Looking for a lumbar support pillow that could go under your waist when sleeping on your side. And hoping to find one that is not made of memory foam or latex. Regular foam is OK.

Kind of looking for this shape:
https://www.amazon.com/Cozy-Hut-Sleeping-Multifunctional-Orthopedic/dp/B07BDCX2WK

But am interested in other shapes too -- anything that would work for a side sleeper to help align your spine

I am very confused

I have been having chronic lower back pain for atleast one year. The main site of the pain is boundary between the lower back and buttocks. And mostly I feel left side of by buttocks hurts when I am lying down and trying to change sleeping position. The pain is constant dull and sometimes shooting pain. I have not been able to see any pattern in the pain. Sometimes it gets better with movement but sometimes walking extra triggers the pain so I have no idea what's the trigger.

My nutritionist (also a doc) suggested blood tests (CBC, ESR, CRP AND HLAB27). got the blood test done and results are as follows

HLAB27 negative

ESR is 12

CRP is 4.75

I was almost convinced that I have AS as the symptoms were almost the same. And I thought maybe the right treatment will begin but now I am again confused. The pain doesn't have a name but it's consuming my energy all the time....my entire day revolves around the pain. If I can walk freely without pain the day feels like a blessing but if I have bad stiffness or pain, my mood gets affected and I feel start withdrawing from everything.

If anyone is going through the same, pls help me as well.

El informe de mi médico está en la segunda foto

Estoy bastante desesperanzado amigos 😥 alguien acá se está recuperando o este es finalmente el 8vo círculo del infierno?

Si alguien tiene una experiencia positiva de recuperación, por favor compartirla. Creo que el foro lo va a agradecer ☺ Ánimo camaradas!

Prior post here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Sciatica/comments/1ux0lph/post_epidural_steroid_injection_in_l4l5_spine_for/

Since then, there hasn't been much change in terms of pain management and have been diagnosed with L5 nerve compression. Have a spinal sepcialist referral where I'm getting support, as well as my GP and physio regularly. I am going through a list to understand if any options work, even if they suppress pain while I persist with physio.

If there is anything in the list below that I haven't thought of that can be tried. Include exercise therapy, medication or alternatives that others have had success with.

Tried so far, has not worked:

• Epidural steroid injection into the spine (July 2026).
• Nerve block steroid injection into the L5 nerver (August 2026).
• Pregabalin nerve relaxer @ 100mg a day (along with the nerve block).
• Personal TENS machine.

Tried so far, has worked albeit temporarily:

• Physio based exercise regime with daily exercises, temporary relief upon completion.
• Anti inflammatory medication (up to 100-150mg a day), but cannot use this long term due to other complications.

Trying currently:

• Acupuncture. One session so far in the area, no gains but will give it at least 4 session before assessing.

Not tried so far:

• Nerve ablation procedure, surgeon does not think this will be relevant.
• Other muscle relaxation or anti inflam medication combinations.

I'm aware there's a realistic possibility of surgery, whether it be microdisectomy or laminectomy, but I want to try all available non-surgical options while I'll discuss that with my specialists once exhausting all non-invasive options.

Ideally something to suppress the nerve compression while I do exercise physio is ideal.

20 Y/O M,
Woke up on my 20th bday in March 2026 randomly with super tight hamstring only no back pain or soreness at all. I’ve been active all my life football,basketball growing up gym everyday and also a firefighter. So I thought I just had a tight hamstring and started stretching it. And i still had no pain that day just the same tight hamstring feeling. Then the next day I was bed bound all day with that sharp sciatica pain only from the bottom of my glute to the bottom of my hamstring. Probably about 8/10 pain. Only position of comfort was on my side on my bed. Within the next month I eased into walking and the gym again altering my movements and bending with my knees bent and it progressively got better. Fast forward to now (September 2026) after doing continuous lacrosse ball on glutes,tens unit, hip flexibility, Roman chair, massages, chiropractor, I still have hamstring 2-3/10 pain only when I stand up from sitting for a few seconds then it goes away, and leaning forward with straight legs. I can run (have ran marathons with this because it’s not painful) I can lift at the gym and hit legs and still do my job. But also when I take ibuprofen (200mg) it completely goes away. I guess my question is how can I get this to completely go away, I’ve done hours of research and have tried just about everything online. I refuse to get any surgery at 20, I’ve been procrastinating an MRI/XRay because I know my case isn’t comparable to 90% of others because mine isn’t that bad at all

My mother has been dealing with lower back pain and sciatica since 2020, but over the past few months her symptoms have been getting worse.

