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Were you afraid to play Golf after Sciatica episode?

ULEWZ

ULEWZ

Golf Magician
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I have been having the worst time with Sciatica the last 7 weeks. Only now am I starting to feel less pain (about 80% better).
Went to the Dr. Got a decreasing steroid pack, 800mg of Ibuprofen, and Flexeril, and scheduled for an MRI.
But my big question is, how long after your bout with Sciatica did you start playing again?
Did you start slow, with putting and chipping only, or full on smack the ball range time before playing the course?
I do not want this pain to come back, so I am a little afraid, but do not want to stop playing.
Any advice based on experience?
 
I battled it for a while and thank goodness Theragun happened
 
I actually found that hitting balls helped mine feel better as long as I swing at 50-75% speed but did a full swing. I kept me limber and the muscles moving. Was the best tempo work I could have done. Granted it was just hitting balls on the range or riding 9 holes but golf helped mine.
 
Once you are feeling a bit better core work and working out in general will help. When I had my issues the neurosurgeon said I wasn’t going to make things worse by doing things including golf and water skiing. I eventually had surgery but I did have a hole in one a week before my surgery. I was swinging about 70% though.
 
Luckily my attacks have been short lived, although the last bad attack about 10 years ago where I thought I was going to pass out with the pain resulted in the outside of my right foot going numb and the feeling has never came back. I’d say it’s about 85%. Once it had gone though, I was out swinging. Whilst I was actually suffering, there’s no way I’d have been able to play golf.
 
JB said:
I battled it for a while and thank goodness Theragun happened
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I follow the sciatica Theragun routine in the app, and it seems to help but only for a few hours. Did you do more than that?
 
Sciatica is excruciating... i wouldn’t wish it on anyone. it’s weird but swinging a club isn’t all that bad....
the hardest part, for me, is going from a sitting position to standing, and then the first few steps... it can bring tears to your eyes. It’s been a couple of years since my last really bad episode and to be honest, it scares the crap out of me thinking about dealing with it again In the future... that’s the joys of having compressed discs, i guess...
 
From what I understand, my Sciatica is a little different. Mine starts in the upper left butt cheek and goes over the top of my thigh, under my knee cap, and along the top left of my leg. I understand most people have the pain along the back of the thigh, not the top like I have. Sitting makes it feel better, and walking is the issue. After one week things started to get better and I went out to the back yard and swung my new CBX2 wedge. Big mistake, and 6 weeks later I finally feel better. That is why I unfortunately have a reluctance to get back to the links. And if I felt the Theragun would help, I would buy a whole box of them.
 
ULEWZ said:
From what I understand, my Sciatica is a little different. Mine starts in the upper left butt cheek and goes over the top of my thigh, under my knee cap, and along the top left of my leg. I understand most people have the pain along the back of the thigh, not the top like I have. Sitting makes it feel better, and walking is the issue. After one week things started to get better and I went out to the back yard and swung my new CBX2 wedge. Big mistake, and 6 weeks later I finally feel better. That is why I unfortunately have a reluctance to get back to the links. And if I felt the Theragun would help, I would buy a whole box of them.
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There was a back pain thread a month or so ago and @Jaw2000 had some excellent input (i felt) on what worked for him to help prevent ongoing pain/back issues..... https://www.thehackersparadise.com/forum/index.php?threads/lower-back-pain.54999/page-5#post-9855522

i’m a big fan of weight loss, core exercise, orthotics for your shoes and inversion tables like the Teeter Hang-Up which can be very useful in helping to ward off back pain. While this is what helped some of us, our Dr. may have suggestions based on your specific issues...
 
I feel your pain and understand the worry about returning to the course.
I had lower back pain rather than sciatica and my physios advice was keep mobile and start the return to golf with little steps building up the body and your confidence slowly.
I now do stretches and back exercises every day and am super careful about warming up before I start playing.
Listen to your body and good luck!
 
It is something I live with every day, and having a desk job doesn't help

I have semi-regular sessions with my sports physiotherapist to loosen the muscles and facet joint problem I have as well and that tends to keep on top of things
Best thing I could advise would be to find a good sports physio who can help and advise on the best way to deal with it
 
I have had multiple episodes over the years typically after long, cramped air line flights. Plus I have the wings broken/cracked on both my L5/L6 vertebrae from a early hockey incident when I was 15 (long time ago).

My best treatment was combination of chiropractor (unlock/loosen) hips and intense twice daily stretching. The stretching is very intense but after a few days I could see flexibility increase in joints. Once things loosened up, continue but then introduce light swings. IMO swinging a golf club will help keep things loose and prevent scar tissue from forming. My doctor says swinging a club is the best thing to keep my hips loose plus stretching. Best of luck.
 
ULEWZ said:
I have been having the worst time with Sciatica the last 7 weeks. Only now am I starting to feel less pain (about 80% better).
Went to the Dr. Got a decreasing steroid pack, 800mg of Ibuprofen, and Flexeril, and scheduled for an MRI.
But my big question is, how long after your bout with Sciatica did you start playing again?
Did you start slow, with putting and chipping only, or full on smack the ball range time before playing the course?
I do not want this pain to come back, so I am a little afraid, but do not want to stop playing.
Any advice based on experience?
Click to expand...
Good Morning. So, I have had back issues off and on for maybe 30 years. The key now for me is weight loss - not fast, but through healthier eating (93lbs so far over 13 months). Also, I work out - lot's of cardio, and some weights - but a lot is focused on my core and my back. I finish every workout (4 days a week) with 10 minutes on the inversion table. about 3 minutes focused on 'stretching' to my right or left as much as I can - sort of the end of the golf swing the 'full turn/start' of the swing.

