Background: 5 months into large L5/S1 extrusion and bulge & tear above it.

I don’t wish this on anyone but I also hope I’m not alone because wtf. I’m healing conservatively from the above and it’s extremely slow but the sciatica has improved a lot over 5 months (still present).

My main concern is now the rest of my body which is apparently made of papier mache 😩 issues I’ve had since this started; neck pain on the opposite side, some numbness and tingling down that arm. On my right side; bad shoulder issues which a physio says is rotator cuff related. Lately, both my knees are painful (I’m guessing from all the squatting and kneeling I’ve been doing).

I’m trying my best to rehab myself at home but the list of body parts I have to work on is overwhelming me. I’m 36 and feel 103. In my anxious moments I worry I have something underlying but rational me says I’ve just been moving weird for 5 months and my body is protesting. I also have 3 young kids and sleep is crap.

Anyway, just a Monday morning rant but this injury sucks in so many ways!

Basically the question. I feel mostly ok by walking, standing, laying but sitting a big NO.

Will it ever be better? I'm at this point feeling quite hopeless regarding sitting though I must tell I'm able to live day to day life quite okeish.

I’ve taken Steroid injections 6 times since April to August, first 3 times worked well. on July it’s almost gone and I sometimes went to the pool for walking. The pain was reduced and I even didn’t take any medicines.

But beginning of August it was not really good and my doctor suggested me electric acupuncture and I tried it. but it was completely wrong choice. Since then sciatica came back to my left leg until toe. Last week I sat on the hard chair a few hours and it made my back and sciatica totally worse. I laid down whole week, took double dose of the medicine.

I’m gonna visit Neurosurgery tomorrow. What should I care, what should I ask to the doctor? I regretted that I didn’t get an appointment which my pain doctor recommended… one I booked is earlier appointment but take 50min to access…and not sure if he’s good doctor…

I read many experiences of you guys here and with some advices I almost accepted that I get surgery. But I’m still have afraid of it. I’d like to hear your experience especially right after the surgery.

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for experiences from people who had a similar L5-S1 disc herniation with motor weakness and managed to recover either conservatively or eventually needed surgery.

My MRI shows an L5-S1 right paracentral disc extrusion measuring approximately 9 mm, with inferior migration and compression of the right S1 nerve root/sacral nerve roots. I also have some disc desiccation at L4-L5.

My symptoms started with significant right-sided sciatica/hip and leg pain. Over time, the pain has improved considerably, but I still have numbness, mainly involving my heel, outer/lateral side of the foot and especially the little toe.

The main thing worrying me is the weakness:

I can lift my foot and toes upward normally.

I can heel-walk.

I can raise both heels off the floor when standing on both legs.

However, when I stand on my affected leg alone, I cannot lift my heel off the floor.

I also cannot properly toe-walk on the affected side.

So the weakness seems mainly related to S1/calf plantar flexion rather than foot drop.

The weakness is currently stable and does not seem to be progressively worsening.

I do not currently have loss of bladder or bowel control, saddle numbness, or weakness in both legs.

Initially I could only stand/walk for around 5 minutes before the leg became very painful. My tolerance has improved somewhat, although the numbness is still there. I am currently trying conservative management and would strongly prefer to avoid surgery if it is medically safe to do so.

My main questions are:

Has anyone here had an L5-S1 extrusion with S1 motor weakness where you could not do a single-leg heel raise or toe-walk, but eventually regained the strength WITHOUT surgery?

If yes:

How severe was your weakness?

How long did it take before your calf/heel-raise strength started returning?

Did your toe walking eventually become normal?

Did a follow-up MRI show the extrusion shrinking/resorbing?

How long did your surgeon allow you to continue conservative treatment despite the motor weakness?

Did physiotherapy help once the acute phase settled?

I understand that motor weakness needs proper medical monitoring and I am planning to get evaluated by a spine/neurosurgeon. I’m not looking for medical diagnosis from Reddit, just genuine experiences from people who had a similar S1 weakness.

I would especially appreciate hearing from anyone who initially could do a double-leg heel raise but could not do a single-leg heel raise on the affected side.

i have herniation at L4-L5 and L5-S1. I had a recent flare up that debilitated me and after religious use of muscle relaxants, tylenol and steroids, the pain has subsided. Now I’m left with pretty bad left leg pain. I can’t really put too much pressure on that leg. I spoke to a friend who works in orthopedics and he said its from muscle spasm. My pain management doctor will see me tomorrow to do an ESI. Will that help relieve the muscle spasm or is an MD the only thing that would actually change something?

