Sailing and Syatica...

onesea

onesea

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Right I am getting frustrated :ambivalence:

Have a boat cannot sail, in fact some nights I cannot even walk to my local pub :disgust:...

I go to the Chiropractor seems where I tweeked my back is all fine but the nerves and muscles in my left leg not liking the recovery... INfact spent some of Saturday in hospital to get some decent pain killers :(.

This all aggravated by having a physical boat to sail and I now have a job where I am tied to a desk for 12 hours a day (think homer Simpson). Once pain is eased I will start using works gym and doing all the good body maintenance I need to do but all tips on getting over this appreciated...
 
If your employ is switched on, they should do a workplace risk assessment. For you, having sciatica, they should make accommodation.

Howev should and will....?
 
chrisb said:
Do you mean the island of syatica or sciatica the back leg pain?
Click to expand...

Have tried googeling the island you mentioned but could not find it.... Although I am aware of the back/ leg pain that is the source of my wow's...

giphy.gif


And sadly my chair does not even go round and round...

Not at work at the moment but when I am chained to the office for 12 hours 1/2 hour break for lunch.... 6 hours of the 12 I am really stuck in the chair, the other 6 well it depends who is on shift with me and what we are doing if I am there for the full 12....

Its just hard when not at work this great sailing weather and unable to go... SWMBO is off work this week and wants go sailing :rolleyes: sadly yesterday I did not even bother climbing onboard to check the moorings and bilges I left it to here...

SWMBO solution, put herself down for a river mooring for a small boat she can sail without me... :nonchalance:
 
Having had various episodes of a bad back over the last 10 years I can sympathise. I had really bad sciatica start about 6 weeks ago. Got so bad I couldn't stand long enough to clean my teeth or have a pee (not concurrently!). Went to the Docs and told I could see a NHS consultant at the end of May - so fed up I paid to see a consultant and have an MRI (£460 all in). He wrote to my GP to tell them the outcome and to 'encourage' them to write to the hospital to get me onto the urgent list for a discectomy (removal of the bit of disc that has squeezed out - apparently the size of a peanut!).

In the end, a few days later a went to A&E for the second time because I wasn't able to manage the pain. I was admitted and had the op 2 days later and was home the next day. All pain went straight away save for some slight tingling in the first few days (like when a bit of your body wakes up after going to sleep).

All I have to do now is take it easy for a few weeks to let the disc heal and then do some physio to get back to strength. I feel fantastic and worlds better. SWMBO is slighted because I had become horrible to live with.

Thinking that an electric windlass for the (bigger) boat is now a must and spending hours squashed up in a small dinghy racing may require a larger boat! Work will also help with a desk/chair as well hopefully - waiting to see what the physio recommends.
 
Had a problem for a couple of years where I got horrendous pain down one leg which made doing anything really hard, even sitting. It all went away very quickly after I changed the office chair I was sitting in day after day. The company mostly had all the same chairs but there were some different ones about one, of which I ended up with for a reason that now escapes me. After that no more pain, I couldn't believe it was that simple. I now have a proper orthopaedic chair at work which adjusts in myriad ways and have never ever had a repeat of the problem.
 
Sciatica follows a number of paths and is commonly due to pressure or irritation from a disc, though very occasionally more serious conditions can show up with tha same pain. Often it resolves in about six weeks and the usual advice is to carry on as normal but avoid stresses such as lifting. some people may suffer for years and my general rule for all symptoms is; seek medical advice if it either goes on longer than it should or if it is interfering with your life.

On the whole, my back problems tend to improve when I am afloat, with a combination of a firm but comfortable berth and regular activity. On the other hand, my back episode last autumn, similar to sciatica but at a higher level, didn't allow me out of the house, and barely out of a chair, so seeking treatment from a properly qualified expert back specialist was the only sensible choice.
 
Managed to damage a second disk last summer picking up a mooring that confined me to my bunk for several days and was recommended some exercises to reduce the sciatica by the GP I saw - you can find them on the NHS website (http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Backpain/Pages/sciatica-exercises.aspx) and they really work as I was up and sailing again with in weeks with a passage from Cork to Baiona. Hope you see some improvement soon
 
If your chair doesn't go around and around, that's a problem right there. You need a chair that is fully adjustable for height, rake, that moves around, and swivels. You must be able to adjust the height of your computer screen if you use one a lot. Internet will tell you how you should be sitting but the top of the screen should be at eye level. If you use a mouse all day, consider changing to a different device. I use one of those rollers at the bottom of the keyboard and they help.

