Some Questions About Sciatica

S

Shelbygirl

Cathlete
Hi Guys.

I've just been gifted with a HUGE bout of sciatica and I have a couple questions for anyone who has a clue.

1. Even though my left leg hurts all the way from the butt down, do you think it's okay to lift weights for upper body? I've done precisely zero workouts since this started 10 days ago and I'm starting to go crazy. I'm hoping that if I am very careful I can at least workout my shoulders and biceps.

2. What type of specialist would you see for sciatica? An orthopedic doctor, a sports medicine doctor or what? I've already been to my regular doctor, but he just gave me some meds. If they don't work, I'm guessing a specialist is next.

3. For those of you that have sciatica, how long do these flair ups usually last? Are there stretches that I should be doing?

Thanks for your help,
Shelbygirl
 
Hi Shelbygirl

I had sciatica about 7 years ago. On the same side and it went right done my hamstring...OUCH!! I couldn't run for about 2 weeks but I still did upper body weights.

I saw a Physical Therapist and a Chiropractor for treatment. All I took was ibuprofen for the pain.

I think for me the pain was the worst for about 8 weeks, then due to the treatment it tapered off and then was gone. I just did stretching when I went to my PT.

I hope yours goes away soon...:)
 
Oy. Sciatica bites. x( I totally feel your pain.

I battled sciatica and piriformis syndrome for the greater portion of the end of last year and just recently got it under control. It can be a difficult and nagging condition if it's not taken care of early. I had to go a whole month with ZERO workouts of any kind - everything HURT. But now I'm back to my usual tough workouts, and am gearing up to start running again when the weather gets nice. So, sciatica is definitely something that can be managed! :)

1. Yes, I think it's okay to still work UB with sciatica. There may be some moves you'll want to avoid because they might aggravate your condition. For me, I had to (and still do) avoid deadlifts, bent over rows where the back is parallel to the ground, and planks. You may find that these moves are okay though - there may be some trial and error.

2. The person who helped me more than anything was my chiropractor. I had never been to a chiro before in my life, but I was desperate and my massage therapist recommended him, so I sucked it up and went. And I am SO GLAD I did. He has helped me tremendously. My massage therapist also helped a lot.

3. I had a good 2 months of constant pain, which started lessening as I began my regular chiropractor visits. Now I'm pain-free, and hope to stay that way forever. :) It doesn't necessarily have to be something that comes and goes, or "flares up" from time to time. Everyone is different, though - some people may be able to get rid of it permanently, and some people may always be plagued by it. A good physical therapist or chiropractor (or even massage therapist) should be able to give you some good stretches to do. They may vary depending on the type of sciatica you have. Since mine was caused primarily by my piriformis muscle, I did a lot of hip and lower back stretches (pretzel stretch, pigeon pose, seated spinal twist, child's pose, etc).

Hope this helps, and hope you get some relief soon!
 
Hi Shelbygirl! I suffer from acute sciatica. My worst flare up was in December. It usually comes from very tight hamstrings. My doctor gave me an anti-inflammatory + a muscle relaxant. I wouldn't advise you doing any weight lifting at all. I was in such acute pain that I wasn't able to stand up straight at all. I finally felt myself again after 6 weeks. However, I did start back up to exercising after 2 weeks but had to take more recovery days as I didn't want to have another flare up. You need to do yoga in order to get deep into the muscle tissues to loosen everything up. If your able to sit on the floor placing your foot on top of your opposite knee (your legs will be crossed), put your hands behind you & straighten up your back; next I want to bring your arms in front of you as you lower your body over your crossed legs. Do this for each side but you need to hold this pose for a count of 20. Do hamstring stretches as well. If you can, place your leg straight out in front of you onto an object (such as a bureau) & fold both arms over the straight leg. That will give you a very deep stretch right where you need it in your hamstring.

Good luck! HTH, Kathy:D
 
Sciatica is the symptom, not the condition. Sciatica can be caused by a multitude of different problems and the prescription for relief is based on the problem. I would recommend you consult with some kind of practitioner (M.D., chiro, massage, acupuncture, PT, etc.) to determine what is causing the sciatica. Then you will have a better idea of how to treat it.

I hope this helps and good luck.
 
I've had three bouts of sciatica in the past four-five years. It was the most painful experience next to having my daughter (which was shorter than the weeks of agony with sciatica). I would hardly walk and had to limp in extreme pain on my left side. The chiropractor helped me alot - I waited too long the first time I got hit with it - so the process took about 8-10 weeks to feel better. The other two times I went to the chiropractor right away and the pain would take 4 weeks to actually go away completely. I did upper body when I felt I could but only light weights (3 - 5 lbs) and could do ab work (traditional). I am still very careful when I exercise and will not do any high impact anymore and put my step on 4 inches - never again can I do any super advanced Cathe workouts and I was a fan from the late eighties and have all her DVDs. Being 62 now, I feel awful that I have to change my routine but I do some of her workouts to fit my own needs (no jumping, spins, turns, pivots, especially on a rug). As far as stretching, I am not very good at doing that - I may do a few minutes after I workout but should do more. I visit my chiropactor about once a month for a tune up to keep me exercising low impact. I still get lower back pain most of the time, but as long as it stays in the lower back, and doesn't progress down the leg and incapacitate me I am happy. There are times I feel twinges and start to get depressed and panic - I try not to do any cardio for a couple of days. Yes, I was a crazy exerciser for 25 years doing two hours of working out daily for most of those years. Was it worth it? I don't really know but I had fun at the time. Now I am happy I have Denise, Leslie, and any other lower less impact DVDs (I have hundred and hundreds). Even Christi seems okay for me. I want to be able to continue for many years, and if stopping all the high impact will accomplish that, I will do it. I also love high rep low wt. workouts for upper body, like Cory's get hard series, and Gilad Men of Steel - that type of workout. I am very thin and my body hasn't changed much since making the changes. If anything, I am smaller. I also was concerned about any heart benefits I lost from going from high to low, but haven't had any cardio tests to find out. maryann
 
Here's another suggestion:

You asked about stretches. The 'Yoga Quick Fixes' Kundalini Yoga DVD from Ana Brett and Ravi Singh has exercises specifically for Sciatica. Kundalini Yoga is very different, but it feels wonderful! This DVD is available on Amazon. The marketplace seller 'chakra44' is Ana Brett and Ravi Singh's warehouse seller. I tried some of their DVD's from my library system, and then purchased my own.

Like I said, they are DIFFERENT. You would die laughing if you just watched them--you have to TRY them to experience the benefits.

Just my 2cents--hope it helps.

Elsie
 
Thanks for the reponses, ladies. So far all I know about my condition is that I've got "disk space narrowing at L5 and S1". I've only had this pain for a short while, but alreay it's making me crazy. It sounds like most of you felt a chiropractor helped. I've gone to my regular doctor and he has me on some anti-inflamitories, but I am thinking of going to a sports injury doctor as well. I'd rather have some sort of active recovery then this wait-and-see-how-the-drugs-work approach. Did you guys have an MRI to help with your diagnosis? I'll be checking out all your suggestions (chiro, stretches, yoga, etc) so thank you all very much for your help!

Shelbygirl
 
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