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leg pain sciatica? when will it get better?

Posted , 5 users are following.

thills21
thills21

It started with a crawling feeling in my left foot, then one day my back started playing up.  I have always suffered a bit of sciatic pain on and off but this started and just didnt go away.  Doc refered me to physio and it has just got worse and worse.  he said i had very sensitive nerves and i am now on 300mg gabapentin three times a day but the pain is just getting worse.  Pressure like pain in lower leg, pins and needles in foot, shooting pains in but,shin,and thigh.  i now have to sit when making dinner and if i stand for any time i have to stand on one leg, (not very attractive)  Docs and physio just keep saying its going to take time but never say what it is prop.  physio just says i have sensative nerves and i am very bendy.  not very hopeful and fed up with being in pain , any help please 

0 likes, 11 replies

11 Replies

  • joh13240
    joh13240 thills21

    Posted

    I would try to get a second opinion and as about a Spinal manipulation. I have arthritis at c6 and  c7 and get a crainail manipulation about every 6 months. 
  • brian95656
    brian95656 thills21

    Posted

    Hi Thills21. Sciatica is a problem I have suffered with since 1990. I have done physiotherapy, seen a chiropractor, been prescribed many drugs over the years and been offered surgery by a neurosurgeon.

    I'm sorry to say that there seems to be no cure for me but, I have learned to live with it. I dose myself each day and try and keep mobile.

    One thing I have found that helps and I hope it may help you;

    Lie on the floor on your back. Place a rolled towel under your back in the curvature of your spine. Keeping your shoulders to the floor and your knees together swing your legs as far to the left then, as far to the right as you can. Try your best to stretch your back muscles and do it for as long as is comfortable.

    It helps me and I hope you too.

    Stay positive x

  • sylvia83392
    sylvia83392 thills21

    Posted

    From what I've heard, it shouldn't last really long... If your Dr. isn't helping, please

    find a new Dr.  It's not easy but it can really make a difference.  Try seeing a 

    neurologist.  Your nerves are not sensitive....something is screwed up and they

    are reacting.  The meds take at least a mth. to work (if they do).  I took the same dose

    of gabepentin as you and no results.  Not much works on nerve pain but the fear of 

    atrophy in other muscles is what the physio will help with.  It's always best to stay active if you can, which is hard when you have pain.  If you've been on 900 mg. of meds a day for some time and they aren't helping, try others.

    • brian95656
      brian95656 sylvia83392

      Posted

      Hi Sylvia, thanks for the advice. I have tried these so called, "Neuropathic" medications, Gabapentin, Lyrica Pregablin, they're all pretty much the same to me unfortunately and offer very little help. I am with my Endocrinologist in April and will be speaking with him.

      This attempt on an Internet site such as this was hopefully to receive ideas from other sufferers, which I have and am very grateful for.

      Thankyou again Brian x

    • brian95656
      brian95656 sylvia83392

      Posted

      Sorry about my last comment, I goofed. I'm in a discussion here regarding another users medical condition and I didn't realise and commented on what I thought was my discussion. Proves I'm human anyway. Sorry for any confusion, I can't find a way of deleting comments so have tried to clarify my mistake. It is 02.30hrs and I'm awake again with my condition. Apologies x
  • sharon53053
    sharon53053 thills21

    Posted

    Hello, I have osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia,IBS and an overactive bladder ! At the end of January this year I had a very bad bout of sciatica which has left me with a partially paralysed foot, I have considerable swelling, numbness, pins and needles, a terrible burning sensation and sharp shooting pain which I think is nerve pain, in my lower leg and foot. I have had an MRI of my lumber spine which confirms degenerative changes at L5 / S1 and a protrusion which is putting pressure on my sciatic nerve. I have had a course of physiotherapy and an appointment with a Spinal Consultant. I waited four months to see the consultation only to be told by him that the problems I was having were very common and would very likely improve with time ! The only other advise he offered was for me to lose some weight !!! I have been discharged from physio with a pair of crutches, which I cannot walk without ! Do you think I should ask for a second opinion ? Please help! Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I am feeling increasingly desperate, I don't know what to do next.
    • thills21
      thills21 sharon53053

      Posted

      Hi 

      yes i do think you should get a second opinion.  Things have moved on for me since i started this discussion.  I have been having physio for 4 months which has been no help .  I have also been on gabapentin 60mg three a day and zapain 30/500mg three a day which do help (i know about it if i dont take them) but still cant walk or stand for very long.  I have had an MRI last week and now wait for the results.  My consultant has said that she thinks i have a trapped L5 nerve and will prob be offer nerve block injections as a first move. the reason they give these injections is to ease the pain so the nerve can heal which can take months so I defo think you should push for this.

       

      Hope this helps 

    • sharon53053
      sharon53053 thills21

      Posted

      Thank you so much for replying, I shall be seeing my GP in a few days time, hopefully she will understand my request for a second opinion and be sympathetic. It really is a lifesaver to know other people are having similar experiences and that we can support each other. I know we all need to have a positive attitude and I am trying ! Sometimes it's very hard to achieve though.

      Thank you again, and good luck to you.

    • thills21
      thills21 sharon53053

      Posted

      I know how you feel.  I spent three ours awake last night from 2am not knowing just was to do with my leg. pull it up and it hurts, hang it out the bed and it hurts what ever i did with it it hurt.  Just to top things off because I can lay in my normal position it has flared my carpol tunnle problem.

      I dont know which is worse the pain from my hands or the pain in my leg and back.  Still just pop another pill and away we go lol.

      Let me know how you get on with the doc and good luck 

    • sharon53053
      sharon53053 thills21

      Posted

      Doc was very sympathetic, she said she would refer me for a second opinion but didn't think it would be very useful. So, I am going to follow the advice she gave me and see how it goes. She has referred me to the pain management clinic and changed my meds, stopped the amitriptyline and started me on gabapentin, also increased my sertraline back up to 100mg daily, this is the dose I was on previously, it was reduced to 50mg daily when I started the amitriptyline. I actually feel better having stopped the amitriptyline, it definitely helped me sleep although I did find it difficult to wake up in the mornings. My mood has been much better, obviously I will have to give the gabapentin time to work, so far no side effects thank goodness ! Hope you at having a good day.
    • thills21
      thills21 sharon53053

      Posted

      I do hope you get somewhere with the second opinion.  Just make sure you lay it on thick about the pain although it sounds as tho you want have to that much.  you shouldnt have to put up with pain that means you cant walk without crutchies and these pain block injections are used so that you can wait for the nerves to heal without being in pain.  Maybe ask about them when you see the doc.

      It may be different for you as you have other issues such as the  osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia but it is still worth asking.

      Good luck and let me know how you get on.  I am hoping to get my appointment for the results from the MRI this week so I will let you know how I get on .  Have a good day 

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