At first I thought maybe it was sciatica, but I don't think it affects both sides. Tried ice, alternating with heat. Tried taking anti-inflammatories like motrin, and it did nothing. Vicodin helps minimally, but I only have 2 left. My doc is 2 hours away and there's no way I would survive a car ride that far. Just remembered, I do have some morphine leftover from the meningitis. Spose I should try it? Muscle relaxers if I can find them?

This is horrible pain, just unbearable. The kind that makes you puke. And completely out of the blue -- I haven't had any pain for a long time. Keep thinking maybe I have a herniated disk?

Refuse to go to the ER unless I absolutely have to. If I have no alternative, I know to refuse steroids. Is there anything else I should avoid?

I REALLY feel for you. This is exactly what I have been going through. My pain is much better now but am left with weakness (mostly right but a little on left leg too) and numbness and "rubber legs" like you say.

I took Diazepam/Valium, it did not help instantly, but after a few it did.

On top of that I could only take Tylenol as I can't take other painkillers.

Also have had a hot water bottle as a constant companion - do you have a heating pad or similar?

Yes, I sympathize, it's awful pain. I had to take Perc to stay comfortable as the Flexeril and Valium didn't help. After 2 months of PT and using TENS, it becam less excrutiating. I wore the TENS unit with me every where and it really worked and didn't increase my fog, like pain meds.

I've never tried Prolotherapy, but hear from a few who have that it's hit or miss.

Call your LLMD or PCP and see what they say about going to the ER. What a nightmare....dealing with DUCKS when you feel horrible!

I do have a natural therapy that worked for me, but I can't say that here, I don't think. I would still say you might need an MRI.

Can you get your dr to order an out-patient MRI? [but I guess you'd have to go to the ER to get it right away...ugh]

sympathies......flexeril might help and lots of valium! [tho I've never tried the valium, it sounds good!]

Sciatica can occur on either or both sides depending on where the disk herniation is.

Hopefully wou'll be able to "stay off it" and it'll subside on its own. Just one word of caution: if you lose track of your bladder or bowels, go immediately for a referral to a neurosurgeon because this could become permanent without surgery (look up "cauda equina syndrome").

Sue,

When you say stay off it, do you mean (because I honestly don't know which is best) lie down all the time? This is mostly what I've been doing. Lots of lying on my side/back, and some standing.

If I sit, I it is very uncomfortable and feels like it wants to burn or cramp up again.

Is there an average timescale for healing? I am getting so frustrated, not to mention how inconvenient it is not to be able to even grocery shop, take my child to/from school (no school bus here) and have to keep asking others for favors!

If anyone couldn't drive with sciatica, how long before you could comfortably (without setting yourself back) drive again??

Are there any exercises to help, or should they be totally avoided?

I am so sorry you are going through this. That was my first sign of lyme. I thought I would die. Driving and sitting was the worst. For me, walking short distances helped a little.

What really helped was the Chiropractor. Gave me immediate relieve to the extent that I could tolerate the pain (very mild). I was able to keep working as long as I went in 3x/week. This was with no pain meds.

Also hot baths helped (make sure you have someone to help you, do not do this by yourself).

Good luck and I hope you get to feeling better soon.

I'm not promising you that this will help you. But my totally unqualified guess is that it will help you, as well as many other Lymies with backpain.

It's totally free and doesnt' require a the involvement of any doctor or specialist. You do it all by yourself.

The main ingredient required for you to possibly rid yourself of backpain is that you're willing to throw away everything you ever knew about backpain and consider a radically different perspective on the cause of most backpain, incl dual sided sciatica.

It's a technique by John Sarno.

For more info, check out the link above and send me an email off this list if you need further help.

I have successfully used Sarno's technique myself. And I have heard of many people with sciatica and all sorts of other backpains have used it successfully too and now live permanently without backpain just like I do.

I hope for you that you are open minded. Cause if you're not, don't even bother clicking on the link above.

Again, I'm not a doctor and don't know much about backpain (just like doctors...lol). And also, obviously there's no guarantee that even with an open mind that Sarno's technique will help you.

Regardless, I sincerely hope to hear from you!

My sx are worst in bed. I had to sleep in a chair with my feet on an ottoman for a few months. If I'm on my back, I need 2 pillows beneath my knees.

Be conscious of your movements. Do not twist your body to one side, esp. in combination with bending. Do not pick up children, pets, large casserole dishes, or drag large ceramic planters across the patio.

One thing no one told me but I found very important: walk on level ground as much as possible.

Take the elevator when one is available. Don't opt for heroics, and do NOT push through back pain!!!

I'm hesitant to recommend exercise. I reruptured the disk I'd had surgically repaired 9 months later while doing physical therapy exercises. Let a professional guide you through what should work for your situation, and don't use a new practitioner!

I did find exercises in water to be beneficial (again, no sideways trunk twisting) -- my NS suggested I do a lot of walking IN water. This is easy for me for 2/3 of the year as I have a pool, but I understand it may not be so easy for others. Also, if you have access to a hot tub, use it.

Good luck,

It is a sickening pain, isn't it? And pain meds don't in fact help that much.

The intensity of my hip-to-knee sciatic pain did pretty much go away after a while, and then mysteriously came back for a few days. Now it's there but liveable.

Not that you shouldn't have it checked out, but I'm hoping that this isn't disk damage, but rather the same unexplained changing symptoms and roving types and locations of pain I've had for a long time (knees, then elbows, then hands, then hips, back to elbows, etc. etc.)

