Any suggestions for sciatica pain? My poor DH is in agony...

[Magic Mom]

Look, he's up and moving because of the oxy. He needs to rest and get the inflammation out of his sciatic nerve. I've been there. My chiropractor had me rest, ice, take anti-inflammatories and gradually let me move around. There are many movements, standing postures, things he needs to do and avoid. The nerve is irritated; if this is a brand new injury, don't add heat to the fire. Ice every hour for 3 to four hours, no more than 20 minutes per hour. Constant ice is also not good for it as it does tissue damage and you want to avoid that. I wouldn't be rolling around on any balls or leaning into doornobs until he gets some of the inflammation out of the nerve and the muscles attached. It's lkely affecting his gluts as well and probably all the muscles around his sacrum which is close and around his tailbone. He needs rest. Taking oxy so he can get up should tell you maybe he's not ready to stand right now. Flat on his back, light pillow under the head, knees supported up-supported well. This put correctly in place and supports all those muscles and lets them relax. Good luck. Few GPs know much about this problem. They prescribe pain pills and muscle relaxers. Eventually, he'll need some gentle massage, perhaps some ultra sound and ibuprofen. He's already taking 800mg of ibuprofen, right? He should be, every six hours and he can keep it up for two weeks. If you're uncomfortable with that, ask your doctor.

PS, my chiropractor did send me for x-rays to check for disc issues before she started working on me. We were pretty sure it was sciatica due to some activity I had done recently-lots of standing with knees locked then riding in an airplane for 36 hours.

Rest is good, but it's my understanding (from my chiro and more importantly my physical therapist) that too much rest is counterproductive. Getting moving will speed recovery. Not running marathons, just walking.

 

[JessicaR]

Rest is good, but it's my understanding (from my chiro and more importantly my physical therapist) that too much rest is counterproductive. Getting moving will speed recovery. Not running marathons, just walking.

Yes, my spine surgeon told me the same thing.

Bed rest — 1–2 days at most. A 1996 Finnish study found that persons who continued their activities without bed rest following onset of low back pain appeared to have better back flexibility than those who rested in bed for a week. Other studies suggest that bed rest alone may make back pain worse and can lead to secondary complications such as depression, decreased muscle tone, and blood clots in the legs. Patients should resume activities as soon as possible. At night or during rest, patients should lie on one side, with a pillow between the knees (some doctors suggest resting on the back and putting a pillow beneath the knees).

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/backpain/detail_backpain.htm#167473102

 

[Jennasis]

Live with it?? Hogwash.

Chiropractor?? Tread carefully.

A year ago (almost to the day) the mild to moderate back pain I've lived with for 16 years devolved overnight into the worst pain I've ever felt. Like your husband, walking was excruciating...to the point of crying and being forced to crawl wherever I went. I was in absolute agony. Pain meds did nothing. Ice and heat did nothing. My TENS unit did nothing.

When I tell you I was in agony, I MEAN had I not found relief, well...Suicide was looking like a viable solution.

After 2 days I sought the help of a chiropractor in desperation. I got many referrals and went with a much sought after and well known chiro in my area. He saw me right away and I brought him my most recent x-rays (taken about two months prior to when I began having the crippling pain). He looked at the x-rays, proclaimed my spine to be "TERRIFIC!" and blamed the pain on a tight periformis muscle. He did some massage during which he dug his elbow into my butt and thigh (I saw stars it hurt so bad) and then he cracked me. Lastly, he grabbed each leg by the ankle and tugged on the leg.

About 30 minutes after leaving his office (In FAR worse pain than I had arrived in...and I had thought I was at rock bottom before I saw him) My entire left leg went numb. I was terrified! I still felt the agonizing pain, but my leg was asleep and I could not lift my toe or foot. I called the chiro's office back in a panic and was assured that it was normal, and that it was just my nerve "waking up" after being pinched for so long. They had me come in the next day for another treatment.

I crawled out of the office and to my car after appoitnment two, crying and in blinding pain. I made a call to a a friend who is an RN and manages her DH's pain clinic (he's a pain specialist) to tell her I needed to cancel plans we had due to the agony and she lost her mind. She was furious that I'd gone to a chiro (her DH had seen me about two months earlier and given me an epidural to help with my growing back pain). She had her DH order me an MRI the next morning (A wednesday). An HOUR after the MRI her DH called me to tell me to lay down and not move...he was sending me to a surgeon because I was "very very broken". I saw the surgeon on Thursday morning who confirmed the diagnosis...

MASSIVELY HERNIATED DISC. Easily seen by anyone without any medical training on the MRI film. It had burst out of the disc space and into my spinal cord (courtesy of two adjustments by the chiro.)

I had surgery 5 agony filled days later (it was Easter weekend so I had to wait). I woke up from surgery about 95% pain free and the surgeon explained that the disc had jammed up into my spinal cord like hair in a drain. It was liekly just badly herniated before the chiro, but once he messed with me it totally blew out and jammed into the nerves causing me to lose feeling in my leg.

Good news...a year later and I am 100% recovered.

moral of the story. Send your DH to the Dr. Preferably a neurologist or an orthopedic specialist. INSIST on an MRI. X-rays are worthless.

