was getting a pair of redwing work boots from a redwing dealer. They measured each foot and they fit very well. Anyway, after getting a couple pair of good boots, the symptoms faded in a few months. I'm an office schmo now so I have not had that problem in years. Best of Luck.

**baba** · #8 03-18-2009, 07:06 AM

Been there, it sucks. It was hands down the worst pain and darkest time I've ever been through. If the spasms come it can take you to the point of blacking out. Sorry for the harsh reality, but you need to deal with it immediately, which it sounds like you are doing.

You have a protruding or herniated L4 or L5 disc. You need to address the pain, locked up surrounding muscles, and inflammation first. Skelaxin and Nabumetone worked well for me. Once the inflammation settles down and you get a hold of it, you need regular physical therapy. There are a bunch of exercises that will help strengthen the muscles in this area to help prevent a reoccurrence. You also need to focus on how you move, lift, twist, etc, and retrain yourself to not move certain ways or it will definitely happen again.

Sorry, I know how debilitating this injury can be.

Relic · #9 03-18-2009, 07:11 AM

I can't really add anything significant to the advice already given, it's all good stuff.
My back was destroyed years ago due to a past just where I had to lift heavy objects and turn over and over again. Sciatic pain is a way of life for me.
But some cliff notes on stuff that tends to help me
- lose some weight if you need to
- from this moment on, you will never lift improperly again. Use legs and not back to lift
- gradually and carefully build up your back muscles
- stretch regularly, especially on long car rides or if your job requires you to be in the same position for extended periods.
- sometimes, ibuprofin based pain killers help (advil etc). They're also an anti-inflammatory so they can help bring inflammation down which can contribute to the pain. (this of course once you get things back on track. Advil's aren't going to help much at first)

machine gewehr · #10 03-18-2009, 08:25 AM

Not me but my mother has those pains.While she was doing stretching exercises it was fine.During an exercise she hurt another spot and all went worse though.
Not lifting heavy weights is crutial too as stated before.

Also I wish you luck and patience for the MRI session.Good luck with the "40 mins long 120db,inside a tunnel" brain killer.

WorkinOnIt · #11 03-18-2009, 08:48 AM

Several years ago, I suffered with sciatica pain for a few months from a slipped disc. Not certain what exactly started it. One morning on my way to work I had a big sneeze and that must have popped the disk further into my cord. The pain that morning was soooo bad.

About mid-morning I left my desk to head to the company nurse to lie down - never did that before. Halfway down the hall from my desk I froze. It was like someone had a knife in my back. If I moved another step it was gonna twist. Nurse came up with a wheelchair and wheeled me away. I was gonna tough it out and go home, but when it was discovered I could not pee, off to the ER I went. Surgery to remove the disc the next day fixed me right up.

I did not want to have surgery either, but when push came to shove, I was sure glad I did. That constant butt and leg pain was no picnic. Best of luck to you.

Grizzly700 · #12 03-18-2009, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by machine gewehr

Also I wish you luck and patience for the MRI session.Good luck with the "40 mins long 120db,inside a tunnel" brain killer.

Lol, they gave me big soundblocking headphones and let me listen to my favorite radio stations when I had mine done.

i_got_a_mohawk · #13 03-18-2009, 09:52 AM

I have had really bad pain around there, it was caused by pulling tendons.

It isnt nessicarily a disc problem, but get it checked out by a physio or proper back specialist.

Don't know about in the US, but over here Chiropractor's are generally witch doctors (or con men), over charge, under educated, and generally with poor manipulation techniques. The other problem (over here) is that they aren't checked up on strictly, where-as any good physio will be chartered etc.

Im not saying that all chiropractors are bad, I'm just saying you can never be too sure with what your going in for. (same with all fields I guess, but it's certainly a more previlant problem with chiropractors in the UK).

Oh, and :

Jim Nazium · #14 03-18-2009, 09:58 AM

Lots of good advice here. All I have to add, and it's probably obvious but I'll say it anyway: back surgery should be an absolute last resort. My mother had a herniated disc years ago, had surgery to "fix" it, then more surgeries to repair the first surgeries, then a fusion using bone from her hip, then her hip had problems, etc etc. After watching that, I'd have to be in unbearable pain 24x7 before I'd let anyone cut into my back.

