Sciatica and lower back pain

apache · 01-10-2021 02:17PM

I don't agree with that. I had a spinal fusion about 8 or 9 years ago and touch wood I've had no problems with it since.

That's not to say I'll have problems with it again and I worry about that but so far, so good.

If I needed another fusion I would have it done going by the results of the last one.

The epidural didn't work for me. They tried that and a discetomy before the fusion of L5-S1.

When it comes down to it sometimes surgery is the only option. If I could get another 10 years free of back pain, I'd grab at it.

horsey63 · 01-10-2021 07:43PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117962496#Comment_117962496

Yup, after 2 microdisketomies, I had an l4/5 fusion done in 2015, and I'm doing fantastic ! best thing I ever did, the relief from pain was amazing. Put it this way, I have also had a knee replacement and a spinal fusion was much much easier to recover from.

apache · 01-10-2021 08:40PM

I have to be honest and say that I found the recovery rough but the end result was worth it.

Fionne · 07-10-2021 12:05PM

I got the caudal epidural done yesterday. It was fine, not much pain or discomfort at all, I've definitely felt worse at a dentist visit! More embarassing than anything else as let's just say you're in a pretty compromised position for the procedure.

The most painful part was finding out the evening before that my VHI plan wouldn't cover it so I had to pay €900. It's so disappointing because it means I can't afford to go back there again if I need another one and if I do end up surgery, it won't be in the Mater and with a doctor I actually like and have faith in.

I won't know for a few days to a week if the epidural has worked, fingers crossed it does.

horsey63 · 08-10-2021 12:46PM

Yikes, thats a bit of a shocker re the VHI. I'm with the VHI and there are only one or two hospitals here in Dublin that I'm not fully covered for (Mater Private and Beacon) but nearly all consultants practice in 2 private hospitals (in my case Santry Sports Clinic, I was fully covered there, and the Mater Private, only 50% cover) so it might be worth your while checking with his secretary does he practice in a different hospital and check those details with the VHI

whiterebel · 27-10-2021 05:46PM

My right leg has been numb for the last 12 months. I thought it was a consequence of T2 Diabetes. My wife was more concerned than I was, and nagged me to go to the GP. He didn't like it all, the fact that is was only on one side - slight numbness only on the left leg. I was sent for an MRI on the lower spine as I have 2 bulging discs. It came back with stenosis also being present. GP thinks the nerve is being compressed, causing the numbness.

He referred me to an Orthopaedic surgeon, who checked me out. He found that I was less reactive on my right side upper body as well as the leg. He thinks that the impingement may be higher up than the lumbar spine, and I have to have Brain, Thoracic and Cervical MRIs in the morning. I bloody hate the MRI. But hopefully it will help find the problem.

Fionne · 02-11-2021 03:18PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118081361#Comment_118081361

I hope your MRI went ok. My "numbness" also includes scalding hot pins and needles - it really sucks, doesn't it? I hope you fare better than I have been doing in getting some relief.

whiterebel · 02-11-2021 03:37PM

Thats what I have as well. Very slow getting reports from Affidea at the moment, they said it could take up to 3 weeks.......

Fionne · 02-11-2021 03:49PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118107418#Comment_118107418

I was lucky in that respect, I had the MRI done in the Mater in Cork and had the results in under a week, like you other people I know had to wait several weeks. So frustrating when you're anxious and in pain.

Pheonix21 · 17-11-2021 03:39PM

I have been following this discussion with interest as I am in the same mess as FonE unfortunately. I have not been at work since mid-September with severe sciatic pain down my left leg, unable to sit at all and having very difficult nights. The MRI is showing focal left paracentral disc protrusion on L4/5 with lateral recess impingement on left L5 root and foraminal narrowing. As in FonE's case, the herniation happened at the hands of a physio (an MRI shortly before that physio visit showed a bulge on L4/5) and so, although I am anxious to avoid surgery if at all possible, I am terrified to return to another physio (I am unable to travel in any event at present). I have tried doing very simple stretches but the consequent pain soon put a stop to that. I can do short walks (I work through the 'pain barrier') & I can lie on the floor for short periods without too much discomfort.

I would be grateful for any suggestions for rehabilitation for this condition that doesn't involve surgery - is there such a thing??

Many thanks in advance.

17-11-2021 07:20PM

Spinal extension

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mNKzIrGZc4

Spinal flexion = vertebrae pinch down on sciatic nerve.

Do the opposite (extension) = alleviates pinching on the nerve.

17-11-2021 07:59PM

Was just browsing a related thread on a separate forum.

A comment:

"I have had lower back problems from lifting and grappling, and I can tell you that a reverse hyper machine and hip thrusts / bridging saved my back. Don’t bridge on your neck though"

Reverse hyper extensions =

https://youtu.be/sWSOt4r93zY

Sciatica is a lower back issue (L4/5).

i.e. treatment is the same, and it's all about posture.

These exercises target posture of the lumbar spine (same area you target to work on your ass).

