Now I know why Alan loves it when I massage him every night.

I'm massaging away his adhesions.....

mel

Brian: I don't know much about magnets, well, I don't really know anything about them. I do use heat at night. You are thinking magnets over the painful site might help?[/QUOTE]
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Liza, i would very surprized if they did not help, but i would still tread carefully before putting any magnets near your spine, because there are all differant classes of stainless steel, if the ortho's use a high quality stainless steel screws thats got substantial chromium and especialy nickel, as the nickel content can make all the differance between the metal being magnetic or non magnetic, so best ask your orthopedic surgeon, but if you can place them away from your spine on any sore spot, then you may be able to benefit from them.
good luck
Brian :)

Liza, sounds like your therapist....
 

is a TREASURE!

I once had an experience with a massage therapist who on first touch, simply stated 'You did X, Y & Z about Q years ago to your back, didn't you?' That person was exactly on target with the time of injury!

I'm glad to hear of your final progress. I know it's been a hurting path to get to any relief. Keep it up and inspire us all. HUGS - j

Mrs D: Dr Theirl had suggested the heating pads at night, and they do help my back let go when I finally get into bed. But I don't stay on it all night, rest assured. I couldn't deal with ice. I can't explain it, but it's just not what my body is asking for just now. Thank you for your concern.

steve: It's not sciatica in any typical way. Here's why. When the neuro moves my leg, doing straight leg raises, having me turn the hip in and out, he can't find any way of reproducing the pain. That says that nothing is going on peripherally, because the peripheral nerve feels fine. However, when I bend sideways or extend my back, I get pain. He says that means the problem is anatomically adjacent to the cord at the level of L4. He knows it's L4 because the pain goes down the front of my leg and my knee jerk is diminished on that side.

But I made so much gain between Monday's acupuncture and Wednesday's deep massage that I'm wondering about postponing the MRI for next week.
I get one more massage tomorrow, and then I"ll see how I'm feeling. If the gains last, I think I'll ask him if he has a problem with me postponing it.

In terms of magnets, btw, it's titanium and it's okay to get an mri, so I'd think it's okay to use magnets.

compromise...
 

If you won't try the cold packs....do this...
Stop the heat treatments, but do nothing else. Use Flexeril if you have to, or magnesium to relax the muscles.

Stimulating nerves with heat leads to a vicious cycle of pain for some people.
So DO NOTHING for a while and see if your sciatica improves.

I used to think heat helped.... but not for the last 10 yrs or so!
And if I want an MP attack I can arrange that in a steam room or a hot tub!

Since using my old lady shower stool, and no hot baths any longer, my MP went to sleep. It was agony for YEARS. And I did get addicted to my hot soaks, then.

Heat increases blood flow, increases inflammation. If you have sore muscles from overdoing it, then a temp 10 minute heat will help remove lactic acid etc and help with muscle pain. If you have pain from nerves overfiring and stimulating muscles when you don't want that effect, then you put the nerves to sleep. You don't feed them with heat. I think since you are still having pain, you should consider alternate modalities!

In terms of magnets, btw, it's titanium and it's okay to get an mri, so I'd think it's okay to use magnets.[/QUOTE]

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As far as i know about titanium its just like alloy metals, nonmagnetic, so if you did decide one day to give them a try, then there is no reason to pay big bucks for them, i can buy them in OZ for about $4 each, so if they happen to fall off and loose them its no big deal to replace them, i use rare earth magnets [Neodymium] 3,000 gauss reading and they work very well for me.
I have found the longer you leave them on the better the results, i only take them off for bathing and its important to put a small peice of moleskin the size of the magnet on the skin first before you stick the magnet on, its to stop any magnetic burn that can happen with strong magnets [a very good tip from Mrs, D]
I use a product called Elastoplast to stick them on with, its a very strong water proof adhesive tape.
good luck
Brian :)

mrs d, Brian
 

Mrs D: You logic is unassailable. You win! No more heat for me. I have a drug called Soma for muscle relaxation. I don't know anything about it, except that it was given to me after the surgery. What is it and do you think it's a good choice?

Brian: Okay, you, too, win! :) How do I go about getting magnets? Can you explain what to do in simple language for me? I'm getting overwhelmed here. (no, I'm not doing worse, I'm okay, but there's an impending death from cancer in my family, and the vigil and help caretaking are draining)

ahhhh....Soma....
 

Just be careful with it. People will KILL you to get their hands on it, depending.
And they will go to JAIL for it! :p

It is very popular on the street. It is related to meprobamate, and can lead to
dependence. However, many people say it is the "best" muscle relaxer. Do not mix it with alot of opiates or alcohol. But I suspect you are careful with that, anyway.

I use Flexeril myself 5mg is plenty for me!

Ice is nice.
 

I don't think that our feelings about things are necessarily a good guide to action, because feelings often spring from anxiety about what we think will happen based on memories of what happened in the past. Those memories and that anxiety may not apply to the present situation.

The idea of ice on the back is horrible. The reality of ice on inflamed sore tissue is wonderful. If it's the anticipation of a shock of cold wet that makes you hesitate, you can use a dry cold pack from the freezer wrapped in one layer of terry cloth towel. Leave it on for twenty minutes at a time, and wait at least twenty minutes for the next application.

Believe me, you'll look forward to the relief and healing engendered by ice. It's the first thing I think of for joint or nerve pain, especially when inflammation is present. Athletic trainers have a maxim that heat on an injury my help or may hurt, but cold ALWAYS helps.

My favorite ice pack is to fill an appropriate size plastic zip-lock bag about 3/4 full of ice cubes. Add enough water to fill the bag loosely, so it can conform to your body. The water makes for better body contact, and makes frostbite impossible. Place the bag in another same size zip-lock bag to insure a leak free experience. Then apply to the sore area for twenty minutes. You can start with a towel on the skin to avoid that initial cold shock, but you'll soon graduate to just putting the pack on the sore area, eager for the blessed numbing relief and the ensuing warmth as the area totally cools down and then rewarms from body heat after you remove the pack. The reduced pain lasts for a long time, and you can almost feel the healing after an ice pack treatment.

You all win!
 

Ok Ok, My aversion to ice is purely psychological. I'll give it a try. I do remember that early in the course of my neuropathy, my feet burned, and I'd use bags of frozen greenpeas. It was a nice, flexible ice pak!

I'll be careful with the Soma. I've taken it at night, and I guess that's why I've been sleeping so surprisingly well. I had no idea!

Just came from an amazing 90 minute massage, deep in my muscles and through the abs to the psoas. I'm putting my money on this. Literally.