Went to the doc yesterday who confirmed my festive Google diagnosis of sciatica, and more importantly ruled out any of the apparently more unpleasant alternatives.

Advice was to try and keep moving, do the NHS stretches, paracetamol or ibuprofen every 4 hours and settle in for a few weeks of pain.

Any other tips for helping? It’s night time that’s the worst – I get about 4 hours sleep before my leg completely cramps up and I can’t get comfy to get back off to sleep. Been awake since about 4.30 this morning, now limping around downstairs to avoid disturbing the wife.

Due to see my physio for a shoulder problem next week, anything they might be able to do?

Been off work on leave while I’ve had it, back to work next week is looking even less fun now

I’ve seen a osteopath in the past that releaved symptoms for a while but not permanently, after that just keep moving.

Get a fit ball/gym ball/Swiss ball and go see a physiotherapist and ask them to suggest a few exercises and stretches to strengthen your core. Do these daily, after a few short weeks your sciatica will be much better.

Then, learn what positions cause/d the condition. Avoid doing those.

Keep doing the fit ball stuff every morning.

In a few months you’ll have a washboard stomach*

* unless you like beer/booze/pizzas etc.

You can thank me in a few months

I’ve had it.

I don’t have it.

Heat spray, hot baths, keeping moving all help while at the worst ouchy stage, with your fave painkiller. Then once you can move a little bit, unstable planks, either on TRX or gym ball help loads, as does a bike ride round the woods, it’s all those little corrections you make to keep balance that help my core, especially on the bike since biking is fun and nobody regrets a bike ride once you turn the first pedal.

Edit, they seem a lomg way away, but pull ups.

As they say keep moving and avoiding sitting down. Either stand or lie. I have had it bad in the past with two disc prolapses. No surgery, just a good physio and worked hard at Pilates etc. Now get it very rarely. It will improve – DEFINITELY see your physio about it.

My lower back went big time in 2008, including sciatica, initially had three weeks off work and couldn’t hobble more than ~50 metres up the road before the agony was too much.

Took dichlophenac prescription for ~12 months to mask the worst of the chronic pain, took ~6 months for NHS physio referral to come through, became extremely dependant on Homedics shiatsu massage machine on my pc chair to get me through many days.

In hindsight, I should have tried to stay more active generally and done far more frequent core exercises in that first year or so.

It was only in 2017 when I started cycling for fitness rather than relatively pootling to work/shops that my back improved a lot, around the time I randomly tried doing the “two minute plank challenge.”

Suddenly, I went from typically running the Homedics machine easily 6+ times a day to using it less than 6 times a year… For a vast majority of the time, I’m now completely pain free!

However, it does flare up from time to time, the last episode being around last September and I had to take a few days off work. Tends to be if I’m coming down with a lurgy, as I’m quite careful these days about lifting things.

My old pc chair died around September and the IKEA dining chair does not suit me very well, recently bought an exercise mat for my turbo and this rolled up works wonders on that chair!

I think the key thing is regular routine of core exercises once an initial trigger event has settled a bit… And keep moving, go for short walks around the block every hour or so.

Flexible cold pack on the site of the pain for 10 minutes every hour. NB Wrap cold pack in tea towel (clean) to avoid frost nip.

Other than that move regularly, stretch and do core work. Acupuncture can also give some (very) short term relief.

Some interesting experiences – I’ve had back and hip problems before,thought I was mobile enough round there but obviously not! Sitting at work next week will be an issue I fear.

Dream of riding a bike – had an experimental pedal the other day but my calf is where the pain is focused mostly, it wasn’t fun. Plus riding clipless with a numb foot was entertaining, no idea what my foot was doing!

Was off the bike June-September last year after a crash, then only just pootling the rest of the year. Was going to use this Christmas break to get back into it more seriously again, and the first day of the holiday the sciatica started. Bugger, bugger, bugger.

Ex sufferer here, I got it from poor posture in a desk job so fixed that. Then stretches, lay on back, raise knees, move knees sideways together. Keep going…

Now it’s pilates all the way, wish I d known years ago. No reoccurance at all, just keeping active and mixing up gym, pool, classes.

Good luck, I was in agony.

Non surgical spinal decompression therapy. Not tried personaly or reaserched it much but from the little Ive seen it sounds like worth a look.
Edit. Nubax trio looks useful

My climbing and walking buddy suffered terribly after a young life playing rugby. He ended up having a spine operation after which he got into doing a daily routine of back strengthening exercises. He doesn’t suffer from sciatica now.

My advice would be find a physio who will work on the cause, imo sciatica is a symptom of an issue elsewhere not something that can be treated with paracetamol and rest. Something is pushing on the nerve and most likely a tight or inflamed area in your lower back, or in my case glutes.

One £45 session with a sports physio and a £2.99 massage ball with a wee bit of knowledge of trigger points and I only have flare-ups after a few big days in the hills now.

Sitting at work next week will be an issue I fear.

Ask work whether they have sit stand desk somewhere you can use. Alternatively put your computer onto some boxes. When mine was bad, I made a temporary set up on an ironing board! If your physio thinks this is a problem; work will have to make adjustments for you. I now have sit stand desks at home and work (and having said mine isn’t bad, my back is sore walking into the office today 🙄 – standing desk mode it is!).

My partner has had lower back issues for about a 18 months caused by a bulging disc. Sciatica was one of the symptoms.

She’s spent about a year on various drugs, some turned her into a zombie, some didn’t touch the pain. She’s been to the Chiropractor, Osteopath, Physio, none of which helped. She had to fight to get referrals to all of these. We only found out about the bulging disc after she finally got an MRI (6 month wait).
She was then referred to a specialist & was told that appointment would be sometime between 6 weeks & 12 months…
We decided to go private to see a specialist, we ended up having 3 appointments each costing £250.00, & the specialist suggested that if that was them, they would be afraid to sneeze as it was so bad. She then booked an operation (£7,500!).

Fortunately due to a chance conversation one of her Personal Trainer friends had with another trainer she suggested going along for a chat.
The PT asked to give her a year, she gave her some very basic mobility exercises to begin engaging & strengthening the core & back muscles. Along with banning most forms of exercise bar walking & swimming (not forever, just while she repairs her back). After a couple of weeks of those she was drug free (still in pain, but considerably reduced), she’s now a couple of weeks into the gym program & almost pain free.

So we’re hoping that in time she will be stronger & completely healed without any surgery.

Cortisone injected into the spine here.

Relives the pain, reduces inflammation and gives you the space to start doing the various core and back exercises that cure the issue longer term.

My lower abs are still weaker than I’d like, but I don’t get the sciatica any more.

Once your acute spell subsides, I’d suggest following the various advice above about getting more active, start some weight training if you don’t do any yet, stretching etc.

It’s not something you just cure, more likely needs lifestyle changes to ward against future instances.