Make sure you take frequent breaks, even if it's just standing up at your desk. If you're on the phone, speak standing sometimes.

Here's the bit where I don't follow my own advise, but I know it makes sense: instead of joining a gym, do Pilates. I know it's dull and boring, but it strengthens your core muscles and gives you a better posture. And replace your chiropractor (flamin quacks imo) with a fully qualified physio... much better.

Good luck
 
Sorry to hear about your back problems. Lots on here can empathise.

One question, have you tried going sailing, as may be that the sailing bit is less of a problem than walking etc.

Everybody's back issues can be different, but last summer I damaged a disk and was unable to walk more than about 100m. Was really frustrating. But by accident I found that I could cycle, and the consultant said that was fine as long as avoided off road bumps. So I got a folding bike and cycled everywhere instead.
Sailing was fine for me as long as I avoided certain things - fortunately had electric windlass so SWMBO did anchor etc which was one of the difficult things.

Hope sorted soon
 
I developed this same problem near the end of last season it lasted a couple of months. I still get occasional twinge.
Like most things I ignored it until it was really bad. Sitting down was the worst bit. Particularly driving. I also have to fly for work. 2hrs on a Dash 8.
My wife eventually started bugging me about it. Particularly since I had a hard time sleeping,
She looked up some odd stretching exercises where you try and bend over back wards. they worked a bit. getting up on my feet as much as possible really helped. She also kept Trying to make me take pain killers. I have to be careful about those anything which says no driving or operating heavy equipment is out.

I never went to the doctor. Probably should have. It seams to have gone for now.

I found I was able to function and did not take time off work, kept walking the dog, and went sailing.
 
Sorry but with these things you need a lot of luck. No two "experts" will agree. About fifteen years ago my wife had sciatica. Nearly three years of 24/7 pain. Two years under the doctor. Ibuprofen etc, no improvement. Private physiotherapist, acupuncture, you name it, we tried it all. Identified the disc in question, set of exercises etc.

Went sailing. Tacked just off cowes and she moved too quickly and her back seized solid. Taxi from cowers to st Marys hospital, where the doctor examined her and administered an injection ( I think it was ibuprofen ) straight into her back.

One hour later she walked out and touch wood it has never recurred. Pure luck of meeting the right guy on the right day.

Moral. Give the sailing a go.
 
Had back problems for years since I had a lifting accident at work. Docs have prescribed Lyrica (AKA Pregebelin). This works on nerve ending pain and is very good. I can't function without it. Might be worth a word with your GP. Good luck!
 
Sadly Swivel Chair at work is not going to happen, although in all fairness the chairs there are as good as you can get.

I think the problem started with me spending too much time at work for 18 months. Now when I have more free time I am not physically up to sailing what is a physical boat to sail. The last two occurrences have only come on after sailing, so until better not trying that fora whilst.

Will be speaking to he doctor today about what can be done, Chiropractor has given me the stretches above and some others. At the moment I feel I am loosing flexibility not gaining!

Its hard to push yourself on on holiday through the pain/ discomfort when know you should but have no reason to!
 
I had a similar injury a couple of years ago.
At one stage I could hardly walk between my desk and the car - which is only a few yards.
One mistake I made was to try to walk through the pain - this made it worse.
An ice pack wrapped in a tea towel applied to the lower back or leg did help. As did pain killers prescribed by the GP.
I had some osteopathy treatment on the NHS but not convinced it did any good. But the loan of a corset type back support thing helped a lot.
I went on holiday on the boat and could hardly walk anywhere. But my boat has a large engine so driving it was not an issue.
Eventually the pain reduced and two years on I get a twinge - discomfort rather than pain.
 
I was flat on my back for a month with it a couple of years ago. It was so bad I couldn't sit up to eat. I tried a Chiroprac but he did no good at all, seemed more concerned with showing off making my spine click. The guy who fixed me was an Osteopath who did some manipulation and acupuncture. I was fully mobile within a couple of hours.

I have a couple of prolapsed lumbar discs that press on the nerves. Sitting in an upright chair leaning forward over the computer was the worst thing. I now have a decent chair with lumbar support that makes things a lot better.
 
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