Sciatica symptoms and conditions

About 3 months ago after taking Ambien because of not being able to sleep due to insomnia and at that time sever sciatica, I got a call from a long time friend of 20 years, he told me i proposed married to him while crying and told him how much i loved him and also told him i took a bunch of pain pills. I guess that same night i called a man i'd brokened up with, as well, because he had too much drama in his life (i was also very in love with this man when i broke up with him). Apparently i only got his answering service and left a message asking him to call me back. I'd been trying not to call him for days, then this happened. When he got a hold of me, by then i knew now what i'd said to my old buddy while on Ambien. I was terrified of what i'd said to my ex, he said i only asked him to call me back, NOT! It gets crazier, for i ended up at a strip club that same night buying a kinda sorta friend lapdances with my money!! I'm a woman buying a guy i didn't like very much dances?! My ex and i eventually got back together only to end up arguing, then he tells me what i said that night. I told him i have a friend with a 10 inches!! And some other shit i don't recall saying. My ex (again) is not a 10incher (which i do not want anyway) but i LOVE him more than any John Holmes but thats what i did. I belittled him while under that shit! Now my 24yo child told me she visited me last week, I DON'T RECALL THIS AT ALL. She said my eyes looked weird and i was trying to show her photos of my ex while nude and drinking wine!! She also told me i didnt have much on, asked her to try on 1 of my bathing suits then proceeded to remove my top while the door was wide open?? And some other shit again?! All i wanted was to sleep more than 3 hours a night. Not this, not this at all! maybe i'll go back to Xanax?? that one only makes me eat in my sleep.

I was prescribed this for disc protrusion sciatica pains it made me feel even more detached, pain remained and further use brought on a frightening upper torso numbness and head fog felt as if sunburn with fan blowing hair around on my chest and wrapped in tape or something very bizarre strange medicine that did not work.

I have had the Mirena for about 2 1/2 years. I had it inserted about 3 months after I had my daughter. Initially I thought it was great, but in the past 12-18 months I have noticed so many negative side effects that I believe must be related to the hormones in the Mirena. My PCP ignored my complaints but I have experienced the following since having the Mirena inserted:
sore/tender breasts, pretty serious weight gain(I diet and exercise a lot and don't lose a pound), severe acne on the chin and jaw line, coarse/dark facial hairs on the jaw line, migraines in the right side of my head, lower back pain in the left side(almost like a sciatica) fatigue. low sex drive, some mood swings, and the expected spotting. Although my PCP dismisses my concerns I have made an appt. with a new gynecologist to discuss my concerns and possible removal of the Mirena. Although the prevention of pregnancy is great the side effects are becoming unbearable and seem to increase over time. I would think twice about opting for this method of birth control.

I got Mirena put in on 3/12/09. I had very light spotting for a week or so, then it stopped. Haven't had a period since, and not pregnant. I get cramps once a month, but don't bleed. Once in a while, I will get a sharp pain, like when I was pregnant and my uterus was pushing on the nerve that goes into my leg. That's the sharp pain...down my inner thigh. Told my mother-in-law and she said, "So a swollen uterus, and not period? Sounds fantastic to me!" We all know our uterus swells during our periods, so that was normal. I also have sciatica (sp?) after having him, so that is where the pain might come from. I was told I might have continuous or periodic spotting for up to a year, so I know if it comes back, it's normal. I would recommend this to anyone that has had a child and wants a longer birth control, that doesn't make you retain water and doesn't make you gain weight. It was virtually painless to put in, a little pinch, and I was done! I LOVE IT!

I would like replies for any one that has experienced muscle swelling. Any swelling in hip ,groin,buttocks, or thigh. Like sciatica with muscle swelling.

have been taking 20mg for about two weeks. a couple days after i started taking the stuff i started experiencing chest pains at night that would wake me up, coupled with leg pain. it's getting worse; now, after two weeks i am having severe lower back pain that radiates down both legs, similar to sciatica, happens at night but continues throughout the day. also leg spasms at night. i am stopping zocor today. can't face this pain anymore. i have bad knees, and recently had to have a cortisone injection, but this new pain is worse than the knees. owing to the chest pains, i had a stress test today at the heart group, and had such difficulty walking that i could barely make it down the hall with my cane. three of the nurses there said they hear this all the time about the statins, and that the doctors don't want to listen to the complaints but the nurses all agreed that the statins are the culprits. results on stress test were fine.

