sciatica

[heli13]

Hi

Has anyone got any ideas how to cope with severe nerve pain from sciatica?

Thanks

Helen

[PMRpro Ambassador]

Do you also have back muscle pain? It could be spasmed back muscles pinching the nerve. That is what happens to me. I have physio or massage to release the tight muscles.

[piglette]

I really feel for you. I keep getting sciatica and I just pant with pain. I have found pain killers a total waste of time, but physio does seem to help. I first got it last year and it went away after six months but it seems to be coming back again. A friend did show me some exercises where she seemed to twist herself into an unbelievable, convoluted mass of her legs. She did do it in the coffee shop of the swimming pool much to the amazement of the others there. I am not sure I am up to that though.

[Hidden]

I used to get it a lot when nursing. One time I was in so much pain at work and nobody could help.

I was leaving the lounge when someone pushed me by accident and I landed on another nurses lap and slid across her lap and my buttocks hit the floor all the while stretching my legs to unimaginable length.

I got up and my sciatica was gone.

So now I do slow long stretches because I can't find two people willing to knock me down and let me sit in their lap.

[Hindags]

Lol. I was going to suggest a visit to an osteopath. Actually I suffered from low back pain and sciatica for years, getting lumbar epidurals every six months until I found an osteopath who keeps me aligned and started doing Qigong exercises. I am constantly amazed by how much the osteopath has helped me. Even now with the PMR pain, she's often able to resolve it .

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Hindags]

If an osteopath is relieving PMR pain - it probably isn't PMR pain but due to an add-on in the form of myofascial pain syndrome. As my MPS flares so does my PMR - until the MPS is sorted out and then suddenly I can reduce the pred dose another step.

[Hindags in reply to PMRpro]

Thanks for the clarification. I hoped that it was MPS and not PMR flaring she was clearing. It usually comes after something extra I've physically and lingers a bit.

It helps to pin a different label on it for me because I'm still sorting out how the different aspects of the PMR, Pred Side Effects, & Taper, journey require different management techniques for me. I'll add MPS to the list.

[paddyfield]

Private sport physio and/or osteopath etc. w ill help with hands on therapy. NHS phsyios not allowed to do much. The cause could lie in the spine but equally be down to irritated sciatic nerve due to tight glutes and/ or piriformis muscle. In some people the nerve passes through the piriformis rather than outside it. Gapentin is a good temporary relief and also calms down the sciatic nerve over a longer period. The pain from the irritation to the sciatic nerve can last beyond the cause if you see what I mean.

If computer station related,, Workrave free software builds in rests by freezing the screen every now and then and suggesting exercises, get up and walk about. etc.

[kingharold11]

I sympathize I have had sciatica on and off for about 3 years nothing works none of the painkillers work it has to go away on its own walking does help if you can do it

[Steve2002]

I've been dealing with sciatica on and off for about thirty years, and the only thing that has worked for me is yoga.

[hopeful-1]

My wife suffered from the classic sciatica down side and leg, but since doing Pilates for some years now has not so far had a recurrence. Also yours' truly took it up to build up support for bad back, with again very good results. There are a number of exercise regimes out there that are pretty handy to tackle these and other achy problems.

[kate24]

osteopath does sciatica routinely, 5 years of medical training

to diagnose and manipulate, and are insured to practice.

Cant compare this type of work with physio who do other things

but are neither trained nor insured in this. Not saying that

relief cant be found in other ways, one us friend used

bikram yoga but it took her a long time.

Further to the discussion above on uk and "alternative med",

in the 70s osteos were called quacks here, ha, sound familiar?

Finally after an act of parliament, they were even integrated

into the NHS, some GPs refer, but too few NHS osteos and children

prioritized, most my freinds just go private, since they want fast relief,

and an osteo usually fixes these problems in 1- 3 visits, most find

that affordable. Osteopathy originated in us,

but as a result of private health insurance system they have little training in manipualtion,

instead they are trained similarly to MDs and are licensed doctors (DOs and they also have licensed NDs naturopathic physicians, who are also trained in nutrition). Few DOs specialize in manipulation over there, this is a full time profession and very highly skilled, my own osteo here has taken on a few DOs as apprentices. If the costs of a few appointments are too high, you can visit one of the "clinics" at the two schools of osteopathy in london, where senior students work under supervision of their qualified teacher, its very inexpensive. I tried to find an osteo for a freind in pain in germany, and when I googled all I could find was "quack". But my former osteo practices in australia now. Best to check the CV and wikipedia to clarify what these titles mean.

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to kate24]

This thread is pretty old now. So don't be surprised if you don't hear back.