I pinched my sciatica a year and a half ago

/blog i've never been confident in lifting again. The nerve and my back acts up every once in awhile. The pain was so intense i could barely walk, and it kept on for months. I stopped lifting and got into golfing instead and just maintain a diet. Im not ripped anymore

>>35335423
You're not the only person to give such a bleak outlook.

Is it recommended that you completely stop lifting heavy weights?

I assume it happens to pro athletes and they have to go back to lifting weights/intense training cuz ya know, it's their job to be at peak physical condition at any given time. Or is their pain just masked with constant shots of steroids into the spot of inflammation?

>>35335423
Also, what finally allowed the area to calm down? I'm on a medrol pak and the sciatica symptoms are starting to fade.

Every prognosis (from multiple doctors) I've gotten has pretty much been "uhhh, it just gets better" by meds and PT that's supposed to encourage the spot to return to it's ideal position.

>>35335383
Buy or build a reverse hyper, it will make you feel like you never slipped your discs. If you can't build or buy one right away get a swiss ball and google swiss ball reverse hyper.

>>35335503
Whoa, never seen a reverse hyper machine before.

That looks ideal for building the muscles in the area and doing some nerve flossing...but at the same time looks like torture due to sciatica.

Did you use one of these personally to overcome a disc related injury?

>>35335535
Slipped several disc - the movement creates traction through movement. Use mine twice a day for 15 yrs, then wife injured her lumbar and finally started using it after epidural didn't work and has used it every morning for 5 yrs

>>35335556
Are you symptom free?

Do symptoms come back if you don't use the machine?

Thanks for the input, btw..

>>35335423

I was diagnosed with sciatica a couple years ago and when it first hit I was basically limping everywhere because the pain was so severe that I could hardly move my left leg. And then I got used to it and then it went away. It only really gets bad in the colder months for me and it usually only acts up if I've been sitting still for too long. It's never interfered with my lifts though, just my running.

I likely bulged a disc several years ago. At the time I was 20 years old, pretty athletic (lifting, sprinting, rock climbing).

I stopped ALL exercise for about 3 months. Sucks, I know, but just let me finish. I made sure I kept my spine neutral or in extension 24/7, whether I was walking, sleeping, sitting, shitting, whatever.

After about a month, I began very gentle stretching. Stop the moment you feel pain, and do not exceed that range of motion. Do not force it. You body's recovery will increase your ROM on its own, stretching is just to test where you are in your recovery and to become more comfortable.

After about 2 months once my range of motion reasonably returned I started rock climbing again (top roping - falls are arrested by a rope and the falls are only a few feet long, and I almost always kept it within my limits so I didn't fall).

Once my symptoms disappeared I stretched obsessively, then PRed on my deadlift my first day back in the gym (the very lift that snapped my shit up).

You'll be ok, just be careful. A few months of rest, even half a year, is better than being a fucking cripple for a lifetime.

Also see a damn doctor.

>>35335556
Forgot to mention, I have retardedly tight hamstrings. They've always been that way. Strangely, the more I've worked on my hammy flexibility, the more likely I've been to injure my back. Probably just stretching like a tard tho.

>>35335591
Never gone more than 2 weeks without using it (vacation/out of town). No symptoms during that time or ever since. Its just part of my daily routine, only takes 10 minutes or so, 3 sets of 20 reps twice day. It doesn't all go away right away but you notice the difference it makes right away. I squat & deadlift over 700 lbs raw, & have zero pain.

>>35335625
Yeah, I was a bit impatient at first and undoubtedly prolonged the recovery process. Glad to hear lifting/active lifestyle is still a strong possibility (barring I don't rush back in to anything).

I did see a Sport Orthopedist and put me on a prednisone based med and will be starting PT soon.

Thanks /fit/, you all were more helpful than the last month or so sifting through shit advice offered on the web.

not OP, but thanks for the advice. didn't even know about reverse hypers and will definetily give it a shot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0zjMFNjC4M

>>35335746
Same issues anon?