What normally happens for sciatica?

KittyPurffect

KittyPurffect

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Joined
Jun 26, 2016
Messages
55
Each vaginal delivery and contractions I've had from pregnancy has made it worse. First ob I saw said oh it will go away after birth. For who??? It has gotten worse. I can't even roll over in bed without feeling like I can't breathe during the pain. Is sciatica a valid reason to see PMD? If so, what normally happens for this? Does it help with pain and sleep?

 
I feel bad that I didn't see this topic until now because I can actually help with this quite a bit.  I've been suffering with this for about 14 months straight.  I have 2 herniated discs in lumbar back.  The first doc i went to was a physiatrist, who sent me to physical therapy.  I thought it helped, but only for a while.  At this time he would only prescribe tramadol, which it did work at the time, but I was eating up my stomach with Excedrin and Aleve to get some relief.  it kept doing downhill so I started looking for another doc.

I found a pain management doc in Chicago near my work and did get prescriptions for tramadol and hydrocodone.  They do urine tests to make sure you are taking your meds and not selling them.  They will also not keep prescribing indefinitely unless you are willing to undergo steroid injections.  I was in such awful pain and could barely work so I was willing to do anything they asked me to do.   Just make sure the doc has an updated MRI, does the injection under flouroscopy and under twilight sedation.  I have heard the injections are very painful if done with no sedation.  My doc does them at a surgery center so it's an outpatient thing.  Each one did give relief anywhere from 1 month to 2 months and   the relief I received was great, especially at the beginning since they inject lidocaine in there too.   So right when you wake up, you know if they got the exact spot or not.  After 2 of them giving relief and then the pain coming back, they suggested consulting with a surgeon.  The surgeon got a repeat MRI and looked at it very carefully and called the pain doc and let him know exactly where he thought that herniated material was impinging on the nerve.   That third injection gave me the most relief, but the pain did come back after 2 months and then I was headed for surgery.  You can only get 3 steroid injections per year.  Some pain docs will do 4.  They can also do something called a nerve block.  I've been warned away from those from an alternative medicine doc because once they deaden one nerve's pain, he said if it comes back, it's very hard to treat because then the pain will become a diffuse pain and it's hard to tell where it's coming from.  That made sense to me so I pursued the microdiscectomy instead of pursuing the nerve block treatment.

overall, I think if the pain doc can see on an MRI that you have impingement on the nerve and have a reasonable explanation for your sciatica, they have a few good treatment options and should be willing to treat you, including appropriate pain medicine.  I thought my pain doc was wonderful.  They never gave me any issue about withholding treatment.  I think it helped to let them know all the things I was doing to try to help myself (acupuncture, ex frcise, heat, ice, a million different creams, different cushions, chairs, standing desk).  Usually I saw the physician assistant and only saw the pain doc in the operating room for the injections.  I thought they were also extremely helpful in helping me find a surgeon when that became necessary because they see the patients afterwards and knew which surgeons had the best results for my procedure.  They made me sign a contract so you have to be careful if you "supplement" your regular meds.  I believe mine tested only for the presence of opiates and not how much, but I can't be sure.  

For sciatica, I thought my PMD was extremely helpful and I am glad I went.  I've been told that most bouts of sciatica resolve after a few months, and if it does not,  a trip to pain management is essential.

 
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  1. B @ bigblueallda: @drjimmy1964 lol I am actually surprised it is a real ID. I needed those documents because my license had been expired for over a year and I had to start all over. Nothing was in the system. It was a huge mess. I had no clue I was signing up for Real ID. They asked me for the exact same documents that I needed for a State ID Card.
  2. P @ psychedpsych: Whew, long night of giving rides. How's y'all's night go? Im debating driving for 2 more rides to hit my goal, should I keep going?
  3. S @ soupson: bless your heart buddy. no sense of grammar or proper insults/jokes. you need this place in ways i can’t comprehend
  4. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: Sweet Ol' Me asked about Real ID, Stoup. Are you responsive to emails ? LMAO
  5. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: I smell some Stoup. Is Stoup's on ?
  6. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: @bigblueallda You win. I am lost. Thought you were surprised your license was a Real ID, now you say you provided those items.
  7. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: @bigblueallda I was under the impression that you'd need all of the points to get a real ID . I'd check it's validity if you're gonna fly domestic any time soon, just to make sure. Not to tell you what to do, sorry -
  8. B @ bigblueallda: @drjimmy1964 In my state to get a Real ID, I need SS card, Birth Certificate and two proofs of residency. Which I am positive I had to provide to get a new ID when it had been expired.
  9. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: @Turbo259 advertising - putting in writing for example an negative action to show they are guilty prior to taking action.
  10. B @ bigblueallda: I haven't flown in an airplane in 20 years lol. Can't recall the last government building I have been in either. According to the symbol it tells me I should have on my ID to make it a Real ID I do have one in my state
  11. Gracie5 @ Gracie5: Hey @CuCeltic99!
  12. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: @Turbo259 advertising - putting in writing for example an negative action to show they are guilty prior to taking action.
  13. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: @bigblueallda are you sure you have a Real ID ? I mean , they really want 6 points of proof and 1 for your addy and 1 for your SSN. Did you maybe get it done and forgot and flew out of the country or something ?
  14. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: @bigblueallda are you sure you have a Real ID ? I mean , they really want 6 points of proof and 1 for your addy and 1 for your SSN. Did you maybe get it done and forgot and flew out of the country or something ?
  15. S @ soupson: did anyone ask about real id or is sweet ol jimmy just rambling
  16. T @ Turbo259: @drjimmy1964 what did you mean by advertise? not gettin the verbiage, DM works if anything, just didnt understand
  17. B @ bigblueallda: {Visit your local Driver Service Bureau with the necessary documents: original birth certificate, Social Security card, and two proofs of your state's residency. } I definitely provided this when I had to get a new ID when i let mine go expired too long maybe I unknowingly got one but I think it is pretty standard here.
  18. B @ bigblueallda: Well it was a state id renewal. Before that there was a mixup and I had lost my birth certficate and social security number. After a couple of weeks and finally getting several documents in order I was able to get a state ID. It had been expired previously for a little too long and they wanted all kinds of proof. It was a mess. But nah I looked up what to look for an my state's ID to see if it is a Real Id or not and my card as the symbol it is supposed to have. I'll take a closer look though
  19. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: @bigblueallda are you sure you have a Real ID ? I mean , they really want 6 points of proof and 1 for your addy and 1 for your SSN. Did you maybe get it done and forgot and flew out of the country or something ?
  20. drjimmy1964 @ drjimmy1964: Actually it says "Not For Real ID Purposes". That is my 2022 renewal of my 2018 picture ID. I am not due till 2026 and I am sure they will make me go in since my pic would be 8 years old - they used to make you go in in my state for aging when I was younger, then went paper - then back to picture ( I think 9/11 to blame for that ) but relaxed it.
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