Sciatic Hell

Late Saturday, my hip pain changed to lower leg pain. Saturday night was torture, even with Ibuprofen, turning in my bed was excruciating. I took Ibuprofen and shortly thereafter had a very upset stomach.  It’s a pattern I became aware of, so I’m not taking Ibuprofen anymore. I see Jennifer, my nurse practitioner, tomorrow. I have no expectations for relief. I’m thinking that it’s likely sciatica that is defeating me. I hope to learn some managing strategies from Jennifer.

I managed to finish raking all the laws (except in the edible garden) and tote all the stuff out into the dumping area behind my back fence. But I was hurting all the time. I had to take breaks very often, but I got the work done that I wanted to do. I just had to accept my dreadfully slow pace. I yelped out loud several times as I turned or stepped, and the pain was instantly severe.

Then I walked Sheba. It was brutal. I won’t be doing that again until I feel much better. When I went into the village to do some grocery shopping, I loved having the food cart to push around. It held me up nicely and brought relief to my leg/hip/back. By the time I got home, I could feel my entire lower back was locked in tension. I had to stop moving and so I got on the couch to read.

I was so grateful to be able to sit on my chaise without pain. Sitting gave me welcome relief, thank God, but by the early evening, I could not find any position that had be pain free, so I went to bed. I was aching and miserable. I took an Ativan to ensure that I got a good nigh’s sleep and that my back muscles would relax.

I feel better this morning, and I’m very, very grateful. I must water all my gardens today, but I feel that I can do it. But that’s all I’ll do. The rest of the time, I will be chilling on my chaise or on the couch in hopes that tomorrow will be even better.

I continue to lose about 2 pounds a week. I’m now down to 173.5 pounds; that’s down from 202.6. However, my scale isn’t accurate. I doubt I actually weigh 173.5, but I am certain that I have lost 29 pounds because although my scale isn’t aligned with actual weights, it does accurately reveal the amount of weight lost.

Today will be a very soft and gentle day.