Sciatica

[85genius]

Just had a proper nightmare 12 hours totally unable to move, absolute agony, sat in a&e for 4 hours, codeine, diazepam then finally morphine. Now I'm back home at least and feeling slightly better although still unable to walk, but it's got me worried.....

Am I going to be able to keep the zed? I absolutely love the car but thinking maybe it could have been part of why I had this issue basically sat on the floor with hard suspension and also the way it wants to be driven with harder cornering and breaking forces than could be healthy?

So the question is anyone else suffer back problems, and how do you make it work with a sportscar?

 

[ranski]

I prolapsed 2 C4 discs some 6 years ago, leaving me with 24 hour toothache like pain down my left arm. The only think that got me moving again and without pain was regular exercise and mobility. The drugs dont work, well certainly in the mid to longterm.

 

[gov]

My sciatica lasted 8 months doc gave me various painkillers that made me ill and didn't make a fart's worth of difference to the pain - had to wait 6 months for a MRI scan - finally saw a surgeon/consultant who explained what was happening to my spine and told me he would operate - within 3 weeks my back began to get better on it's own this was 3 years ago and touch wood I've had no re occurrence - apparently almost 90% of back problems right themselves over time - surgery is seen as a last resort - believe me though for 8 months it was agony - especially at night - the only relief I got was sitting down normally - I took no medication but just refused to let it control my life - I did everything as normal despite the pain - a physio said once my pain threshold is abnormally high - carried on driving although getting in and out took a little time !

 

[SonnyA85]

you want to go see a well recommended chiropractor. you may think it's baloney but you should see some youtube videos for proof of the miracles they can work.

you also want to look into proper posture as well as yoga and stretching. the amount of people i know that have cured back issues with yoga is numerous. go to a class taught by a professional. my wifes teacher goes to india, thailand, bhuddist regions every year to learn yoga and massage. her classes and massages are dear but they are the best in the country i imagine. i've had massages in various countries around the world and this was still better.

it's not the car it's just bad posture, incorrect movements, bad mobility and flexibility.

 

[SonnyA85]

I prolapsed 2 C4 discs some 6 years ago, leaving me with 24 hour toothache like pain down my left arm. The only think that got me moving again and without pain was regular exercise and mobility. The drugs dont work, well certainly in the mid to longterm.

have you ever seen a decent chiropractor? it may take several attempts to find a good one but they are worth it.

 

[85genius]

you want to go see a well recommended chiropractor. you may think it's baloney but you should see some youtube videos for proof of the miracles they can work.

you also want to look into proper posture as well as yoga and stretching. the amount of people i know that have cured back issues with yoga is numerous. go to a class taught by a professional. my wifes teacher goes to india, thailand, bhuddist regions every year to learn yoga and massage. her classes and massages are dear but they are the best in the country i imagine. i've had massages in various countries around the world and this was still better.

it's not the car it's just bad posture, incorrect movements, bad mobility and flexibility.

Cheers, actually already booked in with a chiropractor for a consultation on Friday (assuming I'm mobile enough to get over there by then) was recommended them by a neighbour who said they worked wonders for him.

Will look into the yoga too I know there's classes at the gym I go to but not something I ever gave a second thought!

 

[SonnyA85]

you want to go see a well recommended chiropractor. you may think it's baloney but you should see some youtube videos for proof of the miracles they can work.

you also want to look into proper posture as well as yoga and stretching. the amount of people i know that have cured back issues with yoga is numerous. go to a class taught by a professional. my wifes teacher goes to india, thailand, bhuddist regions every year to learn yoga and massage. her classes and massages are dear but they are the best in the country i imagine. i've had massages in various countries around the world and this was still better.

it's not the car it's just bad posture, incorrect movements, bad mobility and flexibility.

Cheers, actually already booked in with a chiropractor for a consultation on Friday (assuming I'm mobile enough to get over there by then) was recommended them by a neighbour who said they worked wonders for him.

