Sciatica Symptoms ?

Question

Hi ive been having problem ive alays had problems with my legs and for about 3 years now my back has been sore as well as pain in my leg that has been getting worse. Ive been to the doctor her tested for arthritis but it came back clear he said a few years ago that the pain was coming from my back, Recently he gave me ibuprofen to take which ease the pain but these are the symptoms ive still got.
Pain in my left buttock, like a dull ached like someone just given you a dead leg.
I get pains in my back like stabbing pains then they sometimes travel down the legs.
When im lying in bed if i lie straight when i try to turn over to the right my back kills and stiffens up loads.
I have pain in the feet and knees but have had this since i was little.
Its weird it like my leg isnt part of my body, a few weeks ago it was playing up and i just finished hoovering put the hover away tried to walk and my leg felt all numb. Ive never had this before and im scared because i think its getting.

much worse.
I dont wanna go and see the doc as he will only say for me to keep taking inuprofen. But surely if its coming from my back he would send me to see someone. Ive been going for years. I dont want to get to the point where i cant walk and somthing could of help me out.
I think because im young he things there is nothing wrong but the thing is i could of damaged something when i was young as i did fall from a height and landed smack bang on my bum which i got babdly winded and my back killed. Maybe from then on as ive grown up the back is damaged.
If anyone has it please could you tell me if this is the symptoms or the start of me getting Sciatica. Thanks

Hi he did do a blood test for atheritis but think i read rhumatiod artheritis doesnt show up on blood tests. But even if i do have it there is nothing i can do only talk NSAIDS like Ibuprofen which he keeps giving me.

Answer 1

I'm sorry for you, but I can relate-- I have sciatica and where some of your symptoms sound like sciatica others sound too severe to be it. Whatever doc you went to last time- don't go to again- get yourself to the nearest biggest medical center and see an orthopedic specialist-- take with you whatever xrays the other doctor did on you- and I hope he did do some. Sciatic pain originates from your sciatic joint which you can actually press with your finger on the joint in your pelvis either to the right or left of your spinal column. When it is inflamed, just slight pressure with your finger causes the sensation to shoot down your leg and into your foot. You really need to see an orthopedic specialist because your feet and knee pain makes me think you may have what's called rheumatoid arthritis- which is very painful and affects eventually all your joints.........see an ortho specialist.....good luck to you......

Answer 2

Sciatica is a label that means zero. It is like the label Cake. It can mean a wedding cake or a cup cake, it is not precise. You state you know you have sciatica, but have not been diagnosed by a Doctor and that is a mistake. Never just assume or think, because you could have a more serious condition, that is left undiagnosed, because 'I thought it was sciatica, that is why I did not bother to see you, a cancerous tumor of my spine, no way, you are joking?' Burning and Numb do not bring any form of Sciatica to my mind. Sciatica is when the nerve, the sciatic nerves that leaves the spine, runs down the back, into the hip, exits the pelvis and continues down the leg gets trapped and when that happens, pain is the first and on going problem. As to why and where the nerve is being trapped, who knows, could be a muscle that has become inflamed, simple as that. So I would see a Doctor with these symptoms and get it sorted. best of Luck

Answer 3

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Answer 5

Hi, i have the same problems as you.

I had an accident at work, which resulted in three prolapsed discs in my back & sciatica.

Go back to your doctor or maybe a more sympathetic one and ask for an mri scan. This will allow them to see if there are any major problems. ordinary xrays dont show enough info.

I wear an elasticated bandage on my left leg, which is a boon when the pain starts & a magnetic support belt (argos).

Also, it seems like you need a medication review. Different painkillers effect different people, but im on tramadol and i couldnt move without it.

I hope this helps & if you want to chat about the pain, let me know. there are some good websites which deal with this.

Good luck!