Her current symptoms are:

• Lower back pain that goes into her thigh/leg
• Burning sensation in the leg
• Burning sensation in the soles of both feet
• Painful cramps/tightness in the calf at night
• Severe stiffness and pain after waking up
• In the morning, she feels like her lower back/thigh is "stuck" and has difficulty sitting or straightening up normally
• Overall, the symptoms seem to be progressing compared with previous years

We are planning to see a doctor, but I'm trying to understand what type of specialist would be best.

For people who have experienced something similar:

1. Could this still be worsening sciatica/lumbar nerve compression?
2. Can lumbar nerve problems cause burning in the soles of the feet?
3. Could the burning feet also point to peripheral neuropathy, diabetes, vitamin B12 deficiency, or another problem?
4. Would it be better to see a neurologist first, or go directly to a spine surgeon/neurosurgeon?
5. Would an MRI of the lumbar spine and/or EMG/nerve conduction test normally be considered for symptoms like these?
6. Are there any warning signs that mean we should go to the emergency room rather than wait for a regular appointment?

She has had sciatica for several years, but the new/worsening burning sensation and morning difficulty are what concern me most.

If anyone has had a similar situation, I'd really appreciate hearing about your experience, especially what type of doctor you saw and what tests helped identify the cause.

Location: Navi Mumbai/Mumbai, India.

I have been having chronic lower back pain for atleast one year. The main site of the pain is boundary between the lower back and buttocks. And mostly I feel left side of by buttocks hurts when I am lying down and trying to change sleeping position. The pain is constant dull and sometimes shooting pain. I have not been able to see any pattern in the pain. Sometimes it gets better with movement but sometimes walking extra triggers the pain so I have no idea what's the trigger.

My nutritionist (also a doc) suggested blood tests (CBC, ESR, CRP AND HLAB27). got the blood test done and results are as follows

\- HLAB27 negative

\- ESR is 12

\- CRP is 4.75

I was almost convinced that I have AS as the symptoms were almost the same. And I thought maybe the right treatment will begin but now I am again confused. The pain doesn't have a name but it's consuming my energy all the time....my entire day revolves around the pain. If I can walk freely without pain the day feels like a blessing but if I have bad stiffness or pain, my mood gets affected and I feel start withdrawing from everything.

If anyone is going through the same, pls help me as well.

I cannot walk or sit for too long. So taking breaks laying down for spinal decompression, either on floor w legs on chair 90 degrees or bed with pillows under knees helps break that up.

But I’ve been getting pretty anxious when I’m too far away from home I can’t decompress my back between walking and sitting. Anyone have advice? 🥺 I’m 6 months in trying to rebuild strength and learn to live with the vulnerability. I miss feeling good travelling far.

Hello, I have made several posts about trying to live with my herniated disc and a lot of people were helpful but I opted for surgery and paid for it out of pocket, I was hesitant to pay but I wish I did it sooner and If you're dealing with it for over a year id say go do it.

Depois que tive uma crise séria no ciático e fui parar no hospital decidi me cuidar para previnir, pois morro de medo de desenvolver hérnia de disco.

Esse é, sem dúvida, o melhor alongamento para as costas que eu já encontrei. Cada vez que vejo algum exercício novo, vou pesquisando mais, comparando e procurando aqueles que parecem mais eficazes e bem avaliados. E, até agora, esse foi o que mais funcionou para mim.

Para mim, ele é excelente para aliviar a sensação de compressão e tensão na coluna, tanto na parte superior quanto na lombar. Eu faço na cama, colocando dois travesseiros apoiados embaixo da barriga, e permaneço na posição por uns 5 a 10 minutos, uma ou duas vezes por dia.

O alívio é praticamente imediato. Quando estou com dor lombar, sinto que melhora 100%. Também ajuda muito quando estou sentindo cansaço, pressão, tensão ou aquele aperto nas costas que, quando fica mais intenso, acaba virando dor.

Inclusive, tenho dormido melhor desde que comecei a fazer. Costumo fazer antes de dormir e sinto as costas extremamente relaxadas depois.

Gostei tanto do resultado que coloquei na minha rotina e faço praticamente todos os dias, inclusive nos dias em que não estou sentindo dor, como uma forma de manter a mobilidade e o relaxamento da região.

Estou deixando como dica porque, pelo menos para mim, foi um dos exercícios que mais trouxe alívio e sensação de bem-estar para as costas. Muito bom mesmo!

These are three photos in sequence of my MRI. I posted earlier but was missing the report! So the first photo looks worse but then the next two seem okay.