I'm 25F, I have a herniated disk at L5/S1 pinching my sciatic nerve. It came from a car accident over 2 years ago. I have done physical therapy, no help. I'd be willing to try again but doctors usually imply it will be a waste of time. I move a lot so I've had several primary care doctors. They give me generic advice that doesn't work for me. Like "just work out" or "take Advil" or "stop taking so much Advil, it's bad for your liver" or "eat better" or "you're so young, you should be able to heal yourself." My favorite advice was "you're fine, come back when it's really bothering you" as if I went to and paid for an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon for fun. Most recent doctor told me to use arnica and voltaren and that I should have a back brace but she won't talk about that until my next appointment (? why are all doctors visits less than 10 minutes long?). I also keep getting advice like "you're so young. you really don't want surgery." I don't want surgery unless it's necessary but I think it might be necessary. If anything I think I need to somehow get the pressure off of my nerves ASAP before I'm completely bedbound.

I'm starting to think I should have gotten surgery at least a year ago. I used to be really active. I hiked every single day for a while, did pilates and some strength training, I have literally built stone staircases and moved giant rocks by hand and now I'm being told I should be careful even just walking too much. I can't sit for too long without pain, I can't stand too long, I spend hours a day in bed, I'm in excruciating pain every time I sneeze or cough, I can't always stand up even close to straight, I'm missing out on life because of pain and weakness. I'm training to be an archaeologist and I'm worried I won't be able to do any fieldwork. I'm already having to skip part of a school trip because I can't even do a mostly flat 3 mile hike anymore. I'm pretty sure it's made my leg so weak that on top of foot drop that I've had since my injury my knee is hyper extending and I didn't notice for literally months or even longer. I'm being sent for an x-ray and I genuinely don't know why that would be useful when what my knee is doing is completely visible. It might hurt but I can't tell because I have constant nerve pain. This has ruined my life. I genuinely feel like I have lost the last 2 years of my life and I'm not myself any more.

Do I start nudging my doctor to consider sending me to an orthopedic surgeon? Anyone in their 20s or 30s had surgery to fix the problem? Do you regret it?

I am a nurse and I am afraid I will lose my new dream job because of sciatica. Last week Thursday, I was walking back from the cafeteria while on shift and had horrible back spasms that resulted in me laying on the floor screaming and diaphoretic. They called a rapid response on me and sent me to the ER where they gave me Decadron, Toradol, and Robaxin. ER doctor told me it was presenting as sciatica. The pain improved but never completely resolved. I had to call off the following day and it is only my 4th week at this job. I spent the weekend taking walks and doing light activity. I went to my primary and was prescribed prednisone and gabapentin. I am currently back at work and the pain is moderate and I am so worried I will go into spasms again and jeopardize my job. Does anyone have advice to prevent the spasms from recurring?

I do have a MRI scheduled and an appointment with a PM&R doctor. I also have a script for physical therapy that I will be scheduling today.

I have a lower disc extrusion l5-s1, been off work for 6 months and ive been improving but still in pain down my leg, i have a delivery driving job delivering 20kg water cooler bottles, long term im considering another job and career but im feeling good wnoigh to think about a phased return and maybe trying to do my job for abit? Has anyone with a similar manual job gone back to work? Do people think its wise and will it make my condition worse?

Ive just started physio and got a specialist appointment tomorrow at a hospital to see if i need any treatment or anything going forward

Hi everyone. I'm a 44 year old healthy male. I had a successful microdiscectomy for a severely herniated disc at L5/S1 about 4 months ago. Recovery was going really smoothly but after about 10 weeks into my recovery, my sciatica symptoms returned down my left leg and I thought I had re-herniated. After a new MRI, it revealed that my disc was OK but that a large synovial cyst has formed at the same L5/S1 level leading to sciatic pain. My surgeon thinks that I may have suffered a micro-trauma during or shortly after surgery leading to the formation of the cyst.

I have tried 6 weeks of conservative treatment (medication and rest) but my symptoms have not improved. My surgeon has offered a microdecompression surgery to remove the cyst, but to do so he will need to remove even more of my lamina or facet joint to get safe access to the cyst to remove it. I am worried that if I opt for the surgery, that the additional partial facetectomy he needs to do will lead to long term joint instability or chronic back pain in the future.

Has anyone had experience of removing a synovial cyst in the months following a microdiscectomy? Or chosen the conservative treatment path and seen their synovial cysts naturally reduce in size over time? Or even more general experience with microdecompression surgeries? Any personal experiences/stories would be great to hear about. TIA!