Answer 6

I agree with ditching this Dr, who maybe should have sent you for a Physiotherapist's opinion/ assessment by now. Remember GP's have a very busy clinic seeing many people in a day, with many different problems and it is very difficult to be jack of all trades, you need a musculoskeletal specialist = Physio. Sometimes you have to be quite assertive with Drs, and if that doesn't work explain how it is affecting you, and that you would like a second opinion.

Quite often your posture can affect your sciatic nerve and cause inflamation. If you sit in a slumped position then you are sacrally sitting which can cause pressure onto the sciatic nerve.
Quick test, sit on your upturned hands, feel the 2 prominent bony points, tilt your pelvis back and forth (slump and arch your back) as you slump you will feel your bones go forwards- Do not sit like this. Try to sit on these bony points with a supported back, cushion, lumbar roll etc. Try not to sit for extended periods, move and gently stretch, basically we are not designed to sit as much as we do these days

Also when you have a pain response, postural muscles can be inhibited and weakened leading to problems with supporting you properly. Before you even think about surgery make sure you do some guided work on core stabilisers. Gym ball, Pilates, gentle Yoga etc, but I would do this under the guidance of a good physio.
Surgery for herniated disc would be the only time I would let a surgeon near my back, trust me. Oh and surgery also leads to problems with postural muscles, so again core stability work necessary. Unfortunately none of these types of exercise work very quickly, and a long term management approach to your problem is most likely going to help you.

No offence to Chiropractors out there, but i haven't heard of many people doing anything other than giving them lots of money for a long time for short term relief. Postural management, in my opinion, is the way forwards.
It is really important that you feel hopeful about the future and that you have some 'tools' to help you with this, as helplessness often leads to a chronic pain pathway, in the absence of serious pathology. i.e. you still have pain when there isn't actually anything wrong, due to the brain being so used to receiving pain signals.
There is also an outside chance that your sciatic nerve passes through your piriformis muscle as it does in a small percentage of people, spasm in these muscles leads to impingement of the sciatic nerve and an alteration in the neurodynamics.

Hoovering needs lots of stability as you twist the thing about, take care, let the dust build.

Good luck, don't focus on pain if at all possible, it only makes it worse. Stay away from aggravating factors and take guided exercise to start with.

Answer 7

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RE:
Sciatica Symptoms ?
Hi ive been having problem ive alays had problems with my legs and for about 3 years now my back has been sore as well as pain in my leg that has been getting worse. Ive been to the doctor her tested for arthritis but it came back clear he said a few years ago that the pain was coming from my back,...

Answer 8

Not sure if you have insurance, but I would ask the Doctor to write you an order for an MRI, for your lower back!! You sound like me, especially when lying flat on your back, I use to describe it as it felt as if someone was trying to pull me down into the mattress by my spine, the pain UGH!! My Doctor, well at the time had something else going on, I ended up in the ER, and a Doc had overheard me and he told me it sounded like a disc in my back and the only way to be sure was to get an MRI!! He was right, mine is the most common, for some ppl they have no pain at all, then for others like you and I we seem to experience it all day, everyday!! I can not take NSAIDS(asprin, ibuprofen...)I have to take narcotics, and to help w/swelling they give me prednisone, it is a steroid!! I only take it for about one week every 4 months or so!! Good Luck!

Answer 9

It would be worth you trying a chiropracter, they specialise in the spine. I've had serious back troubles for years, including sciatica. Now much better thanks to chiropracter and eventually surgery. The chro will check your alignment and if there are problems he can refer you to a specialist, even if your doctor is reluctant to do so. Chose a registered chiro though, there are some who have no real qualifications.

If your sciatic nerve is trapped and not able to be released you need to ask to see a neurosurgeon, much better than an orthopedic surgeon in those circumstances. They will arrange for an MRI if they think you need it, x-rays won't show up the nerve damage

Answer 10

Could be sciatica, or it could be that you have degenerative disks in your back or even problems with your facet and sacroiliac joints, go see your Dr and ask for an MRI scan to determine what the problem is,also ask the physio at the Dr's if you can have a loan of a tens machine to see if that will help your back pain, find the cause then it can be treated.