Hip thrust, glute bridge:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iO9qZF0rzuE

17-11-2021 08:05PM

Honestly uppity chicks prioritizing these exercises for aesthetic reasons, it downplays their importance for general musculoskeletal well being.

Especially in older age conditions, I can't imagine how many hip and knee replacement surgeries (as well as sciatica of course) could be prevented if these were emphasized and taught better.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEdqd1n0cvg

When you do this, you tighten up the lumbar-quads,

The same spinal region from where the sciatic nerve emerges:

Therefore you alleviate vertebral pressure on the nerve by instating the correct curvature = alleviate the pain.

Pheonix21 · 17-11-2021 10:56PM

Thank you. I have been doing the McKenzie extension exercises for years and they always relieved my discomfort until this current flare-up. This time, the extension exercises exacerbate my leg pain. Am I right in assuming that this is because the disc protrusion in my case is broad-based?

I would also like to know if any particular sleeping position is recommended with a broad-based central disc protrusion? I find that I am 'crooked' each morning (belly button pulled off to the left) and lordosis totally gone from lumbar spine. I spend half the day trying to correct the 'damage' done by going to bed (even though, I get up every couple of hours to walk around during the night to relieve the discomfort and stiffness). I have tried lying on my back with a lumbar roll under lumbar spine and painful leg raised. I have tried sleeping in the foetal position with a cushion between my knees and another between my hips and pillow (this seems to 'round' my shoulders). I cannot manage lying on my stomach in bed at all as it is causing me neck issues! It is uncomfortable regardless of what way I lie in bed. If I didn't go to bed at all, I think that I would be improving by now! I would consider that my mattress is in good condition. It is firm and I am of slight build so I don't think that I need to invest in a new mattress. Sleep deprivation isn't helping with my pain threshold unfortunately.

waxmoth · 18-11-2021 12:58AM

Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) is used to good effect for neuropathic pain. There have been trials showing effectiveness in Sciatica.

https://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/ben/cnsnddt/2019/00000018/00000006/art00008#

'Palmitoylethanolamide was extremely effective on pain and function in a large cohort of patients with low back pain – sciatica. Although, the multiple mechanisms of action of palmitoylethanolamide are ideal for mixed pain conditions such as low back pain – sciatica, the correlation between pain relief and the likelihood of neuropathic pain suggests that this drug exerts a predominant action on the neuropathic pain component.'

18-11-2021 07:54AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118183405#Comment_118183405

Just a question but,

Have you ever tried load-bearing exercises to treat the condition?

i.e. weightlifting?

From a lay persons point of view it sounds like the opposite of what one should do but your description of severe postural misalignment = a direct result of both over and under active musculature, causing what should be correct spinal posture to be way out of position.

.....

The unfortunate part of this is that you'd really need someone who knows how to teach it present with you, cause if you approach the treatment incorrectly, you'll exacerbate the issue.

Fionne · 19-11-2021 02:50PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118183405#Comment_118183405

I know we are all probably different even with similar diagnoses but I sleep with a lot of pillows behind my head, so semi-sitting up and then have a huge cushion under my calves/ankles to raise them up. I wasn't advised to do this by anyone but it is the only position I can get comfortable in for any length of time.

Like you, I've been too afraid to go to a physio or physical therapist because I worry about making my pain or condition worse which I'm not sure I could tolerate. I'm lucky I suppose in that I can actually walk ok - a reversal of how I would have been the last 8 years where it was too much walking brought on the sciatic pain - now I can walk much better but can't sit at all. I'd go back to being unable to walk far in a heartbeat if I had to choose - not being able to sit down is actually much more restrictive.

Pheonix21 · 26-11-2021 11:29AM

Thank you for these suggestions. Because bedtime is so pain-provocative, I have been looking at changing my mattress. I would be very grateful for advice on what type of mattress to go for with a herniation at L4/5 causing compression on the L5 nerve root. I am of slight build. Thanks in advance.

26-11-2021 10:31PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118191462#Comment_118191462

That posture you describe is obviously a flexion of the spine, i.e. it's kind of like, reverse McKenzie posture.

But you're actually stretching the primary lower back muscle in the QL's (lumbar quads). i.e lengthening them out

Don't know if boards allow but I'd love to see a side on profile.

Something like this but of yourself obviously, just as you mention relief from stretching the lower back, it's interesting.

https://www.spine-health.com/video/lumbar-spine-anatomy-video?jwsource=cl

90 second video surmising the issue you describe?

27-11-2021 10:20PM

A dude who has had every single disc in his back operated on:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-RnElujInY

Pheonix21 · 16-12-2021 10:15AM

Thank you. My posture would align most closely with the 'spoon'. However, I have a very unstable spine brought about by too-frequent spinal manipulations over the years. My spinal ligaments have become over-stretched and so, my joints are lax. Both sitting and standing for any length precipitate my back "giving", as well as any kind of twisting movement and then it's another trip to the chiropractor for relief, thus perpetuating the cycle of dependence and causing even more wear and tear. I feel as if I am caught in a bind.

Sciatica and lower back pain

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