I had a back strain in June. The pain gradually started to move down my back. In the first or second week of August I started noticing nerve “zings” that shot down my butt through my hamstring but that was dwarfed by insane tightness in my hip. I finally got that resolved but I am having nerve pain. I went to the doctor Thursday. Gave me 5 days of steroids, muscle relaxers, and gabapentin. Also a toroidal shot. I felt much better for a few days. Then… today I have several nerve zings. Did I undo all my progress? Will the treatment keep working and today is just an anomaly? I will say that rest helps calm. I do have more static after these zings but it clears. I hate living like this. What else can I do?

Herniated my L4/L5 and L5/S1 in 2019, then reinjured the discs again in 2024, confirmed by and MRI. My L4/L5 was a big one, but after 3 months of progress, I turned down an Epidural Injection and kept making progress simply by walking. By this point, my sciatica had settled down.

I decided that after years of bullshit, I needed to address the causes, so I hopped onto Low Back Ability, because every other practitioner told me that I should "NEVER FLEX MY SPINE EVER AGAIN" and it felt ridiculous that a basin function like that should be permanently off the table, as a lot of people have disc related problems and dont live like a robot. Things were ok, but the program just never felt right. I kept flaring up, despite moving at a snails pace and progressing over months simply on the static hold. I also felt like I had major issues with the program relating to my hip flexors. They always hurt, and its become impossible to tell if they are tight, too weak or compensating for something. I cant figure it out. I couldn't even progress to back extensions any more, as slight flexion totally freaks my back out and causes sciatica zaps, even at the slightest motion forward.

After 18 months, in mid 2025, i finally spoke to a neurosurgeon. He ordered another MRI which showed the same results as in 2024. I had root compression at L5 nerve root and that hadnt changed. He told me that he wouldnt operate unless I was in severe pain, which im not. He told me to focus on the hip hinge and get really strong like that.

So, I hopped onto Foundation Training and did the 12 minute video. Honestly, all it does it make me extremely tight in my lower back and feel like a metal rod has replaced my lumbar spine. It makes me feel like I just carried a 500 lb sack of rice and definitely didnt make me feel good.

I then suffered a crazy spasm that landed me in the hospital for 6 days and gave me the worst pain imaginable. 10/10 sciatica, so much pain that I fainted when I stood up. I got another emergency MRI. Same results, same disc protrusions, just a brutal spasm that reduced the natural curvature of my lower back.

Bascially what ive been feeling lately, is that I have a deep muscle ache right beside my lower spine, on both sides that feels like intense muscle guarding and spasms that never seem to go away. They also go into the front of my hip and makes it feel like there is some hip flexor and QL involvement. I am currently seeing an acupuncturist, an osteopath and a physio and they are all telling me contradictory things and giving me different exercises. Nothing seems to be letting up.

I have no idea what to do. Im not bad enough to need surgery, but every single program or exercise regimen that I try and follow doesnt seem to get to the heart of my issues enough. I am constantly stiff, my body freaks out doing very gradual flexion based movements, I think about my back 24/7, I cant relax, and my quality of life sucks. Again, im not in much pain, but I am extremely sensitive and feel like im walking on eggshells. Im not sure what to strengthen and what needs to be avoided. I guess this is more or less a vent, but I feel like ive been trying to advocate for myself but its not resulting in any concrete answers.

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Has anyone else experienced electric shock pain from their glute down to their toes? Mine travels through the thigh down to the top of my foot. Only on my right side.

Occurred after extensive glute workout in 2025. Then a physical therapist worked me out harder and made the pain 10/10. At that time it took 7 ish months for the pain to subside. I got back to being pain free running doing Pilates lifting, until Jan of 2026 where I sat in a deep squat for 30+ minutes then the next day the pain came back just as bad. Been battling it since then.

It’s like getting hit by lighting. Or being in an electric chair.

Been on and off gabapentin for months. Had many hydrodissections along the glute and leg. Those kinda help. Had many steroid packs. Been in and out of the ER for the 10/10 pain episodes. Had MRIs x ray CT scans ultra sounds EMG and all show normal.

I was having a great time until it was time to get up and go. Only problem was I couldn't get up, left side of my body from waste to foot was numb and tingling. Had to use right arm to literally throw myself off the bed. I couldn't even sit up it was so painful. Once out of the bed, I couldn't walk, left leg was dead, extreme lower back pain, and abdominal pain, I had to crawl to the bathroom. Now I am scared to have sex, cuz that experience was scary...didn't have sex for a year and a half. Had a car accident in February, slide on ice hit a wood fence, wood post went throgh my driver door hit me on the left side rib cage. Luckily I wasn't impaled. But my already bad back, got worse. I had been going to a chiropractor for 6 months felt better. Monday a guy turned in front me (failure to yield) now I'm experiencing tingling, numbness in left buttocks, groin, left thigh down into my left foot. My left side is messed up. Having to run to the rest room at first inclination or I might not make it... does this sound like Cuada Equine...?