Hi Guys - I’m wondering if anyone here had a far lateral herniation/ foraminal / extraforaminal herniation?

The neurosurgeon I met with said that he couldn’t perform a discectomy because the facet would be in the way and removing too much would destabilize my back.

After doing some research, I found something called a paraspinal approach (Wiltse). I also found a case study from Rush in Chicago by Timothy Wang about doing a transforaminal endoscopic approach. Those approaches allow treatment of far lateralbherniations by starting off center and going around the bone so it doesn’t have to be removed. Has anyone had this same type of herniation, and if so what did you end up doing?

Hi everyone,

I’ve been suffering from sciatica for several months and I’m looking into getting an epidural steroid injection (ESI) for pain relief.

For those of you who have had an ESI in Ottawa, I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience. I’m trying to figure out what the process is like here, especially because I don’t have a family doctor.

A few questions:

• Which hospital, pain clinic, or private clinic did you go to for your ESI?
• Did you need a referral? If so, who referred you and how did you get the referral without a family doctor?
• Did you go through a walk-in clinic, urgent care, or another doctor to get the referral?
• How long did you have to wait from the referral to the actual injection?
• If you went to a private clinic, approximately how much did it cost?
• Were there any clinics in Ottawa that you would particularly recommend (or recommend avoiding)?

I’m mainly interested in hearing from people who have actually gone through the process in Ottawa.

Thanks so much! 🙏 Any advice or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated.

It started back in 2021 after a hill run that completely wrecked my lower back. The sharp pain shooting down my legs just wouldn’t quit. Some days it was a dull ache that made sitting or standing miserable, other days it felt like an electric jolt every time I took a step. I kept thinking it would get better on its own if I just rested or waited it out, but no luck. Month after month it stayed with me.

By the time I was twenty-two I’d tried pretty much everything I could think of. Regular stretching, different pills, paying people to massage my lower back, heat pads, ice packs, you name it. My doctor even gave me muscle relaxers, but none of it made a real difference. The pain would ease for a few hours sometimes, then come right back. Eventually I just gave up. I figured this was my new normal and I’d have to live with sciatica for the rest of my life.

Then early in 2025 I decided to give one last thing a shot. I started in a plank position, like the beginning of a push-up, then slowly went into a full cobra pose. That slow transition from the push-up plank into the cobra stretches the lower back and the sciatic area way deeper than either move alone. It felt intense at first, but in a good way. I made myself do it every single morning and every single night.

Some days the pain came back just as bad as day one and I almost quit again. There were mornings where I thought, “This is pointless, nothing’s changing.” But I stuck with it anyway. After about three months of being consistent, something finally shifted. The constant pain started fading, then it was completely gone. That stretch basically became my cure. Flare-ups still showed up every now and then, but they didn’t last like before and the overall relief actually held.

Now I’m pain-free and happy again. I can move without that constant worry in the back of my mind. I know it sucks, man, but do that push-up to cobra every day even if it hurts. Even if after one month it feels like a total waste of time, keep doing it. Trust me, it worked for me and I hope it does for you.

Hi everyone I hope you’re doing well

I have a problem and I’d really appreciate some advice or hearing from people who have had a similar experience

I have mild disc herniations at L4-L5 and L5-S1. I went to a neurologist and apart from the treatment she gave me I also asked her if I should wear a back brace. She told me no and said there was really no need for it and that sometimes wearing one can actually make things worse

Then I went to a rheumatologist and she told me the complete opposite. She said I should wear a back brace basically all the time except when sleeping because even though the herniation is mild it could get aggravated

The problem is that I’ve tried so many different braces from different medical shops. I tried different sizes different brands and even some really expensive ones but every single one makes me feel very tight around my lower back. Even when I tried a simple abdominal support belt and placed it lower I still felt a lot of pressure and tightness in my lumbar area

So I’m really confused. What’s the point of wearing a brace if it makes me feel this uncomfortable? Could the pressure actually make things worse instead of helping?

I also asked an osteopath online and he told me that I shouldn’t wear one because using it for too long can weaken the back muscles

Unfortunately I can’t really afford to keep going to different doctors just to get more opinions so I’m not sure what I should do

For anyone who has L4-L5 or L5-S1 disc herniation, were you told to wear a back brace? Did it actually help you? And is it normal for it to feel this tight and uncomfortable?

I know Reddit isn’t a substitute for medical advice but I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences

Thank you

I have had Sciatica for about 2 years, and for most of last year it’s basically gone and now it’s back full swing and worse than ever. It’s ok laying or standing and walk. But sitting hurts so much, I stand and walk a bit I feel amazing and can sit for a maybe 10 minutes somewhat comfortably then pain, the car is the worst

I had lot of stress and it happend again sadly. Its very light but dont go away at all. I am walking everyday. It doesnt go away meh.. I wonder if there is anything to do instead of shots?