Best wishes bro.

machine gewehr · #15 03-18-2009, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grizzly700

Lol, they gave me big soundblocking headphones and let me listen to my favorite radio stations when I had mine done.

On monday I had that too but man those 3T machines are ridiculously loud.Made my ears bleed,besides I jump every time it starts thundering again despite the warning clicks.

But close to the end the machine broke down and its still not fixed as I heard.Doc. said its ok with the finished parts' results so got away with a 6-7 min shorter MRI.

i_got_a_mohawk · #16 03-18-2009, 11:11 AM

And I'll agree with everyone else who is saying MRI scanners are tubes of clickety death.

I'll also add that if you are remotely broad shouldered, it will be even more uncomfortable (experience

)

Stumbo · #17 03-18-2009, 11:58 AM

My wife had severe lower back pain from an auto accident that could not be fixed by non-surgical methods. She tried everything over 3 years (pills, spinal shots, acupuncture, chiro, massage, relaxation therapy,pillows under her legs while sleeping, probably a few other things I cant' remember).

What finally fixed her was an adjustable bed with a Tempurpedic mattress on it. By raising the foot end of the bed, it took pressure off her back and helped her muscles relax and reset. Within a couple of weeks she was a lot better. Within a month she was fine.

68Goldfish · #18 03-18-2009, 12:50 PM

Thanks again for the responses guys. I went and did the MRI this morning. That was interesting. Believe it or not but after bieng up most of the night I slept through most of it. I guess now the doctor there will look at the results and send them to my doctor tommorow. I have some vacation that I have to use so I'm thinking about just taking it easy for the next week. I usually work balls to the wall becuase that's how I make money and I'm sure I didn't help it much the last couple of weeks. Anyway, thanks again. I'm glad to hear that most everybody seems to recover with time. The bed suggestion is a great one to. I'm going to look into that.

crikker · #19 03-18-2009, 03:40 PM

Herniated a disc and was prescribed muscle relaxers and ice packs, lots of ice packs. It worked. I still get bad ham string and calf cramps if I'm on my feet all day and don't ice down before bed. I automatically grab an ice pack at night now anyway. When it went, like was posted earlier, had to put pillows under my knees and then ice away.

Ericman197 · #20 03-18-2009, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arranger

And... if your general physician does not recommend a physical therapist - tell him to refer you to one. A good physical therapist will get you through the initial injury and prescribe a series of exercises that will help you maintain proper posture. Chiropractic school of thought is not the same thing and this is the reason that general physicians tend not to refer to chiropractors.

My similar injury was addresses solely through physical therapy. Drugs are not the answer.

Physical therapy (let alone chiropractic) is not always helpful, and can be harmful. Whether he needs pills, surgery, epidurals, or what have you depends on the nature of the problem.

Spinal surgery can be great for those who are good candidates for it. The problem is that, as another poster mentioned, the complications can be serious. A good spinal surgeon with a high success rate will very likely not take insurance. When one of my relatives had a laminectomy with multiple foraminotomies it was $13,000 - and this was being done by a friend at a steeply reduced price. Other such procedures may be $80,000+.

Quote:

Originally Posted by i_got_a_mohawk

Don't know about in the US, but over here Chiropractor's are generally witch doctors (or con men), over charge, under educated, and generally with poor manipulation techniques. The other problem (over here) is that they aren't checked up on strictly, where-as any good physio will be chartered etc.

Im not saying that all chiropractors are bad, I'm just saying you can never be too sure with what your going in for. (same with all fields I guess, but it's certainly a more previlant problem with chiropractors in the UK).

Chiropractic the world over, by its very definition, is a scam.

The only reason we still have it is because lawyers support them when science doesn't. It may be particularly bad in the UK because they have a very strong legal foothold. I don't remember the specific case, but recently someone published a book or article which - to paraphrase briefly - stated that chiropractic is ********, and he was sued for it.