Excruciating pain from sciatica
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Anonymous
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I herniated a disc a couple of months ago and in the last few days it has changed from lower back pain to excruciating sciatica. I was almost in tears trying to get out of bed this morning.
Has anyone dealt with this, and what did they find effective in helping? I have been doing physical therapy for the last month or so, but it doesn't seem to be helping at all... |
Anonymous
| Surgery. It was the only thing that helped. It’s been almost 20 years now and it’s never come back. |
Anonymous
| To clarify, they did a spine fusion. |
Anonymous
| The only thing that helps me when I get a sciatica flare up is a short course of prednisone (steroid). It knocks the inflammation out quickly. |
Anonymous
Just to clarify: these are prednisone pills (not injections, though I know some people get those too). |
Anonymous
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OP, first I’m so sorry. It’s awful.
If you haven’t been to a doctor. You should go. Eventually you need a spine doctor (ortho or neuro, either one) but any doctor you can get in to see should be able to help with: Ordering an MRI A steroid pack It’s good to have the mri in hand when you finally get to the spine guy/gal. If you’re still debilitated, the spine doctor might send you for a series of three cortisone shots. If none of that works or if it’s indicated beforehand by the imaging, you might be in for surgery. The good news is that most of them heal on their own, they’re just really slow. A lot slower than a sprained ankle or something like that. You have to give it several months. Advil worked better for me personally than Vicodin. |
Anonymous
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Agree a course of Prednisone can be a miracle. Talk to your Ortho about following up with a prescription for celebrex, which is an anti-inflammatory that can address or prevent sciatica pain, especially when combined with PT.
How often are you doing PT? When I had a similar issue, I learned I needed to do it daily. I went to the bank twice twice a week for sessions, but they gave me daily homework and if I skipped a day, the pain would start to come back. Eventually I started feeling good enough that I switched from PT to regular barre classes which can be amazing for sciatic pain because of the combined focus on strength and range of movement. It actually incorporated a lot of the stuff I did in PT, but it's less boring and more dynamic. It's been several years for me and while I occasionally get flare ups, they tend to be mild and not excruciating, and fairly easily treated with OTC meds and some targeted PT. For me the biggest mental adjustment was understanding that even when I was in a lot of pain, the best possible thing was movement. Gentle movement, facilitated by medication, but still movement. Don't lett the sciatic pain convince you to sit or lie around (this is definitely my instinct). |
Anonymous
| It’s true that you need to move. Walking is best for me, personally, or swimming if it’s available. It helps the muscles that are spasming to let go a little, which helps them stop pulling on the nerve that’s giving you pain. |
Anonymous
| After days of unrelenting pain that no drug would touch, my friend dragged me kicking and screaming to her chiropractor and the sciatica pain went away completely after 2-3 visits (but I could tell the first day it was getting better). One hip was higher than another. |
Anonymous
| I would never go to a chiropractor, but to each their own. Without good evidence that it works, the last thing I want is someone pushing or pulling on me. |
Anonymous
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I have been to the Orthopedic dr twice. The first time he gave md a shot, some muscle relaxers, and ordered the PT. I went back last week and he ordered the mri and prescribed some gabapentin and an nsaid. Both times he spent less than 3 minutes with me.
I have been trying to be active and keep walking and doing my exercises every day , but the last few days the pain has been too intense to walk or do many of my PT exercises. I don’t know what to do next. I am having my mri tomorrow and seeing the dr a week after that. Should I call the drs snd see if they can offer anything stronger for pain relief? |
Anonymous
You’re doing the right thing by getting the mri, and honestly it’s good that you’re getting it after this new pain started in case something moved. If you can, stick with anti inflammatories and gabapentin for the pain. Opioids might help tone it down but they have a lot of side effects, not just addiction. But yeah if you can’t handle it they can help for a bit. You can call and ask. Try a heating pad too. In terms of immediacy, they’re going to look for foot drop (a limp, basically) and any signs of incontinence. Those are things that could make you immediately surgical. Otherwise, it probably won’t matter if you wait a week to have them look at the MRI. It’s frustrating to feel like the doctors aren’t doing enough for you but it’s because a) they need the images and b) the first and most effective thing they can do for you in most cases is just wait several months. So the delay is not just a delay, it’s treatment. |
Anonymous
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Emergency Room -> Surgery (Microdisectomy)
That is the only thing that stopped that horrible pain for me. I'm so sorry 
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Anonymous
| Course of three steroid shots |
Anonymous
| When my husband had what he thought was a sciatica flare up, he eventually went to the doctor for it and it turns out he needed surgery for a disc issue in his spine. They first just gave him pain meds but he kept twisting his ankle and stumbling. When he mentioned that to the doctor on the follow up visit, she seemed concerned and asked him to walk on his heels. He couldn't do it. He had neuropathy and foot drop. She sent him to a neuro for a consult and after an MRI, was told he needed surgery. He was immediately pain free after the surgery and hasn't had a problem since, however, the nerve damage is somewhat permanent and he still has weakness in the one foot/ankle that was affected. |