sciatica

[Junny123]

my sister suddenly has awful extremely bad pain from the lower back going all the way down her leg. can’t sit or lie down or drive. it’s stopping her daily activities. does anybody understand and have any advice?

[Bananas5]

Painful condition

Too much to copy but worth a read

my.clevelandclinic.org/heal...

[Macblank]

Hi Junny123

If it's travelling down the inside of her bum, and down the outside of her leg, and possibly down to her feet, IT IS POSSIBLE, it's sciatica.

For most outside of manual workers, it can come along with pregnancy (but eases majorly afterwards) or age related.

She needs a Dr appointment, and an x-ray/MRI.

The sciatic nerve does just randomly get upset and angry, but when it's lasting, it's a sign of a change in your back.

Is she getting saddle numbness (front to back along her fanny to bum) whe sat down? It'll be numbness and to cling at the same time.

If so, that needs immediate checking, as it can go on to affect toileting.

She could try heat pads for the time being ... On Amazon you can get extra long microwave pads, which you can "tie" around the waist, to hold it in position.

Good luck to her.

[MammaGoop]

It sounds like sciatica. I had this about 20 years ago. Turned out after an MRI that I had three prolapsed discs in my lower back. My husband took me to A&E where they immediately injected some Valium which was heaven as the pain stopped for a while. They were most concerned about bodily functions and if they were affected as that is an emergency situation, I was bad but not that bad although the pain did go down to my toes. I was given traction three times a week for quite a few weeks which only helped slightly. We ended up, after asking the physiotherapist, an inversion table where you hang inside down which really helped. I used it frequently and the discs eventually went back. I still have a slight problem with my back if I overdo bending say in the garden but thankfully I’ve not had sciatica since, it’s agony. Mine lasted about 8 months.

[cyberbarn]

It is worth remembering that sciatica is a symptom, it says nothing about the cause which could be many things. This is a blog post about the different terminology.

shop.tomjesson.com/blogs/bl...

I have had this twice. Once after a few days it eased, but the second time it went on for about a month. I couldn't sleep through the night, I spent most of the time on my sofa with three hot water bottles, one for my buttocks and lower back, one for the side of my hip, and one for my thigh.

It was lockdown time, so no one would see me so we will never know what caused it. But it did get better eventually.

As others have said, the red flag is loss of sensation in the 'saddle' area and difficulty with peeing and/or pooing. If that happens then it should be straight to A&E. But otherwise, make an appointment for physio (in many if not most areas of the UK you can self refer) and speak to the GP surgery.

[LancashireLad1]

Hi , firstly you need to find out what is causing it , mine is through the spine, other problems can be muscles and getting older and job you do , to get relief depends on the individual i tried medication which slightly gave me relief, mine got worse when a sleep and my thighs would go numb , so what i did was lose a little weight and exercise my muscles in my legs by either a small walk or lay on my bed and gently move my leg's but not over doing it and after time i found i got some relief not 100 per cent but better than before .

[Batty1]

She should look up brad and bob physical therapist on youtube and search sciatica … I did 3 videos of theirs repeatedly for severe and I mean severe lower back and entire upper thigh area pain I couldn’t walk, sit or stand it was horrendous and after doing 3 of their videos my pain disappeared and hasn’t been back…. Worth a try!

[mascotty02]

Hey Junny123, Sorry your sister is going through this, it is not nice and there are several exercises she can do, however I had this in my left hip and it got so bad at one stage I went to A&E and the doctor there had prescribed me Co-Drydamol this was brilliant and I could actually get out of bed instead of rolling over and monkey crawling back up, see if her doctor will prescribe these for her, I did initially took 2 x 2 x daily no more than 8 a day and now I don't take them at all unless I wake up or can feel its coming back. Hope this helps you.

Take care

[Hidden]

I have had this many times and can say that the majority of the time it is caused by vertebrae being out of place and putting pressure on the nerve. A lot of people go to a chiropractor when this happens and they manipulate your back. I have had my wife fix mine a bunch of times. I lay on my stomach across the bottom edge of our bed. There are two things she will try. One is she puts the palm of her right hand on the center of my lower back and while pressing down, she rocks my spine back and forth vigorously. That will sometimes cause some popping sounds as the bones move back into place. The other thing she will try is to put her palm out on the far edge of my hip bone and push down hard and abruptly. This will also move some bones back into place. It may help to use a heating pad on the area before trying this to loosen up the muscles. Another thing I have done is to lay on my back on the bed, make two fists, lift your lower back up off the bed then place your fists down at your lower back and let your weight rest down on your fists. That has worked for me putting things back in place where they belong.

[Mitch48 in reply to Hidden]

Hi there,

It obviously is the cause for you from what you say but muscle spasms can often cause nerve irritation, further deterioration is a disc bulge or prolapse and associated arthritic growth. It is rare to have a vertebrae out of alignment (Spondylolisthesis or Retrolisthesis) (I had 2 of the former) unless you’ve had advanced arthritis or an accident etc (Impending Cauda Equina in my case).

[caz1967]

Morning Junny

Been there, i totally understand what Sciatica is like, especially when it hits from no problems existed before. My best advice is rest while in acute pain, however if it becomes a very regular she may need to have medication. I take Pregabalin which blocks the pain from the sciatic nerve, It can become very deliberating, My first attack, left me unable to move,as i woke up my GP initially thought i may of had a stroke, until she arrived at my home and examined me. I was astounded but sciatica can range from one extreme to the more regular pain which resembles an electric shock shooting through the buttock down the thigh/ leg /foot. It eventually stopped me from safely driving. HOPEFULLY SHE CAN GET MEDICAL HELP WHICH CAN CONTROL IT FROM EVER GETTING SEVERE.

[Junny123]

thankyou all for replies. they sound just like the pain she has. i’ve told her the messages from her and she said they all make so much sense .. just like the pain she has. X