Dealing with Sciatic Pain

I've been trying to think of how to describe the pain that I've been in. Sciatic pain starts in the hip, and as the nerve gets inflamed, it shoots down the leg, sometimes leaving a side of your foot numb. In my case, mine started with feeling like I had a sore groin, into a sore hip. The next day it was shooting down my outer thigh, into my outer calf down to my big toe and the two beside it. The toes eventually started to feel funky, as though they were asleep. They still feel funky, and I've been told that is the last thing to regain sensation.

I've been thinking of how to describe the pain. It shoots down the leg, but at its worst, it felt as though someone or thing was scraping the nerve all the way down. It made me nauseous and caused my muscles to twitch at times. It was so intense that my eyes would tear up. Words like radiating are used in its description. Finding a position that felt good was really hard. Walking hurt. I couldn't stand up straight (so I hobbled like an old woman).

Sitting was more comfortable for me than laying down, which was confusing because most people with a herniated disc have to lay down, as sitting is excruciating.  Apparently I'm an anomaly. Not really what I want to be hearing, though I have to admit I'm not surprised. (I've been told that before.)

Even though a particle of the disc is pushing on my nerve, the pain is mostly felt in the leg. When I got my MRI, the disc was bulging to the left, yet my symptoms were on the right. It was also clear that the disc was damaged (no filler in it). I had nerve symptoms, but at first glance, it was hard to see anything pushing against the nerve. The radiologist noted that there was a small particle (barely noticeable) pushing against the nerve. It's this little, barely visible, bugger that's been the cause of all this. (And I'm really, really hoping that my body will reabsorb the little bugger. Because if it doesn't, then my path will shift again.)

There are many ways one can deal with the pain- steroid injections, oral steroids, muscle relaxers, ibuprofen, pan killers, and surgery. At the same time I was suffering from my herniated disc, a friend of mine emailed me that she too was dealing with it. She opted for surgery, so it will be interesting to compare our progress down the road. (For the record, surgery will relieve the pain immediately; however, one needs to be aware of scar tissue and possible surgeries down the road.) I did not opt for surgery, as it's an option I'm not comfortable with, nor do I know how I'd deal with the anesthetic.

Another person I know only did muscle relaxers, and another friend has had wonderful success with epidural steroid injections. For me, personally, I opted to go the route of ibuprofen (800 mg 3 times per day), muscle relaxers, and tramadol for when it got really bad. I'm happy to report that I was able to wean myself down to regular ibuprofen (between 400-800 mgs per day) and Arnica. I have found Arnica to be incredible for helping with the inflammation of the nerve.

I have also found that breathing into the pain, and at times focusing on it helped me to get through it. It also helps me to get on and off the examination table to traction, and in and out of cars. Before I move, I take a deep breathe in, let it out, and do it again and again if I need to.

I must admit, that dealing with this pain, learning how to breathe into it and let myself feel it - has been a gift. Yes, there have been quite a few gifts from this... but that is for another post.