Sciatic Nerve Pain.

[Jackal]

Recently I have been experiencing loss of sensation in my left leg from the hip downward, weak strength in my left leg, and a vicious shooting pain that appears and disappears simultaneously in my foot, ankle, knee and behind my hip joint.

It's a literal pain in the ass:D

Some background would be that I broke, dislocated and had surgery on the joint five years back and a bit of discomfort is unavoidable, but this is too much.

My doctor is no help, physiotherapist is a bit of a butcher and I tried acupuncture, which made me nicely relaxed, but did not help the problem.

Anyone here had a problem with sciatica? What did you do?

Jude

 

[yougene]

My girlfriend had Sciatica.
She rested on the floor with a heat pad under her lower back and hip area with her legs elevated or folded( feet on the ground knees in the air ). That usually cleared it up in a day or two. Curving her lower back set it off alot of the time so developing good posture and lifting technique can help.

 

[Heuristic]

What you're describing could be the result of a herniated or extruded disc in the lumbar region of your back.

You should make an appointment with a medical doctor and request an MRI.

If the symptoms become severe, to the point where you've lost all sensation and/or bladder/bowel control, you should call an ambulance, as these may be signs of cauda equina syndrome, which would constitute a medical emergency. It's uncommon, but it happens.

 

[LivingInTheMoment]

My girlfriend had Sciatica.
She rested on the floor with a heat pad under her lower back and hip area with her legs elevated or folded( feet on the ground knees in the air ). That usually cleared it up in a day or two. Curving her lower back set it off alot of the time so developing good posture and lifting technique can help.

>with a heat pad under her lower back and hip area with her legs elevated or folded

^^^^
Yap, this one!

Will give you plenty of relief, keep reheating the heat pad, place a thin fabric over the area between the skin and the heat pad, and keep it hot! A red (infrared lamp will do wonders)see the physio, and have accupressure. Use an infrared sauna. (You already had surgery), and remedial massage also helps!

Also there is a chinese oil and bandage which adheres on the area of your worst pain, which also contains the same medicated oil. It keeps producing heat in the area for quite a while-days-and reduces the pain.

Also Swedish medical lazer is revolutionary in physical and neural pain is great if you can get it where you are! It is powerful and extremely effective/only specialized doctors in sports medicine use them!

 

[TRPPNASS_DSCOMONKE]

i severed/ruptured my sciatic in a heavy equipment accident. it causes me quite a lot of pain.

short of meds (lycica best, then gabapentin) acupuncture, tense unit, and hyperexciting the nerve are the only things that have helped me.

 

[Jackal]

Thanks for all the help.

I have been taking hot baths, doing some of the exercises mentioned and it felt better. I think my favourite chair, which is a leather front seat from an old car, might cause it to flare up, as I sit very close to the ground on that. Also the rowing machine makes it twinge.

It's funny how it can pick at me once a day for two months, and be bearable, but then flare up and give me hell for a short time and vanish again for months

 

[Heuristic]

This sounds definitively like a disc problem, jude101.

Your doctor is aware of this condition? What did he say? Is he aware that it has worsened? Are you in the United States?

A few more things. Avoid soft seats, such as, unfortunately, your leather chair. Keep your back properly aligned at all times; place a small pillow in the small of your back while sitting.

Do not use a rowing machine. There are certain exercises you can do which are appropriate for someone with a symptomatic disc problem, if you can do them without pain. A rowing machine is not one of them. Do a google search for McKenzie exercises, or simply herniated disc exercises, for some of them.

A surgical option is something to discuss with your doctor, but success rates for certain types of surgeries on certain types of disc problems, where sciatica is a symptom, tend to be reasonably high. Whether this is a good option is something impossible to evaluate on here, though.

 

[Jackal]

Some background would be that I broke, dislocated and had surgery on the joint five years back and a bit of discomfort is unavoidable, but this is too much.

It's not a disc Heuristic. The sciatic runs very close to the hip joint. Mine got mashed and repaired. All my problems on the left leg, lower back stem from this.

I met a great many doctors. Don't want to see another for some time.

Tips for alleviating the twinges is kind of what I was after in this thread.

I don't place too much faith in internet diagnosis'

 

[ThaiDie4]

Ah, I'm sorry Jude! I had some pretty bad pain in my sciatic nerve back when I ran cross-country. The only thing that really made it feel better was to be inactive for about a week Continuing to run just made it worse. Have you had this pain before and it continues to reoccur??? I know mine was just sort of a random thing that came and went over about a week and half. Wish I had better advice for you Glad to know its improving though Keep us updated.

 

[Heuristic]

It's not a disc Heuristic. The sciatic runs very close to the hip joint. Mine got mashed and repaired. All my problems on the left leg, lower back stem from this.

I met a great many doctors. Don't want to see another for some time.

Tips for alleviating the twinges is kind of what I was after in this thread.

I don't place too much faith in internet diagnosis'

Nor should you. Sorry for not reading your original post with more attention. For some reason I thought you had surgery on your knee.

Some of the tips I offered... avoiding soft, deep seats, would still apply, however. Regarding the use of rowing machines, and other exercises: are you cleared for that? Was the joint repaired in the sense that it was replaced? How long ago?

Do anti-inflammatory drugs provide any relief?

I understand your feelings about doctors, but if your symptoms have changed noticeably since you last saw one familiar with your condition, it might be time for another visit.

 

[Jackal]

^

I had a comminuted -sp?- fracture of my left acetabulum . It was repaired with two pins, a plate and about thirteen screws. It will be six years ago in November.

I was advised to not have the metal removed, until I get the joint replaced at some point in the future.

With regard to exercise - I was told to swim and play golf, to avoid impact sports and heavy lifting/running/hiking. A rowing machine is not recommended. But to hell with that. I'm 25, not 65.

The joint will probably have to be changed a few times before I die anyhow, so I do as much as I can until it begins to pick at me and then I give it rest.

I don't take pain meds or anti-inflammatory's. And won't, except in cases of extreme need.

 

[blissfulthinking]

you need an MRI. I believe there are generic-ish MRIs for people w/out health insurance.My mother had the same thing. Once you are sure that's what it is, I believe management protocol are pain meds (obviously depending on severity) and cortisone shots.

 

[Heuristic]

I'm sorry to hear that jude101. That's a tough break to catch at a young age. Car accident?

I understand the reluctance to use certain pain meds, but why against anti-inflammatories?

I also understand the desire not to be limited, but think about your future in choosing your activities. Doing things that may more permanently damage your abilities obviously wouldn't be a good thing.

I still think you should see a doctor if the muscle weakness etc. is new. It sounds like the pain ranges in tolerability, and that you've got a good handle on it, but you'd want to know if the type of nerve damage you're experiencing is such that it would progressively lead to a weakening of certain muscles and eventually to a deficit in certain motor function.

 

[LivingInTheMoment]

It's not a disc Heuristic. The sciatic runs very close to the hip joint. Mine got mashed and repaired. All my problems on the left leg, lower back stem from this.

I met a great many doctors. Don't want to see another for some time.

Tips for alleviating the twinges is kind of what I was after in this thread.

I don't place too much faith in internet diagnosis'

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy has given enormously good results in your condition, they use them alot in sports medicine, mostly post operative and sports accidents, where they were experinencing a lot of pain. Also Far Infrared Wave Therapy, where the specific heat/waves reach deeply into the troubled areas are quite recuperative and healing.