Will look into the yoga too I know there's classes at the gym I go to but not something I ever gave a second thought!

it's generally overlooked by red blooded males. yoga is one of the best things for blood pressure, posture, movement and flexibility.

a simple yoga breathing technique can take you from a high blood pressure danger zone into healthy and normal within a couple of minutes.

you may get some flack for going but it's 100% worth researching and looking into. make sure it's a legit class. there are different levels for beginners. it takes years to get to the level everyone should be at. my wife has been going for 2-3 years now and has only just moved out the beginner class.

she makes me do stuff she has learned from her classes when my back is giving me some issues. it's all about time and practice. breathing correctly is important too. just take your time and do it properly it's no quick fix and patience is key.

 

[Silverzedtom]

My girlfriend suffers from a degenerative disc somewhere in her lower back. she went for an x ray and that showed up all ok, then an MRI and that showed the problem. It looks like a really dark disc in comparison to the others on the image. unfortunatley she was told they can only prescribe pain relief unless the pain gets worse or she starts experiencing sciatica and that then surgery is an option. The pain has got worse and she is getting bad pain in her legs now.

After an appointment at the doctors she's waiting for physio who can then get the ball rolling if there's no luck with that. I think that surgery will be the only way for her as nothing has helped so far. Tramadol, codeine and loads of others don't touch it. Not the life for a 22 year old, especially as she is a self employed beauty therapist who earns a living stood up straining all day.

Any substantial car journey has her wincing but she prefers the support the seats (sports seats in mine) offer compared with other cars. I normally help her get in though. Hopefully the same can be said for you once your back on your feet.

Good luck with the recovery and hope it can be sorted quickly and easily

 

[shawna]

I had what i thought was the Sciatic nerve and it was in fact a pulled Piriformis muscle.

Could not even walk or stand up. Maybe it was torn not just pulled as i took a week to bend or do anything and then the pain subsided after weeks and some visits to the physio.

http://www.spine-health.com/conditions/sciatica/what-piriformis-syndrome

 

[SonnyA85]

My girlfriend suffers from a degenerative disc somewhere in her lower back. she went for an x ray and that showed up all ok, then an MRI and that showed the problem. It looks like a really dark disc in comparison to the others on the image. unfortunatley she was told they can only prescribe pain relief unless the pain gets worse or she starts experiencing sciatica and that then surgery is an option. The pain has got worse and she is getting bad pain in her legs now.

After an appointment at the doctors she's waiting for physio who can then get the ball rolling if there's no luck with that. I think that surgery will be the only way for her as nothing has helped so far. Tramadol, codeine and loads of others don't touch it. Not the life for a 22 year old, especially as she is a self employed beauty therapist who earns a living stood up straining all day.

Any substantial car journey has her wincing but she prefers the support the seats (sports seats in mine) offer compared with other cars. I normally help her get in though. Hopefully the same can be said for you once your back on your feet.

Good luck with the recovery and hope it can be sorted quickly and easily

i've seen physios in the past and tbh the advice they gave me for my knee was terrible. they said i should also use insoles since i have relatively flat feet.

all that does is mask the issue not fix it. i researched more into it and they say the best way to fix being flat footed is to wear shoes with no arch and that are as flat as possible. that way your foot should naturally build an arch and keep the arch muscles strong. by having an arch built into the shoe or an insole there is no need for the foot to build those muscles and it will then rely on insoles forever. my physio however recommended the exact opposite advice and that i should stay away from shoes with flat soles like converse.

if you look at what bodybuilders use for weight lifting. it's flat shoes. which is what made my mind up that the physio was going off wrong outdated information.

it's much like a lot of the nutritionists out there too. advocating all fat is bad. especially saturated fat. when saturated fat is actually a good fat. now the world is pushing rapeseed oil as healthy because it has less saturated fat. it's a terrible oil to use and in fact the best one to use has very high saturated fats; coconut oil.

i'd take everything doctors say with a pinch of salt. do your own research. as with all vocations there are good people and bad people. good doctors and bad doctors. good physios and bad physios. good nutritionists and some really awful ones.

 

[gannet]

do you cycle?

I had a mild bout of sciatica recently which I thought was caused by car seats etc - any long car journey became uncomfortable. Doctor said to go find a chiropractor, but on a whim I took a trip to my local bike shop and explained the symptoms - they nodded and gave me some pointers and measured a couple of things and hey presto problem found & resolved - tweaks to cycle position and a new saddle is all it took...

just a thought

 

[Tabz123]

Hi

I have suffered from siatica since Sep 2016. Mine was brought on by a slipped disc in L4/L5. I have tried all the meds possible from ibruprophen to Tremadol. I still insisted on buying my Z as I did not want the back issue to prevent me from enjoying my drives.