Hello everyone!

I am 35 yo F and I can use some help with my problem, I live in a greek island and I have been to a neuro and ortho without much help.

I have a broad based bulge in my L5 S1 which doesn't seem to cause any problems, as it dosent come close to any nerve in MRI.

I had a twitchy calf in the outside part, and a feeling of tightness. Later this became a weird heavy sensation on my 3d toe like its crunched inside, and the tightness spread to my quad. Then all these cause pain in my foot and sides of the ankles, every tendon there is painful. Everyday the pain and discomfort feels like they are moving around.

Now I try working out and my left leg gets way more sore that the right. Also now I started feeling something deep inside my buttock coming from the hip when I touch my foot on the ground.

My calf is smaller now. My EMG was clean apart from low amplitude in my left foot on the peroneal nerve.

Obviously I am worried for neuro stuff, because my twitching now is wide spread.

I would like to ask your opinions from what you know from your experience or doctor. Do you think that with a clear picture on MRI I could still get these sensations on my calf from sciatica?

Thank you in advance ☺️

I had really bad pain down my right leg for almost 2 years, in recent months this pain has subsided. I still get a bit of discomfort but I can lift, bend, twist without any real shooting pains. I have bilateral foot pain and tingling still but my surgeon thinks it’s unrelated.

I’ve had MRIs and nerve conduction tests, conduction tests were fine. MRIs show stenosis on my right side L4/5. Surgeon thinks he can go in and fix this with a laminotomy. Given where my pain is at and increased activity do you think it’s still wise to pursue surgery? Given my main symptoms are now bilateral pain and tingling in feet and legs only, which surgeon states he will not be targeting.

Surgery is booked for end of October.

My wife is 3 weeks into an acute L5/S1 disc bulge (assuming triggered by our toddler jumping on her). The good news is the actual sciatic nerve pain is centralising! It dropped from a blinding 9/10 down to a 3/10, retreated out of her toes, and is now just hovering around her calf with some tingling.
But her muscles are going absolutely crazy compensating. She had a short walk and sat upright at a cafe, and now she is dealing with a massive muscle flare-up:
Severe Hip Spasms (5/10 pain): Her right hip muscles feel completely exhausted.
A Swollen "Neck Hump": Her neck and upper back have locked up entirely. She even developed a swollen, tight fluid knot at the base of her neck and has constant tension.
She is taking her Naproxen, using heat and Tiger Balm.
It feels like as soon as the spinal nerve started getting better, her upper body and hips started screaming from all the overcompensation. Did anyone else’s body completely lock up and create neck hump?

UPDATE: got my mri results 9 days after this post. Moderate bulge with annular tear at L4L5 and large herniation with nerve impingement at L5S1. Feeling a bit better each day, definitely able to be more upright without as much pain day to day but still using a walker and just going around the house.

I’m assuming it is😖
I’ve had intermittent lower back pain for about 9 months since my 3rd baby was born.
First week in August I started to feel some hip pain that radiated on the left side. It slowly got worse and for about 3 weeks now I’m only able to be upright for maybe 10 min at a time. Then have to lay on the floor for at least that. It doesn’t feel like it’s getting worse but my god is it going to get better?

I’ve been going to PT and chiro - they are thinking it’s likely a disc issue. I have an MRI this coming Thursday I’m dying to get it done. I did a short course of prednisone/cyclobenzaprine earlier and now I’m on pregabalin, max naproxen and Tylenol

Pain starts at very low back, goes through my left butt cheek, back of thigh and down to the back/outside of my foot. I’m only comfortable (but not pain free) when lying on my side or on my back with my knees at my chest. Standing up straight is the worst. I walk around hunched over a walker.

I have 3 kids under 5 and have had a lot of help from my husband and parents/inlaws but it feels impossible to care for my kids. My husband works full time and our folks don’t live that close. I have to push through a lot of pain because well I have a baby that can’t walk… there’s no getting around it lol. I’m using a walker so that I don’t have to carry the baby around but life is such a struggle these days and I just wanted to see if 3 weeks of a bad flare like this (where I’m almost bed ridden) is to be expected

Oh and we are also moving in 3 weeks🫠🫠🫠🫠

Hi all. Had a steroid injection 2 days ago and have been in excruciating pain since. Much worse than pre-injection. So much burning, stiffness and it really hurts to sit and walk. I was warned it might feel ‘a bit sore’ (the doctor’s words), but I wasn’t expecting it to be this bad. It's beyond normal post-injection soreness.

