Hip problem..help anyone? Anyone experience this...or a doctor online here?

Question

I am 44 years old and whenever I get up from sitting for a while and especially when I get out of bed in the morning, I cannot straighten my left leg. It hurts deep in toward the hip joint. After about 15 minutes I can straighten it out but it hurts to put pressure on it to walk. Then if I sit down or rest for a few minutes ...it starts all over again. I have tried an anti inflamitory meds...but it is not working. I can hardly walk. I have a 2 year old and I need to be able to care for him. Any suggestions would be appreciated...serious answers only please. This is painful!

Should I go to my family practice doctor, an orthopeiadic, a chiropractor, ...???

Answer 1

It could be a problem with the hip, something like arthritis. It could also be something as simple as a wornout mattress combined with the way you are sleeping- especially if you tend to sleep on the left side. It would put pressure on the nerve of the left leg, and cut off blood circulation as well. That irritates the nerve, and further sitting during the day would just aggrivate the situation. I say this because you mention the pain in one leg only, and hip troubles tend to affect both sides. You don't mention a pain in the derrierre, though, and that's one symptom that would clinch it. Sciatic nerve pain is quite frequently limited to one side, as it branches off the spinal cord and splits in two just about the location of the small curve of the back. One branch runs down the middle to outside of the buttock on each side- and is the main nerve connection for the leg. The main artery supplying each leg branches off the aorta in about the same place. If like most of us mature ladies, you have gained a bit in the hip area, combined with the challenge of keeping up after a 2 year old, you may have irritated the nerve on the left side somehow. Lifting is the biggest culprit, but not the only one. At any rate, even if it is slightly irritated, it usually causes pain which starts in either the buttock or the hip area, and radiates down the leg. Because it is a nerve that controls movement of the entire leg, it would make it difficult to use the leg in anyway, certainly to straighten it out or walk. If you irritate it enough, it will cause a serious burning sensation like somebody lit fire to your back pocket, and radiate that pain down the leg.
The best way to determine the cause of the pain would be a visit to your GP to at least eliminate the arthritis as a cause, and possibly detect the sciatic nerve problem. From there I would suggest finding a D.O., instead of a M.D.. The D.O does manipulations similar to the way a chiropractor does, but also has the advantage of being able to prescribe drugs that can help soothe the nerve and alleviate the pain. If you can't locate a D.O., then a chiropracter would be able to offer you some relief by manipulating your lower spine and removing pressure from the nerve.
If you do have sciatic pain, I hate to tell you but it will return periodically. You will need to identify the activities which tend to aggrivate it, and try to limit those as much as you can. (Like with a 2 year old that's going to happen, right?) Also, if the mattress is getting up there in age, a change of mattress will help- as will sleeping with a body pillow to alleviate the stress on the lower back and pelvis. Meantime, if you can find a way to encourage yourself to avoid sleeping on that left side, it will help take some pressure off the hip area. Stay in flat shoes, no heels, but tennis shoes are okay. I suffer sciatic pain myself, and these are the things the doctor recommended for me to do. They aren't perfect, but they do help. My sympathies to you, I haven't any suggestions to help tame the 2 year old while you heal. My youngest is 6, and he's not quite civilized yet either.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

Rappers: Talib Kweli Rakim Lil Wayne Meal: Cooked Dinner 3 Topics: History Of RHH How Can We Make RHH Better What Do They Think Of The Cr*ppy "Ringtone Rappers" 3 Albums: Lupe's "The Cool" Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) Illmatic I'm Going To Add A 4th: "Paid In Full - Eric B. & Rakim =]

Answer 4

this sounds like arthritis in your hip joint - it is possible that it is your si joint as well but hip arthritis is a more common cause of your symptoms

go to your family doctor and ask for an x ray - this will confirm

if it is arthritis at some stage you will need a joint replacement but in the meantime the use of anti-inflams, pain killers and physical therapy wll help you manage it.

If you are a bit overweight try and lose some - this will greatly ease the discomfort for you

but get an x ray to get things moving

Answer 5

I would definitely start with a visit to my family doctor. Anything that debilitating is worth a visit to the doctor. He can order x-rays, MRI, etc. to determine what is going on with you and then refer you to the appropriate specialist. As for the anti-inflammatory meds, if you have damaged the bone(s) somehow, they won't do anything to ease the pain.

Answer 6

You should probably see your family doctor first. He can direct you somewhere else if he can't fix it.

I'm sorry you aren't feeling well. I hope you get this taken care of. My thoughts are with you. :)

Answer 7

It could be your SI Joint giving you trouble
http://www.kalindra.com/sacroiliac.htm
http://www.kalindra.com/faq.htm