Sciatica

[ShannonM 2]

I have sciatica so bad I've lost the feeling in my right calf and most of my right foot. Then of course I have the sharp lightening plain that shoots from my buttocks to my right ankle. I was sleeved 4/12 and have had no relief from the sciatica. It makes new wanna scream and the plain is very depressing along with the sleeve norms.

My question is, does/ did anyone have the same problem, did it get better on its own with weight loss or so I need to seek out physical therapy?

Anything that could help, I'm open ears.

Thanks in advanced.

[Paul Bahr 73]

I feel your pain...somewhat literally. The pain from my current sciatica outbreak has been going on since last August (nearly 7 months now) and chiropractic wasn't really helping. It was one of the big reasons behind my getting sleeved. Since being sleeved, I've lost 25 lbs and the sciatica is still there. I'm concerned that I'm still gonna need to have surgery and that it might hamper my weight loss progress (or at least slow it down) until I get that surgery.

I've been waiting to go back to the chiropractor because one of my incisions is right where I'd be putting my weight on the adjustment table. Maybe the adjustments will help now that I'm a little lighter...

[ShannonM 2]

I feel your pain...somewhat literally. The pain from my current sciatica outbreak has been going on since last August (nearly 7 months now) and chiropractic wasn't really helping. It was one of the big reasons behind my getting sleeved. Since being sleeved, I've lost 25 lbs and the sciatica is still there. I'm concerned that I'm still gonna need to have surgery and that it might hamper my weight loss progress (or at least slow it down) until I get that surgery.
I've been waiting to go back to the chiropractor because one of my incisions is right where I'd be putting my weight on the adjustment table. Maybe the adjustments will help now that I'm a little lighter...

Same here. I've been to chiropractors that pop everything and chiropractors that use electrodes and massage therapy. Neither helped. My next step is surgery also, but I'd rather not if in the near future it will go away with weight loss as a few of my physicians said it would. I was looking into laparoscopic laser surgery which I may have to do. I want to try physical therapy first though.

[Chris Lee 43]

My situation might be more detailed and spinal related as I have already had two major back surgeries in Feb. 2016 due to sciatica and nerve compression at the L5-S1 level. I under went the second surgery about 48 hours after the first due to my spinal cord collapsing onto the right side causing further damage to the nerves and needing a lamenectomy in the vertebra above and below the original location. All that being said I now have permanent numbness in my right foot and calf. Still experience shooting pains from time to time in the buttocks with no relief. I again have been referred to a new neurologist to see if there are other options.

After dealing with my symptoms and pain for nearly 6 years, going to chiropractors, orthopedics, having steroid injections and intradermal injections I still am not 100%.

I am hoping with weight loss after being sleeved I may find relief.

If you have to seek further treatment make sure you have a neurologist operate, not ortho!

[PatientEleventyBillion 851]

1 hour ago, Chris Lee said:

My situation might be more detailed and spinal related as I have already had two major back surgeries in Feb. 2016 due to sciatica and nerve compression at the L5-S1 level. I under went the second surgery about 48 hours after the first due to my spinal cord collapsing onto the right side causing further damage to the nerves and needing a lamenectomy in the vertebra above and below the original location. All that being said I now have permanent numbness in my right foot and calf. Still experience shooting pains from time to time in the buttocks with no relief. I again have been referred to a new neurologist to see if there are other options.

After dealing with my symptoms and pain for nearly 6 years, going to chiropractors, orthopedics, having steroid injections and intradermal injections I still am not 100%.

I am hoping with weight loss after being sleeved I may find relief.

If you have to seek further treatment make sure you have a neurologist operate, not ortho!

I think this is more spot on.

I didn't have sciatica.. in fact, I was misdiagnosed as having sciatica at first but i had no numbing of the legs. I just had a bad L5/S1 compression fracture. Facet joint injections were enough for me, but because they don't last long enough, in a few months I'm doing a medial branch block test for radiofrequency ablation.

For those with sciatica, I would imagine one of the first lines of treatment following x-rays/MRI would/should be facet joint injections and nerve block, latter being very akin to an epidural. For facet injections one should be able to go home right away after being held a few mins to see how you react to the dye/freezing/steroids, but for nerve blocks, cannot drive home.

Edited April 18, 2017 by PatientEleventyBillion