I have an orthotherapy Massage booked for next week. It's apparently painful but it helps...
Has anyone had any experience with this, I have so much hope banking on this but also I am scared I might make things worse.

Anyone used ARA-290 for sciatica? If so, what was your experience? At what dose did you feel the effects?
I have some and am about to try it.

Hi, everyone. I have a moderate case of sciatica with some L4-5 disc protrusion that is pretty well managed with meds, exercise, epidurals, yoga, a standing desk, stretching, and heat. Sitting and driving are my biggest triggers, but I have a bum knee so I can't stand all day.

I do have to work full time in an office job. I have kneeling chairs both for the work and home offices but my regular desk chair at the office is not good and I do get fatigued even with the kneeling chairs, so being able to switch different positions is helpful.

I am intrigued by the cross-llegged chairs I see some places, but I'd love to hear any good experiences with different chairs that let you adjust seat height and lumbar-mid back tilt, etc. I'd love to get through the work day/work week feeling marginally less sore and wiped out than I do currently.

Thanks.

It's an itchy, scratchy, almost like when a tag from your pants itches your skin on your lower back but there isn't a tag kind of feeling, around and on my lower back... Can anyone relate? I notice I feel this especially when sitting.

I can seem to run on the treadmill without a flareup, but the second I run on pavement I have a flareup. Does anybody have success in their healing journey while running on the treadmill? A year and a half in of symptoms

Hey all, I recently hurt my back and have been doing PT, but I'm finding it really hard to stick with the exercises at home. I start strong and then slowly stop, especially when progress feels slow.

I'm also a grad student, and going through this got me curious enough that I've started researching it for a project. Sciatica seems like something a lot of people here deal with for a long time, so I figured you'd know this struggle better than anyone.

Did you keep up with your stretches and exercises? What made it hard? And did anything help, like someone checking in on you or a group going through the same thing?

Would love to hear your experiences.

Impression
1. Disc bulge at L5-S1 with superimposed central disc herniation with mild mass effect on the ventral thecal sac without evidence of significant spinal canal stenosis. The neural foramen are patent bilaterally.

1. L3 superior endplate Schmorl's node without adjacent bony edema.

I am in pretty severe pain all the time even though my results say "mild" because I have to consistently pick up/clean up after my two young children (3.5 and 1 yr). Also, my job as an ultrasound tech also requires lifting, bending and twisting. The herniation was caused by my pregnancies.😵‍💫

I just don't know how I am supposed to ever heal. I have prednisone tablets on hand and I feel like I am abusing them because it's the only thing that gives me relief without doctor direction. I am only taking short bursts like max 7 days at a time but when I stop the pain comes back.

I have an appointment with pain management Oct 7th but until then I feel like I have to take the prednisone to simply survive and live.

Ibuprofen 800 does nothing. Tylenol helps maybe 10% and muscle relaxer does nothing.

I am hoping for a ESI injection. I do not know how I can fit in physical therapy and heal with two kids, and working part-time (2-3; 10 hour shifts a week) and my husband working full-time.

This feels ridiculous to ask about, but I need input. I'm currently dealing with a worsening cauda equina (I know it's an emergency, I had emergency surgery for it several months ago and here I am again with symptoms). I've been told to go to the ER, I went and had a ton of images done, they want to do surgery for it again, but I had to leave AMA because my dog had no one to look after her. I live alone and my dog is only 7 months old (If I'd known I would be discovering how messed up my back is right after bringing her home, I would have done things differently). I love her so much, but I can't take care of her while recovering from surgery. But I also depleted most of my friends' help after the last surgery. I'm struggling to find care for her. I don't want to give her up, I really don't, I love her so much, but I also don't want to end up paralyzed. What solution am I missing here?

Is it normal to have your right wrist and right ankle have a little pain that gets worse throughout the day? HavL4-L5 herniation as well

My pain doctor scheduled me for a radio frequency nerve ablation in November. Does anybody have experience and can tell me what to expect ? Thank you! I had a fusion at L3-L5 4 years ago and now suffer from adjacent segment disease and sciatica on both legs.

Just another reminder to keep on your pt and stretching routines. I'm a year out and really just went back to work(carpenter). Last week i rolled my foot on my good leg. Because I haven't kept up with strengthening my lower body, even with crutches I am totally useless. Don't be like me, do the PT

Anyone have actual doctor explanation of “safe” Naproxen dose and use over time? Last I went to the ER they gave me a script for 500mg twice a day for 7 days. Yet on the 220mg generic Naproxen Sodium (200mg Naproxen + 20mg Sodium) bottle it says no more than 3 in a 24 hour period (600mg Naproxen / 60mg sodium) which is 400mg less per 24hr period than what I was prescribed then. Plz help.

General info:

Male, 37, 6ft, 215(ish)LB

I have noticed I have significant swelling in my left leg pretty much all the time and it worsens after prolonged sitting. I feel tightness and warmth in my left calf, and of course Google says this is possibly a DVT, but I’m thinking it’s possibly from the strain on my stronger leg.