I recently have made huge amounts of progress. Primarily through joining a specialist rehab gym that is helping me push through the pain and build up my core and back muscles. I also foam roll my glutes and lega like mad. Almost look like an otter on crack rolling a bark back and forward!

Finally I have put the meds to rest and now take a strain of cannibis oil from Hollands and Barretts.

Obv I still shimmy out of the low ride position but for now I dont mind. Hope you feel better soon buddy! Back problems are well back breaking!!!!

 

[85genius]

I'm slightly better now can stand up and walk on my own now which I couldn't do earlier this week! I've not tried driving yet but pretty sure I could do right now if I need to. Hopefully should be good enough tomorrow morning to drive to the chiropractor. Hopefully he'll be able to diagnose further as all I could get from the NHS doctor was pain meds and no real attempt at diagnosis

 

[Ewazix]

I'm slightly better now can stand up and walk on my own now which I couldn't do earlier this week! I've not tried driving yet but pretty sure I could do right now if I need to. Hopefully should be good enough tomorrow morning to drive to the chiropractor. Hopefully he'll be able to diagnose further as all I could get from the NHS doctor was pain meds and no real attempt at diagnosis

Good luck mate, I feel your pain 10 weeks in to a rehab programme and sometimes reduced to zombie status by the med's, it's no fun hopefully they can find out what's actually going on for you

 

[ronk]

My mobility ain't going to improve - but do like the looks and often derogatory comments when I park the Z in a limping bay - then get to the boot for my stick!

 

[MACK]

You need to push for a scan to get to the bottom of it. Alot of prolapsed discs etc (assuming thats whats causing it) right themselves inside 10-12 weeks beyond that and it usually needs surgery. Really car wise most aren't great for your back if your knees are higher than your hips which means if you did come out of the zed your really looking at a SUV type vehicle. I wouldn't make a knee jerk decision just wait for a proper diagnosis. I've had two back surgeries myself and am perfectly fine these days in a sports car. The cars I had weren't the root cause of my issues although at the time I was thinking like you that I may not be able to have these types of cars going forward.

 

[85genius]

Thanks for all the replies guys!

I've definitely made a vast improvement over where I was when I made the first post, especially after a few sessions with a chiropractor. When I first went to see him he diagnosed it (as he best could he thought a 95% certainty) that it was a tear in one of my lower discs and did state he thought he'd have to write to my gp for an mri scan. As it has improved over the course of the last 10 days he's now convinced of his diagnosis and has been impressed with how quickly it's improved and now doesn't think the scan will be necessary unless it gets worse again.

I'm still not right far from it and am getting pain if I sit or stand in the same position for too long but I can actually get in and out of my car without holding the roof or door, and I've been back at work this week. It's a desk job so not physically taxing but still difficult enough due to the sitting

 

[Kingfisher]

I had three MRI scans to determine arthritis at the bottom of my spine pinching the nerve, not helped by the surgeon damaging my sciatic nerve when I had a new hip ... sold my Lotus Elise which you need to be a contortionist to get in and out of and p/exed it for the Z4, which is manageable and a darned sight more comfy!

 

[DMC63]

Just had a proper nightmare 12 hours totally unable to move, absolute agony, sat in a&e for 4 hours, codeine, diazepam then finally morphine. Now I'm back home at least and feeling slightly better although still unable to walk, but it's got me worried.....

Am I going to be able to keep the zed? I absolutely love the car but thinking maybe it could have been part of why I had this issue basically sat on the floor with hard suspension and also the way it wants to be driven with harder cornering and breaking forces than could be healthy?

So the question is anyone else suffer back problems, and how do you make it work with a sportscar?

Sorry to hear about your pain.
Desk-jobs and back problems go hand in hand. Especially if you've sat at one for years at a time
Most of the time the person is outta shape, weak abs and core as well as back muscles. No support to the skeletal mechanics and 'pop goes the weasel'. When you're better, unless you already do so, I'd suggest 'gently' getting on with developing your overall strength and core.
A prevention based exercise regime that takes into account your injury and current state of physical health, wherever that may be.
Good luck and a speedy recovery.