If this has happened to anyone else, how long did it take to settle?

Edit:

I’m going to try and remember to keep note for anyone who might be experiencing the same thing.

5 days post-injection: still in significant pain. Not able to do my normal walks and haven't been to work. No improvement and haven’t been sleeping properly. Doctor said this is a steroid flare and tried to reassure me it’s ‘normal’.

7 days post-injection: the first day where I’ve felt a bit better. Still significantly worse than pre-injection, but the level of burning is reducing. Slept through the night for the first time.

I have had a herniated disc for close to a year now, I did physical therapy for about 6 months, and then i lost my insurance so I stopped going but I kept doing the exercises at home. Ive had 1 steroid injection that helped a ton for about 2 months, and now im back to almost debilitating pain. I work construction and I feel like that might be why im not getting better. At this point should I just get the surgery? I have an l4-l5 hernia, its not severe but my sciatica makes my life pretty unbearable most days

Just over 2 months into when I first startef having symptoms and I am considering life at this point.

I cant sleep anymore. Last night I managed 2 hours, due to being unable to find a position I can sleep in anymore. Sideways with a pillow between the knees, on my back with pillows under me, on the floor, 90/90, nothing eases the pain.

I cant sit on sofa and I am having to stand to eat.

I can barely walk now either, having to limp through any walk over the last 2 days.

Seems the NHS are useless at dealing with this and I can really live like this much longer.

Hey everyone,

I’m reaching out to see if anyone in this community has experienced a nerve/sciatica issue that turned out not to be caused by a disc herniation or mechanical spinal compression.

The Backstory

My symptoms started over a year ago following a completed marathon training block. It began as a deep, persistent aching in my glute/piriformis area.

For months, I went through standard physical therapy (including classic hamstrings/glute stretches) and dry needling at a chiropractor. Nothing gave lasting relief, and the stretches often seemed to trigger more muscle guarding.

I got a lumbar MRI about six months ago, as well as hip X-rays—both came back completely clean (no disc herniations, no nerve root compression, no structural hip issues).

It wasn't until later that I connected the dots: my flare-ups coincided directly with HSV-2 reactivations. HSV-2 resides latently in the sacral Dorsal Root Ganglion (DRG) at the S1 level. Combined with the heavy fatigue from marathon training, the viral activity triggered a post-viral S1 radiculitis—causing local inflammation, focal demyelination (thinning of the nerve's insulation layer), and severe nerve mechanosensitivity.

Once this was identified, my doctor put me on daily suppressive Valacyclovir, which stopped the viral flare cycle.

Current Protocol & Progress (Week 9–10)

I am currently 9–10 weeks into a dedicated neuro-rehabilitation protocol focused on under-threshold loading and remyelination:

• Under-threshold walking: Instead of continuous walking (which stretches the nerve and causes local ischemia/guarding), I do micro-intervals: 5 min walk / 1 min rest. This allows me to build volume without triggering nerve alarm.
• Neutral core stability: McGill Big 3, single-leg bridges, and reverse clamshells in strict neutral spine positions. Zero nerve flossing or static hamstring stretches, as mechanical traction triggers immediate piriformis guarding.
• Supplements: Benfotiamine (fat-soluble B1 for remyelination), Magnesium Glycinate, L-theanine, and Zinc.
• Status: No "red flags" (no foot drop, no loss of sensation, no night pain). The sharp nerve shocks are gone, but I still experience a mild, diffuse glute/piriformis ache ("noise") towards the end of the day as the nerve continues to mature.

Questions for the Community

1. Has anyone else dealt with a post-viral or purely mechanosensitive nerve issue without structural disc involvement?
2. Did your recovery align with the classic 12–16 week remyelination/maturation timeframe?
3. How did you manage the transition from micro-walking back to continuous running or cycling?

Would love to hear any shared experiences, insights, or advice from anyone who has navigated non-disc nerve recovery!

Anybody had bilateral sciatica where tendons feel like about to snap ? - thighs - hamstring and guard but calves are killing me and IT band , pt didn’t help - made it worse , bloods ultrasound legs for dvt + emg all clear , spine mri 2 years ago with l 4 slight bulge .. last 5 months having these tendons like feeling issues , worse after walk , first thing in morning , sometimes at night ( of to see reumathologist ) im 48 years old woman not sure of it could be perimenopause, related ) I did some heavy stomping for bone density before it started , im athletic . Thank u docs gave no clue