Michael, I respect your opinion re: mind/body medicine (Sarno), but I think if you have a diagnosed illness, like lyme, which causes many, many physical symptoms, including sciatica, that the mind/body connection is probably not the cause in this case. And I'm speaking as someone who was open-minded enough to try a number of alternative modalities, including mind/body medicine, before I was finally diagnosed.

Please take this very important piece of advice from me. Get your back pain checked out by an appropriate doctor.

I made the mistake of chalking up several episodes of intensified back pain and sciatica to lyme when in fact I had a bulging disk. Had I known this, I could have modified my activities and allowed it to heal.

Instead, I did all sorts of things to exacerbate it until one day it ruptured completely and I ended up on the floor, unable to get up...and from there I went to the operating table.

quote:

---

Originally posted by monkeyshines:
Michael, I respect your opinion re: mind/body medicine (Sarno), but I think if you have a diagnosed illness, like lyme, which causes many, many physical symptoms, including sciatica, that the mind/body connection is probably not the cause in this case. And I'm speaking as someone who was open-minded enough to try a number of alternative modalities, including mind/body medicine, before I was finally diagnosed.

---

We all tend to believe that what happened to ourselves could also happen to others.

But the fact is that noone knows for sure if Bb can directly cause backpain! As I understand it, it's a theory only based largely on statistical evidence.

And even if we did know for sure that Bb can cause backpain that does not mean that if you have Lyme AND you have backpain, that the backpain is always caused by Bb.

You can not draw that conclusion.

It's just a possibility.

IMO, and I'm not a doctor, I think it is just as likely that backpain, sciatica, stiff neck, etc is caused by the stress and turmoil that follows as a side effect of having Lyme disease.

If it wasn't the case for you, fine.

But it was the case for me and I have Lyme too.

Let's leave it up to BB to find out what works for him/her.

03/04/04

INTERPRETATION: For the purpose of this study, there are assumed to be five lumbar vertebrae, labeled L1 through L5. There is normal bony alignment throughout the lumbar spine. There is slightly decreased T2 disc signal at L4-5, consistent with degenerative disc disease at this level. Also, at L4-5, there is a small diffuse disc bulge present. This causes mild bilateral neural foraminal narrowing which appears greater on the right than the left. There is no significant central stenosis at this level. There is no other area of neural impingement seen within the lumbar spine. The cauda aquina and conus medullaris have a normal appearance on these images.

IMPRESSION: Small disc bulge at L4-5, causing mild bilateral, right greater than left, neural foraminal narrowing. There is also mild disc dehydration at this level.

Still haven't heard back from my llmd, but will make sure I pass this info. on to him.

Thought of you - are you any better?

I have let myself back to square 2 and wondering when is this going to end...

Do others feel ice is better than warmth?

Any other tricks?

Morphine does help, just try and take it with a stool softener to avoid strain in that department, which makes everything worse. Muscle relaxers help more. Have to break pain cycle. Probably spasms involved.

Any swelling? If not, a bit of gentle heat can help. Calcium and magnesium good for calm, some weak anti-spasmodic effect.

Let us know what you hear back from LLMD. I will keep you in my thoughts.

Formula 303
In case you dont know what is.
I never took it but if it works I would.

I also think chiroptactic is a good idea. Mine actually was cured ina bizarre way: I lifted the cover to my kid' sandbox, something crunched, and it was completely better! This was after 6 weeks of horrible pain.

Be prepared to have an MD tell you your MRI is fine. I have an MRI report that resembles yours, maybe a little more "grizzly." I was told that this language reflected little more than normal wear and tear with aging (I'm in my early 50's). However, my pain (and my Lyme neuro stuff) are all on the side where I have "bulge," "degeneration," etc. so it may be related. I've lost 1 1/2 inched in height as well, which is also "normal" I guess.

If you do have sciatica, I think it is usually self-limiting. With Lyme involved, however, since sciatica involves nerves, I do'nt really know. My pain lasts no more than 5 days at this point at any given time, although it is recurring.

The orthopedic doc ordered a bone scan last year -- he initially thought I may have metastatisis from my breast cancer. Obviously wasn't, so he ordered several epidural steroid injections. Grrrrr. If I'd have known then what I know today.

Whenever you experience backpain, sciatica, etc, does it happen at a time where you are emotionally "out of balance" for a longer period of time...

such as when you're under stress, having a serious illness (e.g., Lyme), going through some post syndrom, marital problems, carreer pressure, anxious or angry about something, etc?

Michael

I had to leave work 6 years ago but still fighting to get SSDI benefits 4.5 years later with my 2nd ALjudge hearing maybe in March 05 hopefully.

Then if I am denied again, I'll quit this SSD/DDS harassment ... I've got to move on with my life and my husband's bad health as well as mine. Life is too short.

My 1st SSDI case appeals council denied 12-26-04 without looking at my file ther 2.5 yrs. since my lawyer didn't send a DETAILED BRIEF!

I made decision recently NOT to file in civil/federal court...deadline is this week. That would mean another 3-5 years before a hearing/decision would be made ... total of 8-10 years of this BS!

BB, happy to hear your sciatic is better. You poor thing have had Murphy's law worse than me continously. Hang in there V; you are an inspiration to all who know you.

Soooo much better. Heating pad, back massage, hot baths...I can walk again!

This time it came out of the blue, usually I can feel it tightening up before, and baby it so it doesn't get so bad.

I think I will make regular appts to get my back adjusted, to avoid the PAIN.

Hope you get better soon.