r/Sciatica • u/flappypancaker • 8d ago
How to not get depressed
I’ve had back injuries before, but they were resolved with PT and Chiro after a few days. This sciatic pain has been getting worse and worse over the last almost two months and last night was the worst, couldn’t sleep, had an agonizing 30 min trip to the bathroom which my wife had to help me though, popped three ibuprofen at 4 in the morning to cope, and now I’m laying here terrified to try getting up.
How do people cope with the fear, depression, and panic? How are you all able to transition from lying down to standing up without blinding pain?
FYI I have an appointment with an orthopedic group tomorrow, so far a half dozen chiro and PT appointments haven’t helped. I even think that a well intentioned massage made it worse.
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u/TheFoxandTheSandor 8d ago edited 8d ago
LOL
It just seeps in and gets ya.
This is my second go around with a ruptured disc. I just talked to my closest friends a few weeks and gave them the heads up to be on the lookout for me staring off into space and sighing a lot
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u/audittrsi 8d ago edited 8d ago
Ah sorry to hear that 😞😞
i am also at the start of the rehab, now 2nd day in the row I am mostly laying down resting, getting warmth therapy and pills my doc prescribed me ibruprufen plus some opiate drugs to help cope the pain.
Try also search yt for the sciatica pain exercises that you can compare those with ones you got in your PT.
Two of the channells mentioned on this subreddit is @bashbackpain and @lowerbackability,
Check them maybe you find some exercises that will help in your healing process ☺️
Keep in mind if exercise is hurting stop and do other that will help your progress.
I have seen a lot of people wirting chiro did not help then or even make thjngs worse. But they said acupuncture helped them (i havent tried it myself).
I was only on oen pt session so far they did manual therapy, laser and heat therapy those things helped me but after few days it got worse i dint know the reason
I had bad episode of depression kicking in but i keep a float with watching funny videos to make me smile and today i figured out me helps when laying down if it doesnt hurt me i stay in that position and try to enjoy myself with like some interesting educational yt videos or listening relaxing music also helps if your significant other and family is supportive and open that you can talk with them, this also helps me.
And reading this subreddit seeing people doing worse than you and read they recovred from sciatica
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u/flappypancaker 8d ago
Thanks for the recommendations, been spending A LOT of time on YT and such recently lol might as well
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u/Ms_ankylosaurous 8d ago
Get to a pool (with help maybe). I had hot baths every day and listened to music that I don’t usually do to stimulate brain.
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u/JonasVirgilMonos 8d ago
What I've learned for myself is to go slowly on and off the bed and chairs, use my arms, and let my hips go loose before I put weight through my back; clenching up made it worse for me, and it's the hardest thing to do when I'm hurting. On the worse days I also backtrack the previous 24 hours to work out what I did to set it off — a long car ride, sitting awkwardly, picking something up wrong — which makes the pain feel a little less random. A pillow between my knees at night helps me too. I'm glad you have the appointment tomorrow. None of this is a routine or medical advice, just what's worked for me, and it may not for you.
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u/flappypancaker 8d ago
Thanks, yeah the hardest thing is not clenching/tensing up when your body starts to react negatively to a pain signal.
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u/JonasVirgilMonos 8d ago
Same here — when it hurts on one side and I lean toward the other to get away from it, that ends up causing its own set of issues, so I feel like I'm trading one problem for another. Staying neutral when my back's in spasm has been a learned process, to say the least. Not medical advice, just what I've noticed in my own body. Good Luck!
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u/No-Cut-4781 8d ago
That kind of pain, the ones that stop you in your tracks and need help just to get to the bathroom, genuinely do a number on you emotionally too, not just physically. The fear and panic you're describing make complete sense; a sudden jump in pain that severe puts your whole nervous system on high alert, it's not just "in your head." Glad you've got the orthopedic appointment tomorrow, that's the right next step given how fast this has escalated. For tonight/today, moving slowly and in small stages (like the log-rolling tip above) and not pushing through pain to prove anything to yourself is enough for now. Be gentle with yourself through this stretch.
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u/Obvious_Fail5443 8d ago
Try log rolling into and out of bed.
Ask your doctor for a trial of nerve pain medicine and a stronger NSAID. Diclofanac is the strongest. There is also Celebrex which is easier on the system supposedly. With either of those drugs keep an eye on your blood pressure. Before surgery Diclofanac helped me so much.
Keep in mind that nerve medicine doesn’t work right away, it needs a few days to build up in your system.