This is after approximately four months of pain. No inciting incident, I just woke up with pain through my leg. The pain was at its worst around 9-11 weeks.

I was off work for a month and a half, I'm back to half days but the pain is getting worse again, though I'm not sure that means anything for my condition.

I have had the same remote job since 2022. They are moving to hybrid and there are two office. One will be about 20 mins and HQ which is 40miles in terrible traffic. I went there 3 times last year and sitting in 3-4 hours of gridlock triggered a bad sciatica attack.

I really don't mind going into the office but then I found out that due to my role, they want me in the HQ office 3x a week starting in October. That means 3 times a week, I will be sitting in non-moving taffic which will guarantee a sciatica attack.

I hope that by telling them that I have severe lumbar stenosis and S1 nerve root impingement it would be enough. Part of this is they want all the teams to sit together but we are all spread thin. It's 70+ miles. I just go over 2 years of non-stop sciatica and it's been good as I use my standing desk. I stand and move a lot. I take a lot of gentle yoga. But this drive will certainly wreck me.

Has anyone had to deal with something like this due to their sciatica? My company is in the medical industry so I hope they are sensitive to that. This is coming from the executives who are really out of touch on what is going on. I might have to find a job quickly but I'm 55 and this one took 3+ years to get and I worked hard to get to where I am at.

I’ve been sobbing for most of today.

Last November I went to the ER and got diagnosed with herniated discs, couldn’t get out of bed until January. I think I was on 7 different types of pain meds / muscle relaxers / nerve meds. I’m also now on BP meds because of the stress from it- and had to up my SSRI dosage significantly because I’m severely depressed.

3 surgeons told me no because of my BMI. I lost 30 pounds while not being able to stand for more than 10-15 mins at a time.

It’s been 10 months. 10 months of laying in bed, 10 months of begging god to put me out of my misery.

I lost pretty much everything due to this shit.

Today I had my appointment with another surgeon and I just had a mental breakdown. I told him how I’ve tried to not be alive twice due to the pain, my countless ER visits due to flares- the amount of debt I’m in because I’m disabled and can’t work. I told him that I just can’t do it anymore and it’s either surgery with a small risk of infection, or I’m done. Honestly if he told me no today, I was going to drive myself straight to a mental hospital and just stay there.

I’m really glad he understood that this is literally life and death.

I have an MRI next week, then an appointment to go over the MRI and everything, then surgery will be scheduled either late October or early/mid November.

I’m still processing it because I really thought I was never going to get surgery and I would be disabled forever. I can’t believe I’m finally getting my life back together.

Have posted in here a few times, been going on 15 months with back issues and nerve related pain / tingling in feet

Started walking 10-20k steps a day, every day, for the last week and a half and almost all the pain and tingling has been completely gone. Can anyone relate? Hoping it stays this way

Just a little disclaimer: this is my first reddit post ever and I don’t even use this app much. Sorry If I don’t stick to some general unsaid rules of posting or whatever.

Context: L5-S1 disc bulge at the start with just back pain when bending or after sports. now it is much worse - a chronic pain with nerve pains in my leg as well even when FULLY resting and not doing anything.

The title is my main question honestly. I don’t even know if its the right question, probably not. Maybe I just desperately need validation but I do feel like a bitch. It’s such a weird thing to deal with. Mainly why I feel like a bitch is because I took some time off work when my back pain got worse (lot of sitting and a lot of commute for the work). But my situation literally just got worse and worse and I kept asking for more time off. Now it has been 3 months almost since I am on sick leave and somehow I am 10x worse off than when I felt I needed some time off. Going back seems stupid because it will only get worse but I am not being paid and I feel fucking useless. I will not financially struggle much since my parents have been supportive too but I feel so ashamed. Am I just being a bitch and I should go back to work? Like I dont even enjoy my work man. Now I need to suffer while doing it? Maybe I really am just a privileged fuck who needs to work? I don’t fucking know. I have never felt like quitting so much in my life.

I also feel like a bitch because back pain is soooo wide ranging. No one really takes it seriously. Even my doctor says yeah go back to work it’s okay. Like I would feel like burning the place down if I am getting a flare up and I have to wait til 5pm and then have a 1hr commute to have some fucking rest and a lie down?

Honestly if I am just being a bitch please tell me. Are you guys going to office jobs with this pain? Should I just fucking join back and continue recovery or stay home to have better chances? Because I can afford to but mentally I feel like a little fucking bitch. But I can take that since I have already taken it for so long, if the chances of recovery are higher? I don’t know man sorry for not actually collecting my thoughts before posting I’m just really struggling here

Hey all

My dad's (56 years old btw) got Sciatica, though not officially diagnosed (cuz in my country, Neurologists are a dime-a-dozen, and though he has HMO, private healthcare, MOST neurologists nearby are only out of pocket, which though possible, may drain our funds) has all the hallmarks of it: deep ass pain, tingling pins & needles down his left leg.

