Have odd story

altonbrown, Sciatica can come and go. It is very painful when it is flared up. It can last a few days to a few week.

Praying for you. Blessings.....

@altonbrown
Have you had any surgery on your neck/back to address the disc issues? Is your recent MRI of lower back only or did they also include your neck?

@altonbrown

With me it happens with my sacroiliac. It is sorta like my bulging disc that I had at my SI joint. Often called a slipped disc. The disc slides and pinches the nerve. I had to have two surgeries after it herniated. First was on 1993 … I unplugged a vacuum cleaner at work. Then in 2008 my disc totally disappeared so had an artificial disc put in.

I do not know how it works for the sacroiliac… the symptoms come and go so fast sometimes .. but sometimes lasts a couple of weeks or more. Hard to get an orthopedic appointment here.

Best of luck in getting relief to fix whatever is causing your pain.
ZeeGee

Mine is sacroliac to left hip, also spina bifida, L4-5 tears, T10 cyst, and cervical. I’ve found when I do some minimal exercise, warming or stretching regularly, it keeps my muscles built up, which keeps the bones in place. When I’m in bed or recliner for a few days, any spot in my spine can go out.
I use a cool compress for burning, warm for aches. You can put some rice in a sock and microwave for 15-30 seconds, or put it in a baggie in the freezer for a minute. Only leave on a few minutes at a time, safer with a washcloth or clothing in between.
Once in a blue moon I’ll take a Tylenol if I notice I can’t distract myself with something because the pain is there. Usually I can walk it off or do a hobby. But I’ve been dealing with it for 50 years so I know my body. It can be mind over matter once you get the hang of it, kind of like natural childbirth lol

Your symptoms sound familiar to many of us. Unless you’re doing exercises to strengthen your core and back muscles your pain seems normal for disc problems. No doubt your back is talking to you and most likely getting worse. Hope your MRI results are favorable.

It could have been a disc bulge or herniation that resolved itself by retracting on its own, or since you said the pain is now minimal, the disc may have retracted enough to stop the worst of the pain/impingement.

Sound something like what’s just happened to me in the last few hours, and caused me to land here reading your experience. I was putting on nightclothes after showering and suddenly I was in agony. Right hip and lower back. It’s complicated by the fact that my left hip was replaced over a year ago and has never been good except for the weeks following antibiotics, during which weeks I was walking, biking, running and happy. The doctor says the white cell nuclear test shows no infection in the left hip, but now I am literally crippled with the right hip. I am walking with a crutch, bent over and to the left. If I try to straighten up, agony.

Nice summary of sciatica. The first time I had it, it just came out of nowhere. I thought I was having bad hamstring cramps, but it was due to a bulging disc putting pressure on the sciatic nerve. These do usually resolve without medical intervention.

If the pain persists, it may be due to a ruptured disc, where part of the disc breaks off and is loose in the spinal canal. I had that happen and it was removed surgically through laminotomies at S1/L5/L4.

That said I have avoided fusion for 17 years since my first bout with sciatica. I am in the gym everyday and focus on core muscle strength. My surgeon says that is all that is keeping me from a fusion surgery.

Joe

This may be what happened to my mother, I never heard a technical diagnosis, she suffered horribly for six months, doctor just drugged her to the gills waiting for improvement that never came. Finally had a laminectomy (?) that was apparently quite successful, but it took a couple of months and a new doctor to get her off the pain-killers.

It's very unfortunate your Mom's first Dr thought long-term pain meds was an appropriate course. If sciatica doesn't resolve in a few weeks, it's best to get an xray to see if the spinal canal is clear with room for the sciatic nerve.

Your Mom may have had a laminectomy - a removal of a significant part of the vertebrae. That makes more room for the sciatic nerve and relieves pain. The difference with a laminotomy is that the structure of the vertebrae is maintained. But both are superior to fusion if they work.

Hope you and your Mom are well!

Joe