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MY LIFE
Sciatica Sucks: Living With It
Just another manic Monday…
Today was the acid test, sort of — my first Monday at work after the sciatica diagnosis. About five minutes in, I wasn’t sure I would make it.
My office chair, which was a bastion of comfort to me last week, became an instrument of torture for me this morning. Within moments of sitting down on its wonderfully cushy seat cushion, my left knee felt as if someone had kicked it in the nuts — if it had had nuts — hard.
I considered calling in and going home, at that point. The only reason I didn’t was because…it’s work. I’m not going to quit my day-job over this. I had to figure out how to get through it.
It eventually dawned on me that I had felt completely comfortable in the orthopedist’s office while sitting on a flat exam table with my feet dangling. My office chair’s seat cushion raises my knees above my hips — apparently just enough to send pain shooting through my knee.
So I levered myself out of my office chair. walked around a couple of seconds to ease the pain, and found a chair with a flat seat cushion in the conference room. Instant relief! I breathed a silent prayer of thanksgiving and got busy with work. This and the steroids were the only things that made work possible.
Physical therapy won’t start until January 23. (wince!) So I wonder, if I call my orthopedist and let her know this, might she be willing to prescribe another tapering steroid dose pack (or two) in the interim, or would I come across as if I’m addicted to pain meds? Inquiring minds want to know. I don’t want to be too eager for refills because there has to be a reason why this medication is tapered.
I’m apparently not supposed to take NSAIDS because they interfere with other medications I take. I never knew about that until last Friday. Joy!
Thank God the BeActive Plus knee brace is due to be delivered on Tuesday. It’s been approved by the FDA as a medical device — the only reason I bought something “as advertised on TV”— so I fervently hope it will help.
I also discovered a co-worker of mine has intermittent sciatica, and she showed me the technique she uses to abate the pain. Seeing as how I never knew this about her, that only…
