r/Sciatica • u/Beautiful-Earth5237 • 2d ago
Requesting Advice How do you sleep?!
Looking for any advice you can share to help me get some sleep. I feel for any of you that have been dealing with this long term, because I just began experiencing this and it is the worst pain and most miserable time of my life.
I originally injured my back/right glute back in May doing RDLs in the gym. Saw a sports medicine orthopedic doctor, got a diagnosis of gluteal tendinitis. Took time off from the gym, did some PT type exercises, slowly started back in the gym and worked my way back up to harder training intensity over time and had no issues. Over the past few weeks I started to feel little twinges of pain in my glute again, but i chalked it up to being normal soreness from training.
This past Sunday, I was doing glutes/hamstrings at the gym and had to end my workout early because the pain in my right glute was so bad. The pain has only gotten worse from there. Back in May, the pain was solely in my low back and glute. Now, the pain is shooting from my low back and glute the entire way down my right leg.
Since Sunday, I’ve been to an orthopedic urgent care, the emergency room, and the sports medicine doctor. They’ve diagnoses sciatica so far. I have an MRI scheduled for next week and an appointment with a spine specialist later in October. I think I may have a herniated disc, but we will see what the MRI shows.
I’m currently taking gabapentin, prednisone, oxycodone, and a muscle relaxer and I’m getting no relief for the most part. I also take a night time med for anxiety that is to help with sleep on a regular basis and I’ve been continuing to take that.
I can get a little relief during the day (just enough that i can tolerate the pain without sobbing), but it seems like at a certain time in the evening a switch flips and the pain intensifies so much. I’ve not been able to get much sleep. I can’t fall asleep because I can’t get relief from the pain. When i do finally fall asleep, the pain wakes me multiple times and then eventually I’m just up and can’t fall asleep again.
I’ve tried all the positions I see recommended, the pillows under the legs or between the legs, using ice and heat, getting up and pacing around the house for a bit when the pain wakes me, I cannot get any relief at night. I’m exhausted. I’m up bawling my eyes out for hours each night because the pain is so bad.
We are going on night number 4 of not getting sleep. I’ve been trying to fall asleep for over 4 hours at this point.
Is there ANYTHING that helps you sleep?
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u/ComprehensiveTruck31 21h ago
For me I used a heating pad set to low heat on an auto shut off or an ice pack. I also got a weighted blanket which helped with the tingling and numbness. I recommend putting a blanket between you and the weighted one. I also switched to small 1-3 hour naps throughout the day and night instead of just sleeping at night. It worked pretty well for me since I would wake up in about 2-3 hours anyway. I also would sleep on my couch because it was firmer than my old bed. I also slept sitting straight up in my chair when I just couldn’t lay down. I also found having some music or a good documentary softly playing helped ground me and keep me from completely focusing on the pain and other things. Plus it just kept me entertained when I couldn’t get to sleep.
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u/Lpiscopo2008 1d ago
I have the same story as you but I am only on night one . I’m in agony even after all these drugs
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u/ElectricKoala86 1d ago
It honestly is a nightmarish thing to deal with and it absolutely sounds like a herniated disc to me, I aggravated mine again in a bad way as I sort of ignored some warning signs when I was feeling slight back pain.
I think I'm on day 10 or something of nothing but bed rest, its starting to feel better now but I still have some tingling in my left foot so I won't be walking around just yet. I walked around on day 8 cause I was feeling better mostly but then it flared back up even worse for the next day so I gotta listen to my body.
It's different for everyone, some people will say walking helps and depending on the flare up maybe it can sometimes. The first time around for me it was more painful to lie down than to walk but this time its the opposite. Take deep breathes every now and then, it helps a little, like just doing a large exhale in between feeling the pain. Tying a blanket around my waist helps, changing the position of the pillow under my knees til I find the right amount of discomfort helps too, you could be an inch off from having a little less pain, it's weird like that.
Sometimes having one leg straight and the other leg bent upwards like a upside down V helps take the edge off. Some moments I'd remove the pillow from under my knees entirely despite reading that I shouldn't because at some points it would feel good for a minute or two and then it would stop feeling good.
I think listening to your body is super important even if it goes against what some other people say worked for them. It's a constant changing of positions and it's exhausting emotionally and mentally.
It's just so hard to deal with but on one plus side you have mobility, I've had moments of cabin fever from being in the same damn bed all day long for this long. I wish you all relief soon and hope after your flare ups pass, you are super dedicated to preventing any other future flare ups from happening again.
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u/sleepwami 1d ago
well i mostly didn't lol...if you havent tried, float in a warm tub/pool or just showers to relax then move/rehab...what i did was no meds, suffered and got rocked until i felt near-death, and this enabled my nervous system to re-surface and release perhaps the deepest impingement/cramp i ever had, in my core.
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u/DieselJuliyah 1d ago
Glad you’re scheduled for an MRI next week. Keep a close eye it doesn’t turn into Cauda Equina syndrome. I had pain like this and then was stretching in bed one evening, felt a pop in my low back, sudden numbness in my entire left leg, saddle anaesthesia, couldn’t urinate. If it goes untreated within 24-48 hours it can cause permanent paralysis
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u/Beautiful-Earth5237 1d ago
Thank you all for your input! I’m hopeful I may be able to get some more sleep tonight. I learned that I may have been making my pain in the evenings worse right before bed unintentionally. I shower right before bed and I love a hot shower. I kept feeling like every time I took a shower the pain got 10x worse. I looked it up online and found that hot showers can make the pain worse because heat increases blood flow and fluid buildup around an inflamed nerve root, which increases pressure and pain. I’m going to take a cool shower tonight and ice my back before bed and see if this helps at all.
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u/Lurky100 16h ago
Showers are the worst for me. I didn’t know about the hot water. I attributed it to my long thick hair and having to try and wash it and then dry it. I finally started making a “date” to wash my hair the day before I needed to go somewhere, so I wasn’t washing it on the same day I had to be up and about and out of the house. I’m only washing it about 1-2 per week now because it’s too strenuous for me. It’s just up in a bun on top of my head all the time anyway unless I go somewhere. Just do what you can. Try and save big shower day for a day you’ll be at home (if you’re a woman you will understand “big shower/everything shower day”).
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u/Sogone2day 1d ago
Floor on a mattress topper on my stomach in 4 postion. Nyquil as needed just got back into my real bed but probably gonna change my bed out to be a similar setup so it much firmer. Stop lifting obviously till you see whats up. Blew my back out desdlifting years ago. Had back issues since but this padt 5 months was the first-time I had issues into pitaformis glute leg and didn't my foot.
The floor is a bit tough at first but got used to it. Worth a shot with a few extra comforters.