Good luck (help is out there...he shouldn't have to live with pain).

 

[kidsister]

It seems there are many horror stories on this thread, and all are different.
A little bashing of docs and/or chiros. Well, I was married to a doc when I had, for two years, a literal PITA...not sure if it was the periformas but am sure it was the little notch that the sciatic nerve runs through where two muscles cross in the butt. The nerve gets inflammed and OWIE! Slept on a coffee mug for 2 years (wish I'd thought of a tennis ball then). Kicked hubby out (for other reasons LOL) and started going to a masseuse. Took 3 trips before I was able (shy) to tell her that my problem was a huge PITA. She massaged it and gave me some exercises and for the first time in 2 years I was pain free when in a horizontal position. (Mine didn't hurt near as much standing/walking as it did lying down.)

It seems that there isn't any one size fits all answer, but I hope your DH finds some relief. I think the key is that it is caused by the nerve becoming inflammed where it is 'pinched', so doing anything to relieve the swelling should help. Good luck!

 

[klmall]

Yes, there are many factors involved in back pain. Both DH and I have had back problems for years. DH has severe scoliosis and we are now looking into options for his constant pain. Part of his spine has actually fused itself which is actually good because otherwise he would be wheelchair-bound.

I get sciatica once in awhile but my big problem is the bursitis of five years in both hips caused by a L4 disk hernia. I am now getting some relief from care at a Spine Clinic in our area. They have been thoroughly investigating a variety of causes and treatments.

There is quite a bit of info on the net also, some mentioned here by PP so please get help soon!

Good luck!

 

[KiKi Mouse]

Chiropractor and massage therapy and drugs to get me 'til those appointments.

 

[kchughes]

I have lived with back pain/sciatica for years. Done PT, chiro, ortho. What DH needs more than anything is an acurate diagnosis from an MD. An appropriate treatment plan cannot be developed with an accurate assessment. the pain could be originating from the back (most likely) or it could be a hip/groin issue. It could be something else entirely. Alot depends on which nerve is affected, the condition causing it and the frequency of flares. Good luck. Get to the doctor ASAP. Get the MRI and figure it out from there.

 

[shellabell]

A couple of years ago I was having problems. I got better with a combo of acupuncture and sports massage.

 

[LoriABil]

Unfortunately sciatica has become a catch-all term for any pain going down the leg. But "sciatica" can start at the spine, where the nerve passes through muscle, or even between the muscle and bone!

If he couldnt get out of bed, my educated opinion is spine. But is it disc, bone or muscle? If it is disc, is it herniated, prolapsed or dessicated, or more? The fact is he should see a physician. If it were me, I would lie on my stomach (please do not rise on your elbows as a pp suggested. Yes it worked for her, but she said she had a physiotherapist, who evaluated her) If you start with too much pressure, as on your elbows, and it is a nice herniated disc, you could cause damage. Lie flat on your stomach and see if the leg pain goes away. Or even if it moves up the leg (not going down as far) you are getting relief. If it causes back pain, then we are closer to guessing it's the spine.

But all of thus is conjecture. He should be evaluated as soon as he can ride in a car. If lying on his stomach helps, you can find good info. Google Robin McKenzie. And "Treat your own back" which is the progression of the exercises. But I would still get checked out.

 

[shaylyn]

since sciatic pain is frequently cause by disks that are herniated or otherwised damaged this can be a double edged sword-and sometime be quiet dangerous. A good one who uses x-rays as guidelines or is consulting with your orthopedist or nuerologist can be a God send-but a "great" chiropractor nearly paralized my father doing "adjustments" for sciaticia with out the proper guidance.

Same thing happened to my Dh. A Chiropractor tried to 'fix' my Dh's back and sciatica pain. The next day he was unable to move and had emergency surgery to fix a herniated disc. The Chiropractor never did any x-rays at all.

Hope your Dh gets some relief!

 

[disneyismyname]

A year ago, that was me. I found a great chiropractor and it made a world of difference.

Agree with this. I would have the pain in my back to the hip then all the way down to my foot! Went to the chiro and he had me as good as new!
Most of my problems come from me...I like cracking my back and neck, toes, fingers, all that junk. Not smart, I know but its my addiction!

 

[Pastamom]

This happened to me in December. - Not as bad as OP though, but still a lot of pain.

I went to a pain specialist, who had me get an MRI. I have a bulged disc. He gave me a cortisone shot in my spine and I did physical therapy.

It still "tings" a little but it is way better.

Hope you DH feel better soon!

 

[HM]

Accupuncture.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

He needs to get into a doctor that will prescribe some physical therapy.

I ended up with a nasty case of sciatica after my son was born. I couldn't walk, I couldn't move, and I was in tears most of the day from pain.

I did 4 weeks of water therapy to get straightened out and I've not had any trouble since.

I had undergone treatment with pain meds and also shots in my back (to which I almost passed out each time). They are only a temporary fix.

It's not worth being in discomfort, and pain meds only take you so far.

Hope he gets to feeling better soon.