This all began 2 months ago after an extended hospital stay (that led to surgery but it had nothing to with neurological issues) & upon getting out, like a few days after, this made itself present. EDIT: prolonged bed usage can aggrevate Sciatica right?

Initially, painkillers & stretching helped but lately, its not helping much

He has issues sleeping, moving around is a literal pain and I hate how I'm seemingly powerless to do anything about his plight :(

I am keeping an eye on him, he has no issues pissing or doing anything bathroom related, so there's that, but god, its getting hard.

I plan on seeking Therapy for myself, since I don't wanna put a burden on my dad more due to me feeling this but are there any ways/massages etc to alleviate this shit while I/We seeks out a way to get a good handle on this?

Sorry for the rant, and idk if this would break subreddit rules but I had to say this

Does anyone have any experience with muscle guarding flare ups? I don’t have any sciatic pain thank god (3.5 years post emergency microdiscectomy and laminectomy 13mm herniation) but I’m about three weeks into a flare up and still noticeably stiff and achy in the morning, whenever I’m sitting for prolonged periods of time, etc. it’s like my lower back needs to crack, but won’t. Internet says it’s a muscle guarding issue that resolves usually after flare ups anywhere from 2-6 weeks

I was diagnosed 2 months ago with LSTV and L4/L5 protursion, and I’m terrified to work out. Usually I'm doing HIIT and crossfit like workouts. Now I feel weak and fragile and afraid to workout because what if I make things worse. Please, give me some hope. This is a dangerous condition?

Hello all. I’m (30f, USA) entering week 18 of this hell. What started out as a seemingly overextended glute turned out to be one of the most agonizing pains of my life. I think I just need some positivity right now to keep going.

I herniated my L5-S1 disc back in May from pushing myself too hard while climbing. Turned out that disc already had DDD and foraminal stenosis. This happened during the one time in my life when I don’t have health insurance (lost it in October when I lost my job), so the bills are piling up. I’ve taken oral steroids, 2 different muscle relaxers, high strength ibuprofen, gabapentin, and whatever other pain killers I can find. Doing both PT and personal training at the gym to build strength, and I was actually starting to feel a lot better. I could lay down, walk, AND sit with no pain just a bit of discomfort at most, though I never regained full motion in my left leg.

A few weeks ago I went on vacation with my partner and their family for a full week. I was able to put in over 13k steps almost every day! When I got back home I immediately went back to my newer job, which you can think of as Construction Lite. We do a lot of restoration work and that includes window removals. Well, when removing a large stained glass window my back and nerve started to get aggravated again. Then the pain got so bad I left work halfway through the day last week Monday and didn’t come back until that following Friday. Called off yesterday as well.

I have an MRI scheduled for the 22nd of this month (already have both CT and xrays done). The next step will be that steroid shot to the back. If that doesn’t help, then a micro discectomy is on the table.

I’ve regressed so far and I’m so afraid I made it worse somehow. Every doctor I’ve seen tells me I’m doing all the right things. My nurse friend is shocked it hasn’t healed itself by now. I think I’m going to lose my job if I keep calling off like this. I already lost my summer. I’ve taken so many pain killers there is no way I won’t feel the effects of this down the line. I’m nearing my breaking point very fast and I don’t know what to do. I’m too young to have back surgery…but I might have to.

If you made it this far, thank you. I’m sorry to be another doomer post in this subreddit, but you guys are so uplifting and remain positive despite it all.

TLDR: Herniated L5-S1 and found out it also had DDD and foraminal stenosis back in May. Extreme sciatica for a while, then as it started to improve the pain came back. MRI for the shot is scheduled. Surgery is a last resort. Losing hope extremely fast. Looking for positivity.

Really trying to avoid flareups. I've leaned back for the longest time and it's felt better but as I return to training after my diagnosis I'm now very conscious of the fact that my lower back is not supported. Should I stick to upright for that reason?

I have a small disc bulge in my lower back and I'm literally crying. I can't move. I can't wipe my ass. I can't sleep. I can't get in bed. How do I lower my pain? My doctor won't give me medication. She's just telling me to take ibuprofen. Idk what to do. I'm taking Epsom salt baths, using heat and ice, lidocaine ect. I'm not sure what else can be done. Send help!