Back pain - anyone got anything similar?

[Chukkin]

Ok, so here’s the story...

23rd June - woke up with pain in my left SI joint. Could literally pinpoint it to that spot. I’ve had a sore back before, but it was just muscle pain from overuse and was never over the SI joint. Standing and walking were both painful, and the pain disappeared when I sat or lay down.

25th June - Went outside to get something from the garage but didn’t even get to the garage before the pain multiplied a million times. Immediately tried sitting down (as it had helped in the previous days) but nothing was working. To give you a bit of perspective, I have major lung issues and have had several chest drains before (notoriously painful), but I would have preferred the drains in my chest at that point. I ended up lying on my bed pretty much biting a pillow, it was horrific. My mum called my GP who prescribed diazepam and codeine, which both helped to bring it to a manageable level.

26th June - Pain is still bad, but the meds definitely make it a lot easier. Now I notice that the outside of my calf and the top of my foot are totally numb, and I can’t lift my foot or toes off the floor. The entire leg feels weak, like it will give way when I walk on it. I should note that I have no “red flag symptoms” and no pain in my upper leg or buttock, just in that spot on my SI joint.

Today - I decide that since the weakness/numbness and floppy foot are still not getting any better, and due to my long-term steroid use for my bad lungs, I should probably go to the hospital and at least get it xrayed. This was not an easy decision as I am shielding. Long story short - didn’t even get to see a doctor. The nurse had decided it was sciatica and that there was nothing they could do. No X-ray, no painkillers, nothing.

I’m really not convinced it is sciatica, especially since I have no pain in my thigh or buttock area.

Anyone else have any idea??

[Jjflash]

Hiya chukkin,you sound in quite a lot of discomfort.ive had sciatica before also but once it reached the upper back part of my legs,it stopped there.It could be that you have a trapped nerve in your lower back that affects your back down to the base of your feet.you could try a few basic yoga moves to get a bit more fluidity through your body,to stop your body from stiffening up more.Try to walk more,slowly though till you're able to trust your body like before.Also,maybe some very gentle stretches a couple of times daily.Plus keep taking your meds.Good luck.

[Emma2017]

Hi Chukkin, my story was similar to yours. I had increasing back pain nearly four years ago now. I would lay down on the floor to get some relief. Then one day I was laying on the floor to get some relief again but could not get up. I was in excruciating pain. Luckily I was laying on the bedroom floor and with extreme difficulty and help from my husband I made it to my bed. I had some red flag symptoms and rang the musculoskeletal specialist I had been seeing who arranged an urgent MRI. Don’t know how I managed to get down the stairs the next day but got there and was taken to the hospital. By that time my leg was getting painful and I lost sensation from the knee down. MRI showed a huge herniation at L5S1 level. It showed slow onset CE hence the somewhat red flag symptoms. Anyway got an op a few days later.

So it sounds very much like you have a similar issue going on in your lower back. They will offer you an MRI if you have red flag symptoms, if not they most likely won’t as they suffer such a backlog at the moment. Quite often physio can help a lot. Go back to your GP and ask for a referral to a physio who has experience with these kind of things as you don’t want to make it worse by an inexperienced physio. Other than that walking is the best thing for this, just short walks to build up your strength and don’t sit for long periods in a very upright position as that puts a lot of pressure on your lower back. Keep a look out for red flag symptoms. Good luck.

[Chukkin]

Thanks for the replies! I can deal with the back pain (with medication), it's the weak/numb leg and floppy foot that I'm struggling with. I have no red flag symptoms.

I have decided that if my leg isn't improving by the end of the week, I will ask to see my GP. The hospital were very unhelpful, didnt even do a physical exam.

I work in a surgical operating theatre, so I know a little about anatomy etc, but I am by no means a doctor or a specialist.

I am shielding at the moment due to underlying health conditions, but my worry is that this new issue will continue into the time when I can go back to work, and I can't be in theatre with a dodgy leg. Pain is one thing, but if I am at risk of falling, then I can't do my job.

[cyberbarn]

Ummmm..... isn't weak/numb leg and drop foot a red flag?

What about ringing your GP surgery now if nothing else to have the symptoms recorded in your notes. Then at least they can decide how soon you need to follow this up further.

[Chukkin in reply to cyberbarn]

I'm not sure if it is or not to be honest. I thought it was only bladder/bowel issues which were red flags for CE. I told the nurses at A&E about it yesterday, but they put it down to sciatica, told me it was normal, and that there was nothing they would do.

I tried to explain that since I have been on high-dose steroids for my chest for years, that I am at higher risk of weakening of the bones, but that was quickly dismissed too.

[Krawlins]

Hi Chukkin, you asked if anyone got anything similar, well I do and did. Back in 2012 I couldn't move after a few days leading up to it, terrible sciatica, so hard to sit down or get back up again, so hard to get in and out of bed. Eventually I stayed in bed with no other option, except to get up for the toilet, in the end I couldn't even manage that walk and it took me so long to get out of bed and it was excruciating pain. I suffered it around a fortnight then knew I had to get some help. Ambulance took me to AnE, took two attempts mind you till I insisted they keep me in, by the time I got in their bed, they gave me a bed pan for a wee and I could not go!! I was given a catheter which was such a relief.

