I had a muscle spasm in my back once and they would put those elctrode thingys on my back that make your muscles tense up and relax. Then they would put a hot water bottle on top of that. It really helped a lot. Isn't that the same as a .t.e.n.s. machine? The kind you can rent. If you aren't able to get to a physiotherapist for that kind of treatment, there are places where you can rent them for when you're in labour, so maybe you could get one for your sciatica. I don't know though, it's just an idea. If not, find someone and force them to give you a massage.

I wish I knew. I usually just take .Motrin (ibuprofen) or a muscle relaxer and try to rest, which isn't going to do you a lot of good at a music festival.

Unfortunately, there isn't a whole lot of things you can do for it.

tens units are great! Also, you might want to ask your doctor about lidocaine patches. (the ones I have are called 'Lidoderm', but I'm not sure if they are available there.) sometime, they can help if you put it at the top of the nerve. It numbs the muscles around the nerve, which can sometimes help. But, It might not always help. Uummm....shoes. Shoes can really aggravate a sciatic nerve. So I would stay away from heels as much as possible.

Other than that, I don't really have any advice. I'm sorry, I know how painful that can be. I hope you are feeling better soon!

I pinched my sciatic nerve back in october (we'll not go into that story, as it's really quite humiliating) and was on vicodin, which did nothing. i couldn't stand, really, so i basically soaked in the bath tub a lot. alternating a heating pad with an ice pack also helped me.

Ohh...ohh...I wanna hear the story!!! Please!!!

lol me too! & how you told your parents if it was so bad?

October 27, 2006--

I'm in my first period .Geometry class, and I get up to sharpen my pencil or something, I don't really remember anymore. My foot somehow got stuck in the leg of the desk and i fell. i tried to get up and absolutely could not; the pain was that excruciating. they had to call the nurse, who had to bring a wheelchair to get me down to the nurses' office on the first floor (my class was on the 3rd floor). my left foot got stuck, and i landed .h.a.r.d on my left side. yet it was my right hip/knee that were killing me. so basically i looked like an fool in front of all of my classmates.
then i have to wait out the day in the nurses' office because my mom can't come get me. so every period someone from one of my classes gets sent down with whatever we were doing in class that day. so they knew about the whole thing, which they then relayed back to the rest of the class.
i went to see ortho, and they did xrays and manipulations until i was in tears. they couldn't get a clear read on the xray so they don't know if i had a fracture to my hip, inflamed the lining of the joint, pinched my sciatic nerve, or pulled a muscle, but they think it was the nerve because of the pain i had that i still get frequently now.
i was on crutches for 3 1/2 weeks until i couldn't stand them any longer.
long story short, i ended up on crutches for 3 1/2 weeks because i .s.t.o.o.d .u.p!

That is totally something that I would do!! (and I'm suprised that I haven't) But, I really thought it was going to be something worse.

i thought so too haha

but i would have been horrified if i fell infront of the class.
iv blacked out infront of the class actually

i hit my funny bone on the desk when i turned around to talk to my friend and it hurt so bad, my arm went numb ad my vision went snowy like on a tv.. and i laid my head down and the next thing i remember is waking up on the floor with everyone laughing, i cried haha it was bad.

in my english class, a kid fainted. he got up and BOOM!!!! went down. we all got ushered out of the classroom and they had to call an ambulance. he hit his head so hard that he ended up with a subdural hematoma (brain bleed or something) and was in the hospital for like 3 days.

omg thats horrible!!

i dont even remember falling out of my chair or hitting the floor or anything, so embarrassing. i didn't know hitting your funny bone could do that.

So I guess maybe you should be paying attention in class and not talking!!!
Lesson learned?

lmao nah i still talk my head off

try getting to a ciro they usually are able to relieve some of the pain but aligning your back and working your legs.

Is your back feeling any better? When I had a muscle spasm in my back I was alternating between .t3s and robax platinum for at least 3 weeks before I was able to function without them. If your doc doesn't refer you to physio can you still go anyway? I had to pay $55.00 a visit but it was worth it every time. I think I ended up going about 4 times. I agree that a chiropractor could help if it's a slipped disc or something like that, but I've heard that once you start getting adjustments you'll need to keep going. I don't know if that's true though. I just had a spasm in my muscle so I didn't need a chiropractic adjustment just massage and stuff.

Diazepam is valium isn't it? I had to give that to my cat when she was peeing on the floor and she stopped doing it. Interesting.

I know it hurts...but knee to chest stretches.

I had horrid sciatica with .oni. It eventually went away...but that's what my Dr. recommended!

Sarah

You were doing knee to chest stretches when you were pregnant?? I think my knees would have to bend backwards to get my legs anywhere near my chest.

hahahahahha!! It was at it's *worst* when I was about 15-25 weeks. ONce she lifted, it got a lot better!!

It was a sight, let's just say that!! I would hang upside down on my bed to get her to lift off of it!!!!

I hope to .god I don't have .sciatic problems with this one.

Sarah