Denny Crane Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Was struck by this horrible condition yesterday and it is doing my nut in. Any tips (ie. back exercises, old wive's tales, etc) on how to deal with it? Thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jambo 71 Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Was struck by this horrible condition yesterday and it is doing my nut in. Any tips (ie. back exercises, old wive's tales, etc) on how to deal with it? Thanks in advance Have you made an appointment with your docs? They will advise you on what excercises to do or you may have to have surgery if the sciatic nerve pain is severe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronJambo Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 one of my mates had it really bad. struggled to get off the couch after he was on it. i drove 20 miles to take him to the docs a couple of times. he got sent to a physio who managed to sort him out over a month or 2. 2 or 3 sessions a week i think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coppercrutch Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 I imagine phsyio/chiropractor work can sort these things out most of the time ? Get the bones and muscles in line and all good !! Maybe it is not that simple........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JALBO Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 you have my sympathies. I'm prone to it, and there's no way of knowing when it'll come and when it'll disappear. The worst moments are usually after you've been in the same position for a long time, so first thing in the morning can be chronic when you try and get out of bed. I'll be honest, I've yet to have any advice from a doctor that really seemed to help. Although not really for trapped nerves, I have found deep-heat to bring some relief, and gentle walking - not vigorous exercise - has helped too. Generally, I've ended up taking the view that standing up seemed to help me more than sitting down, and lying down was good as long as I moved every 10 minutes or so. I'm not convinced the same works for everyone with sciatica, so my very unprofessional opinion may not help you. The good news is that one day it'll probably just disappear without any warning and life will feel better again. All the best pal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vegas-voss Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 you have my sympathies. I'm prone to it, and there's no way of knowing when it'll come and when it'll disappear. The worst moments are usually after you've been in the same position for a long time, so first thing in the morning can be chronic when you try and get out of bed. I'll be honest, I've yet to have any advice from a doctor that really seemed to help. Although not really for trapped nerves, I have found deep-heat to bring some relief, and gentle walking - not vigorous exercise - has helped too. Generally, I've ended up taking the view that standing up seemed to help me more than sitting down, and lying down was good as long as I moved every 10 minutes or so. I'm not convinced the same works for everyone with sciatica, so my very unprofessional opinion may not help you. The good news is that one day it'll probably just disappear without any warning and life will feel better again. All the best pal. Have you tried Traxam instead of Deep Heat.You get it on prescription from the doctors and is a cooling gel instead of the usual heat based gels.Works a treat for me when i have back pain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sawdust Caesar Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Get yourself to a good physio, they will give you excercises to do and advice on what not to do, like lying in bed for too long which I did at first and just made things worse. After my first bout of sciatica I did all the things recommended by the physio like back excercises to strengthen the muscles etc then when it cleared up I stopped doing them which was a mistake as a year later it came back. The second time I needed an operation and I also now suffer from a drop-foot, my own fault for being lazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denny Crane Posted June 30, 2008 Author Share Posted June 30, 2008 you have my sympathies. I'm prone to it, and there's no way of knowing when it'll come and when it'll disappear. The worst moments are usually after you've been in the same position for a long time, so first thing in the morning can be chronic when you try and get out of bed. I'll be honest, I've yet to have any advice from a doctor that really seemed to help. Although not really for trapped nerves, I have found deep-heat to bring some relief, and gentle walking - not vigorous exercise - has helped too. Generally, I've ended up taking the view that standing up seemed to help me more than sitting down, and lying down was good as long as I moved every 10 minutes or so. I'm not convinced the same works for everyone with sciatica, so my very unprofessional opinion may not help you. The good news is that one day it'll probably just disappear without any warning and life will feel better again. All the best pal. That more or less - apart from the instant disappearance - sums up what I've been feeling. Waking up was sore as anything but shuffling back and forth along my hallway does help a little - although watching TV/reading a book standing up is a bit strange. Got some painkillers from the Victoria Infirmary which have helped so far in alleviating the pain in my right leg (just waiting for them to knock out the left one). Still a pain in the a--- mind! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boaby Ewing Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 I've never had sciatica but I've had my fair share of back problems from cycling. I don't know the extent of the pain or your level of physical fitness but two wee tricks have always helped me nip it in the bud (though it's probably worth checking with your doctor/physio first). 1: Lie face down in the push-up position, but with your toes pointing out behind you. Keeping your hips pinned to the floor, push yourself upwards to stretch out the lower back. Don't use your back muscles to help you up -- it's all got to come from the arms. Do that ten times, extending from your palms to your finger-tips if you can handle a deeper stretch. 2: If you've got a pull-up bar or something similar you can hang from, get on it and let your back fully stretch itself out as you hang there. No need to pull yourself up or anything, just let your spine, discs etc. separate out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denny Crane Posted June 30, 2008 Author Share Posted June 30, 2008 I've never had sciatica but I've had my fair share of back problems from cycling. I don't know the extent of the pain or your level of physical fitness but two wee tricks have always helped me nip it in the bud (though it's probably worth checking with your doctor/physio first). 1: Lie face down in the push-up position, but with your toes pointing out behind you. Keeping your hips pinned to the floor, push yourself upwards to stretch out the lower back. Don't use your back muscles to help you up -- it's all got to come from the arms. Do that ten times, extending from your palms to your finger-tips if you can handle a deeper stretch. 2: If you've got a pull-up bar or something similar you can hang from, get on it and let your back fully stretch itself out as you hang there. No need to pull yourself up or anything, just let your spine, discs etc. separate out. Thanks Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midlothian P Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 Pretty good advice from previous poster re specific exercises. The lumbar extension exercises and self traction ( hanging from a door) are particularly helpful if you have a bulging disc that is irritating/compressing a nerve root which is giving youy your leg pain (sciatica is a generic term for nerve root irritation with leg pain). If the 74 in your username refers to your year of birth you are unfortunately more prone to these disc type problems (30 to 40 years old being the most common) for reasons that are too boring to explain! Also essential that you do see a physio asap to avoid the chronic problems that can unfortunately occur through poor management of an acute problem. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tams bird Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 I have had it of and on for years fecking agony. Had to take 3 weeks off work one time. Just have to suffer (in silence), nowt has helped me.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Lyon Posted June 30, 2008 Share Posted June 30, 2008 I get it now and again and take ibuprofen to numb the pain. It is particularly bad for me when shifting weight from one foot to the other while standing at the bar. Maybe I should sit down when it attacks! The doc did give me some exercises to do but you can't very well just drop down on the floor in the pub and do some exercises! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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