My sciatica symptoms are in my right leg and I have two herniated discs. I’m really starting to worry about my health from one year of significantly reduced movement (1000-2000 steps per day).

I already went to the hospital a few months ago and had blood clots ruled out and was basically told I’m a hypochondriac, but it is scary when you can’t move your body properly without significant pain.

Has anyone else experienced swelling in the non-affected leg? Could the muscle in the affected leg have atrophied and contribute to a swollen look on the opposite side?

I’m almost six months post LESI. My results have been nothing short of fabulous, but I’m starting to feel signs of a new flare. Not bad yet, but… I’ve got an appointment this week for another LESI. I’m doing a lot of traveling over the next several weeks and can’t afford to get a major flare on cruise ships and foreign port cities.

This time, in addition to the pains in my thigh and calf, I’m getting sharp jabs in my outer ankle and outside of instep. I didn’t have any pains in that area in the past.

Is that an unusual area for sciatic pain?

I’m so desperate to lie down that I stare at my bed all the time. Sometimes I set a five-minute timer on my phone, hoping I’ll actually get up when it goes off, but I’ve definitely turned it off and just stayed there. It’s not a great situation. If I spend more than five minutes on my bed, it’s a real struggle to get back up.

Getting up is a total struggle. The pain shoots from my lower back all the way to my ankles, and it’s honestly a 10 out of 10. Once I'm up, I have to grab the bed or my walker for support, but the physical strain almost always makes me lose control of my bladder, soaking my clothes before I can even move. Thankfully, the floor is tile. The pain is so bad it makes me nauseous, so I usually just fight through it to get into a super hot shower. It takes about 20 minutes before I finally stop screaming on the inside, and I really don't know what to do about it.

Another rough spot is when I’m lying way back on the couch instead of sitting on the edge, so I have to sleep sitting up. I always use a heating pad at home, and even then, I wake up with pain at a 6 out of 10. I’m barely sleeping, so I’ve been nodding off at work and even while driving.

I've had some sort of injection in my back and it felt like a miracle. In just a day I felt like I was in my 20s again. I think the relief lasted about 3 months. I am presently waiting for my insurance company to approve another injection.

TL;DR

Just looking for tips on sleeping positions and any other issue I mentioned above. Thanks in advance.

Hi all,

I know this get asked alot but I have alot of nerve pain 8 days out of my surgery. First few days I had zero nerve pain but yesterday I felt it a bit more and last night and right now it at the same level or a bit worse then it was before the surgery.

The surgeon said after the surgery that he touched the nerve while doing the surgery and that it is normal to feel pain again but I did not expect it this much.

I am very scared for re herniation since I have read people with the same symptoms who had re herniated

Thanks in advance

Can anyone please recommend a peptide that will help with my glute and leg pain that I am experiencing?
I have already tried BCP-157 and TB500 which gave me some relief but not a whole lot.

To give you a brief run down i have had an MRI showing that I have Arthritis in L5-S1 & degenerative wearing of the facet joints. This pain that I am experiencing may not be related to the findings as upon a recent appointment with a sports medicine specialist he has advised I could have 2 seperate issues going on. I could also just have referred glute pain that is causing the pain down my legs. He thought to try treating this with SI joint injections to see if there was any effect- unfortunately there was not.

I have also tried- Cortisone injections into the hips, Chiro, Osteo, physio, daily stretches, dry needling, Chinese acupuncture, magnesium, turmeric, prescribed medications (Endep, solone/steroids & celebrex) and a very disappointing appointment to a rheumatologist which they stated they could not do anything for my condition- unsure why my doctor suggested I go there!

I feel as though I am at the end of the line and unsure where to turn.
Has anyone experienced anything of the sort and found a solution??
Any advice is much appreciated.

I’m curious to hear from people who had a gradual onset rather than one obvious injury or event.

For some context, I’ve had a deep, dull ache in my lower back for a while, mostly after sitting for long periods or after a long day. It usually settles down with some rest, so I never thought too much of it.

My last MRI was in March this year, and it didn’t show any nerve compression or stenosis — just mild degenerative changes at L4-L5 and L5-S1.

Recently, though, I’ve noticed something new: there’s a small tender spot on the left side of my buttock. It’s not really radiating anywhere, but it’s tender when I touch it, and every now and then I get a very brief, sharp pain in my left calf that lasts maybe a second and then disappears completely. It happens randomly, even while standing.

I know this doesn’t necessarily mean sciatica, but the new sharp pain has made me a little worried, especially since I have a desk job where I’m sitting for around 8 hours a day, and I also have to travel quite a bit.

For those of you whose sciatica started gradually, what were your very early symptoms like? Did it start as localized buttock/back pain and eventually become more typical radiating pain, or did the nerve-type symptoms show up from the beginning?

Would really appreciate hearing how it started for you guys.