Hi all! Well I got my mirena taken out on Wednesday. The Dr. was very sweet I told her my symptoms and she said lets take this out then! While she was down there she said " Hmm I'm going to look at a swab under the scope." She came back in and said that the mirena gave me a bad infection! I had to take some strong one time antibiotic that killed my stomach! I can't wait to start to feel better. I did notice I can see a lot better then I did, no more blurry eyes. The last 3 1/2 years have been utter hell for me. I've been in and out of different Dr. offices not finding anything. I was dizzy all the time, I started out small after I delivered my baby and gained 60 lbs since it was put in. I had a shooting pain on my right side, horrible anxiety attacks, blurred vision, fuzzy mind, head aches, ovarian cysts, lower back pain and bloated belly. I am so relieved I got this disgusting thing out of my body!!! I hope my life will go back to normal now.

I am 18 years old and I have been on the NuvaRing for about a week and a half...already I have been extremely emotional. I am the kind of girl who never crys, and lately EVERYTHING makes me cry or upset. Granted, I do have a lot on my plate right now which adds to my anxiety and stress levels so that could be it too. My boyfriend doesn't like the feeling of it when we are having sex either, and it causes a burning sensation for me when we are finished. Ive experienced sleeping problems as well. Im not quite sure if it is because of everything going wrong in my life right now..or if it is because of the NuvaRing. I have also been experiencing back pain.

I am a 31 year old male, in decent shape (play basketball, volleyball, workout at least 3 times a week) but I have a family history of high blood pressure and have had it myself as long as I've been tested. Went to cardiologist as a check up on my slightly enlarged heart, long story short, ended up on Metoprolol (25mg) beginning of 2008 and have been fine but no real help with bp. Then was put Lisinopril (5mg) a few months ago and my blood pressure was great at last checkup. However during that time I had a couple of weeks where I was very dizzy, that sort of feeling your brain is taking a second to keep up with your head as you get up, along with a fogginess and what seemed like sinus issues but I chalked it up to weaning off of a small dosage of Zoloft I had taken for over a year. I also developed "the cough" everyone refers to, but since it is winter in New England I chalked it up to dry heat, even though it was a choking cough unlike any I've ever had before. Also during that time I seemed to completely lose my sex drive, again figuring it was just something to do with the Zoloft or general anxiety. Then in the past week I started getting a constant headache, having really interrupted sleep, very foggy and out of it, tired, dehydrated, constipation, nausea, all things that I would normally associate with allergies or some kind of sinus/flu, but yet I couldn't really pinpoint anything that would be causing it.

Then I finally started looking up things about the meds I was taking and came upon this site, and guess what? Everything and every way I was feeling was described in hundreds and hundreds of posts on this site. I don't think my side affects were quite as strong as some have experienced (for instance the cough is very infrequent, like twice a day) but I have only begun my journey with Lisinopril. So despite the warnings, I decided to stop taking it a few nights ago, and almost instantly I began feeling better the next day and since then.

I have since called my cardiologist and he has recommended I switch to Diovan, basically saying that based just on the cough symptom alone, he wants me off of Lisinopril as this is a known side affect. Now I am left debating whether or not I want to continue down this path of trying different combinations of pills to poison my body in order to lower my bp. It seems like others have noted marked differences between taking Diovan and Lisinopril, where the Diovan has been much more tolerable than Lisinopril (with a great decrease in any side-affects) but I'm 31 and although I know it will be very difficult to reduce my bp on my own (believe me, I've tried) maybe I'm too young to start with the "last resort" of these toxins. Just reading about the possibility that Lisinopril was robbing my body of zinc or other minerals, so that my immune system is greatly weakened, likely being the cause for most of the symptoms, is enough to ward me off of pills altogether. It's a sad statement on the state of health care in America when I am left to basically make such an important decision on my own, because I can't trust that my doctors aren't just working in the interest of the drug companies to boost their income. I don't want to have to choose between a silent killer and a horrible existence filled with "side-affects".

In the end, based on some of the reports on here, I think starting on 40mg of Diovan will be fine, but I will certainly be VERY wary of anything unusual and immediately find other options.

I had a Mirena put in 1.5 weeks ago. I have had 3 migraines in this time frame. I have only had 2 migraines my WHOLE LIFE before the mirena. I asked a nurse at the doctor's office if this is a side effect and she said NO! Pffft. I also noticed my hair is coming out in clumps in the shower, and my right leg has a weird cramp/ache down the back of it, not like sciatica but a kind of dull ache. I think I am one of those women who is very sensitive to hormones. I was on the pill for years as a teen and young 20something, and had chronic headaches but never put 2+2 together! I will be getting the Mirena out asap and I'm going to try Fertility Awareness. I'm done with trying to chemically manipulate my body.

I was given a shot in I think January of 2008, not knowing exactly what it was, because I had a fever and the doctor said it would jump start my recovery. At first there seemed to be no problem with the injection site and I felt great just days after.

