sciatic pain

Ever since I finished the fire academy....maybe few weeks after, I have had sciatic pain. The pain starts around my left but cheek area...I can't run, bend over and walk funny because of the pain. I also have slight numbness in my left toe.

Do any of you guys suffer from sciatic problems and if so what do you recommend? It sucks, as of now its been almost 5 weeks with the pain...its less now but I still feel it here and there...

 

my g/f uses a tens unit, says it works pretty well..i just lay on the floor and stretch

 

my girlfriend has similar problems hopefully we can both find some solutions

 

Thanks guys...yea the pain was horrible the first week...felt like a 90 yr old...I do strech but to a limit because of the pain...ill look into the tens unit...really sucks because I'm a very active guy and I just want to run and workout again

 

you can also get one of those bed things that you lay on and it rotates you backwards, so you're kind of hanging upside down. 10-15min a day on that helps more than you would think

 

I have had my fair share of back pain. Just this last week, I had my fourth back surgery and now have my second spinal cord stimulator implanted in my body, which I control with a Medtronics "tens" unit controller."

My suggestion is to have this checked out ASAP. My problems began in 2004 and quickly deteriorated... turned out I have a degenerative spine disease, which will likely leave me paralyzed in a few years.

Chances are, you have a "slipped," or "blown" disc, which is causing compression of a nerve(s) or the nerve root. Your description of left buttock pain and numbness in the left toes indicates compression of at least the L5-S1 area (the most common area related to sciatic pain).

If you have blown or ruptured a disc, more often than not, the disc will heal itself to a degree; however, once you have back pain, unfortunately, it is likely to return more frequently after the first occurrence. You can help the healing process provided you take it easy and not over extend your lower back in any way (several weeks). Comfort will be a problem in the near term but short of prescription meds/narcotics, you will only be able to relieve pain with heat/cold (there are disputes as to the effectiveness of one o the other)... I suggest cold... and maybe a oral regimen of a mild ant-inflammatory like Motrin (800mg).

Mild stretching may offer some relief in the near term as well. In the meantime, you may ask your primary care doctor to refer you for an MRI or CT to determine if you have something going on that will need medical intervention (disc replacement therapy, injections, etc).

I know back pain and spinal disease well so if you want to ask me any other questions or need some advice, just PM me and I'll be glad to help where I can. I hope you feel better soon!

 

hell yea

 

Ah, shit happens... I'll be good. I have already looked into paralytic conversion kits for my Tacoma in the event it overtakes me faster than the docs estimate. I feel I'm lucky... I'm still walking around. More than a few of my brothers in arms haven't been as fortunate.

Thanks for your kind thoughts.

 

My dad suffered severely from sciatic back pain. He went to many massage therapist, but only one of them had the touch.

Find a good therapist that know alot about sciatic pain. Chinese acupuncture works well too.

 

Sorry about your back sugeries...and I sure appreciate the info. I'll shoot you a pm ASAP.

 

My Dad had some issues a while back, and a friend is a massage therapist and I remember asking her about it, its a tough one for sure but Don't put anything in your back pockets... Certainly don't carry the George Castansa wallet.

 

I was getting alot of discomfort from my sciatic nerve for a while. I have a little bit of a gut and a history of back problems in my family, but nothing to bad but that sciatic nerve pain occassionally. I havent had to much of a problem, but I do need to lose weight and it is concentrated in ma belly. I dont know if your overweight, but I am about 5 ft 8 and 215lbs...I need to lose some weight. Once I started going to the gym though, I found I was strengthening my core muscles which seemed to help for some reason. If I can continue losing weight, then it will be less pressure on my back and it shouldnt stain my sciatic nerve.

Do you go to the gym?

 

Have you tried going to physical therapy? I'd recommend you see one (they goo to doctorate school if you didnt know) before you do anything.

 

Anytime. As far as the Motrin regimen I mentioned above: Anti-inflammatory medications such as Motrin will only have success if taken routinely for a period of time. Meaning, to reduce inflammation around the nerve roots and provide relief, you would need to take Motrin every so often on a scheduled recurring basis (every 6-8 hrs or so). They are not designed (in spite of TV ads to the contrary) to be fast acting and one pill fixes, especially for back pain. At a minimum, maybe you can get your primary care doc to prescribe you a mild pain reliever (stronger than an OTC) and a muscle relaxant like Flexeril.

When someone experience back pain, they tend to compensate and end up stressing muscles they do not normally rely on for even simple repetitive movements (if you have had such bad back pain, then you've probably been hunched over trying to walk around and it's painful as hell, right?). Flexeril may help by releasing norepinephrine into the bloodstream, which helps the nerves around the spine "relax," or providing an analgesic effect. I used to take Flexeril all the time when I first started having back pain years a go and it worked pretty well.

 

That was a funny episode. Yep, caring around a phone book in your back pocket is never a good idea!

 

This is great advice. The first rule of trying to overcome back pain is to strengthen your core. Every doctor will tell you that a strong core will often overcome many routine back pain problems. Good advice.

 

Yep, therapy should only be used as a conservative form of treatment ONCE and only ONCE images have been reviewed by professionals. Many a person has had terribly negative effects realized with therapy performed prior to any image impressions. Most doctors won't authorize or refer for PT until they have reviewed images--too much liability. More great advice!

 

I was going to mention that both my Tacomas (my 2000 and 2010) are lifted but after this last back surgery, I am seriously considering going back down to stock height on both. Even with nFabs steps on my 2010, I can barely get up into the thing without contorting myself. My 2000 is lifted even higher and has no sliders/bars and it's a bitch just trying to hop my right ass cheek into the cockpit and shimmying my way fully onto the driver's seat!

 

Definitely have an MRI performed i had severe back pain work related for a month before they scheduled an MRI for me. I was doing physical therapy during that period. After an MRI it proved I had 3, yes 3 bulging disc all from the s1-l5 area that are all coming in contact with nerves. Neurologist said on the MRI the discs should be a white color cause they r filled with fluid n the three bulging discs in my back were pure black, which ain't good. He suggested that i need surgery but then told me he don't wanna perform surgery cause I'm way too young to have to deal with something like that (22 Yes old) he then proceeded to tell me I will never do manual labor ever again in my life, I work for the water dpt here in my town. He said it could take up to 2 1/2 yrs till I feel better. I also had severe sciatic pain due to my back injury. Some saddening news but he also told me rest n time is the only thing that could help me. And continued with physical therapy but still having trouble, I feel like an old man gotta take a few steps after sitting to straighten up.

 

I had just sent a PM to another member regarding this issue of surgery. Your doc was smart to recommend waiting for surgery... it is NOT THE ANSWER. Trust me, I know. I would delay as long as your body will allow, and honestly, only when the pain is too great, give in. Once you go down the road of having surgery, you can't go back. Your spine is the foundation of your body... everything is affected by the architecture and strength of your spine. Once you start monkeying around with it, it will never be the same. The statistics are frightening concerning the success rates of major spine surgeries.

Your doc is also right that you are too young. Hell, I'm too young! My advice is to find a career that requires little manual labor and pursue that. You can still keep yourself fit in spite of your back problems (I did and have). You are just going to be one of those people that will have to think about how you are going to move before you do. I had to change my way of thinking and I can cope with it but it does make you feel older than you are. Man, I feel for you at your age and I wish you the absolute best of luck.