Eventually I had MRI, after being on all sorts of drugs including morphine, the way the results were explained to me by a doctor was to say that a bone had moved in my spine!!

When later I spoke to the surgeon he said it was a herniated disc. I still had not been able to get out of bed and walk when the physiotherapists attended daily and I was in tears thinking I would never walk again. I found out the only surgeon at the hospital was on his Easter holidays and I had to wait for his return to look at the MRI results. He came saw me Sunday evening, told me he was cancelling his Monday clinic because my operation was an emergency, I'd already been in hospital a fortnight and suffered at home a further two weeks, so my emergency appointment was a month overdue !!

What can I say after that op, I was upright again, I could weight bear on the left leg that had me stuck in a fetal position, I didn't have excruciating nerve pain but I had lost muscle and felt like my left leg would never straighten again and it was so so weak. Basically I had been diagnosed with a herniated disc at L5 S1 and the operation I had was a lumber decompression/discectomy.

8 years on and I still have dead areas in my left little toe, side/bottom of foot and an area on my left heel and outer lower calf, I have permanent damage I am told as a result of the herniated disc, I have fasiculations in my left leg, calf area predominantly and they are 24/7. I believe it is the L5 S1 that causes sciatica and I am told I again have a slight recurring herniation at L5 S1 but now also have degenerative disc disease and its affecting L3 and L4. I was meant to see my surgeon in June but it was cancelled, not even a phone consult. Issues have never gone away fully and I flinch with pain if I miss my footing on a pavement etc, or if I move wrong. I am however able to turn over in bed now which I hadn't been able to do. I did go from thinking I would be wheelchair bound for the rest of my life when the disk went and was touching the sciatic nerve. Now, well life is hard for me as I'm mostly alright upright but its very difficult to do anything from the floor, kneeling, bending, sitting on the floor eg trying to wrap presents I just cannot do, I lose my flexibility and have awful pain. I think I have arthritis everywhere, they said I had in my facet joints in the spine also.

I had to turn down a chance to look after my grandchildren for one day a week as looking after babies, toddlers is what is so hard for me to do, involves so much bending and carrying. I even had problems in the 80s and 90s with my own children changing a nappy on the floor for instance, I think I have something wrong other than just the back issue but trying to establish what is proving very difficult.

So briefly I do still think your pain and numbness could be related to sciatica, but sciatica is a symptom of something else going on, so you need to establish what is causing your sciatica, you need an MRI of the SIJ and other lumbar discs by the sound of it, I do get an awful lot of aching pain in the left buttock mostly, usually alleviated by sitting, but then again it can be caused by sitting too long (for work for instance, as I sit down to work), I have adapted my lifestyle and I have learned how to pace myself. I was so hoping to have a fusion and that was booked for 2019 then they thought they'd try other injections and nerve denervations etc. One I had done I couldn't move my left leg after, I was first down for the op and didn't leave (day stay) till around 6 pm till I could move my leg again, was worried then I had some permanent nerve damage from the procedure, I don't think they want to do the fusion and I'm not 100% it will help either.

Good luck finding out the cause of your pain and numbness, hopefully an x-ray or MRI to find out the cause. Painkillers are all very well but it could be worse trying to battle through on those without finding the cause.

With best wishes for a diagnosis and a full recovery

Kay

[Chukkin in reply to Krawlins]

Thank you so much for sharing your story, Kay. You understand my issue - saying that it is sciatica (which it may well be) is fine, but what is causing it?

To walk, I have to be holding onto walls or rails for fear of falling. I have to lock my knee to be able to hold my own weight and with my foot not cooperating, a fall is not what I need.

I worry that I wont be able to work with this - I work 13-hour shifts in an operating theatre. If I am at risk of falling, I cant be in there.

Also, the longer it is left before something is done, the higher the risk of the nerve recovering. Working in theatre, I understand the surgical treatment options for trapped/damaged nerves/vertebrae, if this is what this is.

Do you use a brace/support/cane/crutches? Please don't feel you have to disclose this information here, feel free to privately message or I can give you my email address.

[Krawlins]

Oh dear it sounds worrying that you fear falling because of this effect on your foot and leg. I think if it doesn’t resolve pretty soon then seeing a neurologist might help, though you probably know all this with you working in the theatre and your medical knowledge and experience. Perhaps they’d suggest a nerve conduction test to see what that might show up. I have some absent reflexes on my feet, think it was the Achilles’ tendon.

I have often felt a brace would help me but until I see orthopaedics again I’m not likely to be able to ask and last year pain management clinic stopped seeing me even though I’m in pain every day. I’ll just have to pursue it when appts recommence.

Have you a colleague in the know you could tell about your issues at the moment as it sounds quite concerning.

Take care, Kay

[HayleyNash]

My back also hurts very often lately. Especially when I am doing household chores or gardening. A friend of mine who suffers from the same back problems uses a special back support Ortorex that keeps her lower back in the correct position while sitting or walking. It also really helps when doing sports, you can be sure not to stretch your back. Search the internet for official short videos describing how it works, maybe this will help you too.