A couple of months later, when I was working out and losing weight and keeping a very close eye on my body because of it. Suddenly, I noticed that I had a deep indentation and discoloration on the left side of my lower back - right where they gave me the shot. It seemed like it appeared over night. It got deeper, and darker as time passed.. I was scared to press my finger in it because when I did, it just kept going in..as if there was no fat OR muscle in that spot.. I was FREAKED out. I'm a model so this fact that there was a bottomless whole in my lower back was devastating. I also feared that there may be something life threatening going on. I mean, a chunk of you just doesn't disappear overnight..Unless someone stole your kidney, but, I didn't wake up in a bath tub full of ice.

I typed in "Injection that causes Indentation in the lower back" and I found this board. Everyone here suffered the same exact symptoms from this shot and worse. I was certain that it had to be Kenalog. It seemed to cause death of all tissue at the injection site, depression, lethargy, moodiness, insomnia, pain and all sorts of other symptoms after this shot. I started to suffer from all of them soon after the shot and I didn't really know why or where it came from. I was in so much pain and was so tired.. I stopped doing everything I loved and I could barely sleep because of the pain.

I don't know what to do about this. I'm extremely broke and I don't have health insurance(and they wouldn't fix anything considered to them as "cosmetic" anyways).. My parents are in no position to help me anymore and I could never afford an attorney to try to claim against this.

How can I go about fixing this with no money? Is there any way to fix this to begin with?

Any advice, insight or experiences would be GREATLY appreciated!

I am 34 years old and was prescribed Advair about two years ago. I have had minor asthma issues over the years but nothing major. So the doctor gave me an inhaler. Then one winter I get sick and started going through the inhaler in about a month, so he prescribed Advair.
To back up I had lower back surgery for a bulged disc. So I had a lot of pain and was taking vicodin. Six months after surgery my back started feeling better than it had for a long time. I was able to exercise and get by with one vicodin in the morning. This went on for about a year. The pain was stable for the most part, but would increase every now and then.
Now enters the Advair. When I first started taking it I felt a little weird but it made my breathing a lot better. After a little while I would forget to take it or just feel like I didn't need it. But I could not stop taking it because my breathing got to bad without it. Over time my pain was getting worse and worse. I ended up being put on time release morphine because we thought the back pain was increasing. Then after being on morphine it seemed like I was always sick. I have been to the hospital twice for breathing and lung infections. I thought my back pain was turning into sciatica!!!! All along it is this F@#$ ADVAIR!!!! I have had a super short temper,daily head ache's,depression, HORRIBLE PAIN in my legs and back. I am so glad I found this site. ADVAIR IS EVIL!!!!! I have stopped taking it for two days now. I really need help from anyone who has info about quitting it. PLEASE CONTACT ME. Thanks : )

I have been on 20 mg Lipitor for years, and as I also have Rheumatoid Arthritis, all my symptoms have been blamed on that. I have been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and put on Lyrica because of the muscle aches and depression. My lower back, hurt in a car accident when I was 17 years old, had gotten so much worse that I had 12 steroid shots in my lower spine a couple of years ago. They didn't help my back at all, but my blood sugar went from normal to diabetic levels, and I am now on Byetta to try to lower it.
I am a 56 year old woman who was the math specialist in a school district until last December when I had to retire early. My back pain was so severe that I could no longer go from school to school carting materials. I could barely make it from the parking lot to my office. Mentally I was not ready to retire, but physically, I was (and am) a wreck. I have severe muscle pain in my shoulders, sometimes one or the other, but always present. I have tingling in my right hand, especially in my fingertips, and have trouble gripping and drop things easily. In the last few months the pain in my right thigh and calf has gotten unbearable. I thought at first it was sciatica, but I have had sciatica before, and this isn't the same, although there is tingling, burning , but the pins and needles is so deep in the muscles I have just sat and cried, or wanted to scream. I have wished I could just cut my leg off. And...I am on some pretty heavy duty pain killers for the RA: a small dose of prednisone plus Enbrel, Methotrexate, and Vicodin, and this pain is cutting right through all these meds. I get severe headaches, I went off Lipitor for 5 days and seemed a little better, but then went back on, and it came back.
Since I no longer work, I sleep longer, am exhausted ALL the time, have terrible mental fog, am clumsy, cannot stand for more than a minute or so without wanting to scream, cannot walk more than a few yards...just getting to the car is an ordeal. I tell people that I can only shop in shoe stores and furniture stores...the only stores with places to sit down.
I no longer cook or clean, cannot play with my granddaughter, even holding a book to read can be too much, and I love reading. I feel I am just dying bit by bit as I lose parts of myself.
My doctor is really into lowering cholesterol, and has put me on Zetia in the past few months...and it has been in this time that the pain in my leg has gotten unbearable. He wants my cholesterol to be between 50-60, and has said that the Zetia along with the Lipitor will do that. Is this normal or in any way reasonable??? I am having a full blood workup done tomorrow morning, and I want to go off the Lipitor starting the day after.
I came across this web site tonight while looking up Lipitor side effects, and I am shocked. I have so many of these symptoms, and there are so many I had no knowledge of at all. I knew about the muscle aches, but that's all. I hope someone can help me with what supplements and vitamins I should be taking. I started taking CoQ10 a month or so ago. What else should I be taking for my health? I know vitamin C and fish oil, but don't know how much or anything else. Right now I am just stunned with the thought that all of these problems that have left me unhappily retired, exhausted and in constant pain can all be caused from a drug I have been taking to help me be healthier.