I believe that core and weight are the real keys to eliminating significant back pain - and weights were also gradual. No need to be hospitalized! Before making this commitiment (thanks in part to COVID), I would get lower back coritsone/steroid (I assume they were) shots every 4 - 6 months, and I had also had nerve ablations (2 times) on each side - all this was in the lumbar region. Since the loss and exercise - no shots/no ablations - going on 15+ months. Up to this point had played maybe 7 rounds of golf over 2-3 years. Now have played 5 or 6 rounds this year (March/April). I hit the inversion table when I get home from golf then shower. Oh yea, every round played this year - walked with push cart - I would use a push cart (before all this) maybe 1 or 2 times a year.

Now, after all that (above) I admit to an occasional tweak or odd short lived pain - I try to listen to it, if it does not stop - I stop, if it does I try to be aware of it. But nothing that keeps me up at night or prevents me from doing anything.

If the above is already part of your routine or not an issue, then please see an orthopedist who does back work and/or visit a spine specialist - you might surprised and those shots - yea, they suck for only for a few minutes the reduced/eliminated pain - makes it bearable/tolerable.

Good luck - there is help out there!
 
My dad always jumped right back in after an episode. Golf was never a trigger for him, so it was more about being able to handle the pain while playing.
 
ULEWZ said:
From what I understand, my Sciatica is a little different. Mine starts in the upper left butt cheek and goes over the top of my thigh, under my knee cap, and along the top left of my leg. I understand most people have the pain along the back of the thigh, not the top like I have. Sitting makes it feel better, and walking is the issue. After one week things started to get better and I went out to the back yard and swung my new CBX2 wedge. Big mistake, and 6 weeks later I finally feel better. That is why I unfortunately have a reluctance to get back to the links. And if I felt the Theragun would help, I would buy a whole box of them.
Click to expand...

Sciatica is different depending on where the disk issue is. I have had two ruptured disks. The first one I couldn’t sit down and it was excruciating. I had two steroid injections and it got me to the point where I could walk around and swing a golf club at about 70% but I wound up with surgery.

The second one which I still have some issues with it was okay to sit down but hurt to walk. Fortunately that one was less severe and I have been just being patient with it. Most days it is mildly annoying and I can still play golf with it. Some days it is more sore.

Regarding treatment there are multiple schools of thought. My neurosurgeon from the first issue indicated that over time swelling goes down and the nerve frequently adjusts to whatever is bothering it so the pain improves. In my case I had a disk fragment embedded in the S1 nerve so it wouldn’t have completely gone away. My second incident was much less severe and while it has been 2 years now I am better than I was. Frankly I had an injection scheduled then the quarantine hit and it got cancelled. I am better than I was a year ago so I am going to wait it out.
 
Battled a round of Sciatica in January/February and it was tough sledding. As some have said it actually didn't hurt much swinging the club (and played alot of golf) but everything else (loading bag, in/out of cart, walking on slopes) was hard, frustrating and painful! Throughout that period i continued to stretch, walk in neighborhood (helpful but some days it was a struggle) and ride bike. Finally i got so frustrated with the pain while on the practice green i went straight to my car and googled "walk in chiropractor near me". Found one based on reviews and drove straight there. Felt some immediate relief after round #1adjustment but it crept back in the next day. Long story short i went 4 times in 2 weeks and have been feeling great since! My only regret was suffering with it for 2 months before getting treatment. I won't make that mistake again. Good luck!
 
RealPretendPsychic said:
My dad always jumped right back in after an episode. Golf was never a trigger for him, so it was more about being able to handle the pain while playing.
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Golf was my trigger, so that is why I am hesitant. Feeling about 90% now, with a little pins and needles in my knee area when standing up, then the P&N goes away and the butt cheek area starts to ache, but just a little. Very weird pain.
 
I tried to play through it about 2.5 years ago and it was very ugly so I sat out for 2 months. Luckily it was in the winter when I don't enjoy playing nearly as much. Thankfully it has not come back.

Advil, a tens machine and stretching exercises were the main things that help me get over it.
 
Sciatica's weird. Years ago I have a bad back injury. I could hardly move. Sports was not an option. Then after a few weeks it got better but caused sciatica. Then it was my leg hurting real bad. The thing is, when my back felt better I could move better. The sciatica was just a constant pain. Movement didn't aggravate it. I just had to be careful with the back. I didn't play sports for about 6 months.
 
Do any of you guys play with a back support, and if so, what kind?
I use a normal Kidney belt and it seems to help with bending over to putt.
 
Went to the range today and then played 9 exec holes. No pain except for muscle fatigue from not using them for 2 months. Shot a 38, not bad. My irons were pretty good, my chips with my CTX2 were amazing, and my putting got much better towards the end. All in all a good day. The only issue is I had an MRI today and they found a lesion on my L4-5 that may be a herniated disc or worse. They are scheduling an urgent second look. Oh well, I feel pretty good and am so happy to be back.
 
ULEWZ said:
Went to the range today and then played 9 exec holes. No pain except for muscle fatigue from not using them for 2 months. Shot a 38, not bad. My irons were pretty good, my chips with my CTX2 were amazing, and my putting got much better towards the end. All in all a good day. The only issue is I had an MRI today and they found a lesion on my L4-5 that may be a herniated disc or worse. They are scheduling an urgent second look. Oh well, I feel pretty good and am so happy to be back.
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Happy to hear you had a good day... but listen to what your back tells you tomorrow and take it easy, if needed. Hope the follow up to your MRI proves to be something easily dealt with. Good luck and again, happy to hear you’re back out there.
 
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