I started taking Lisinopril last March, and my monthly cycle went from a normal cycle to a debilitating three day pain fest.
The first month I had a uterine cramp like comparable to labor that lasts for three straight days. The second month I added a sharp pain in my stomach that compared to a severe food poisoning episode but the only symptom was the pain.

This continued through June, when I asked my physician to switch me to a different medication although he did not think the side effects I was describing was related to the Lisinopril. The next month the uterine cramp was less severe but I also was treating with Midol which may have been the reason.

Last month, at my six month check my blood pressure was still not where my doctor want to see it, so he put me back on Lisinopril and kept me on the Hydrochlorothiazide, now I am on two medications!

After reading this site, it occurs to me that my shoulder where I had surgery two years has also been acting up the last six months as well. I have been doing PT again after the pain increased and I asked my surgeon what to do. He made not connection to the medication I am taking as a possible source.

The only other thing is I have lost some weight, with relative easy (not usual for me). Which I had attributed to a change of eating pattern due to my new work schedule.

All things to consider now that I have read this website.

Thanks to all who share, this is the best way to understand that everyone does react differently and you have really pay attention to what is going on with your own body when you are taking any medication.

Hello everyone, I just started taking Prednisone today for severe Sciatica. I have read all your stories and now im so weary of taking another pill. Some of the side effects that y'all have experienced are awful. I think i would go crazy if i got all of that. I am on the Medrol Dose Pack and i started 2 pills before breakfast and now i have some stomach pains. Its sad that you have to take this for pain and inflammation and then end up with all other kinds of problems. Thanks for sharing your stories. I think im gonna stop taking it all together. Stacey

Started taking prednisone about 3 months ago for a serious flare-up of my Sciatica. My Sciatica was so bad that I couldn’t even stand up. After a couple days of prednisone, I was able to walk, but still had pain on my left side, from my back down to the tip of my big toe. Symptoms started getting better, but then the side effects started. Gain 40 lbs, can’t sleep, muscles are so weak it’s hard to walk, blurred vision… one day (laying on my bed) I noticed I couldn’t even see the clock on the cable box anymore. Lumps started appearing. One on my wrist and one big one on my upper arm. I cut my finger 5 days ago and it still hasn’t closed up completely yet. It even still bleeds. I know on the side of my pill bottle it says “This medicine may lower your ability to fight off infections”, but man! It sucks when you have a little cut that just won’t heal. Anyway, I’m sick of the side effects and they only seem to be getting worse. I’m stopping today! I would rather fight through the pain of my Sciatica than to deal with all these side effects. I just hope (and pray) that the side effects go away without doing (if not already) major damage.

I made an appt. with my gyno. about six weeks ago because my period was going on for two weeks at a time. Around that time my husband noticed a dent in my butt cheek, and since then it has gotten worse. I was looking up indentation on the butt and came across this information. I JUST called my Dr. and asked them when I was in there for poison ivy what they gave me for a shot, you guessed it KENALOG 80MG. This was five months ago. The indentation is getting worse. Will it ever stop, and what kind of Dr. do I go see about this? Will my periods ever regulate?

I had one injection of Kenalog to treat anal itching. Doctor did not know how to treat it and used Kenalog as her last resort. It did not make any difference. Eventually another doctor diagnosed me with Herpes Cold Sore and treated me with Valtrex.
However, Kenalog messed up my menstrual cycle so badly and I haven't had ovulation for the last three months. What's upsetting is that my doctor knew that I was trying to get pregnant and did not inform me of such side effects. When I called the doctor later and told her what happened, she sounded very surprised and said that she had never heard of such a thing.
Doctors need to be better informed about side effects before recommending any medicine to their patients. And the lesson learned for me is to not trust doctors any more, always do research beforehand. Oh well, hopefully the ovulation will come back soon, it has been way too hard emotionally to deal with the overall situation.
Hope it's helpful.

I don't know if it was the two kenalog injections but I began to menstruate-three years post-menopause. I immediately was seen by my endocrinologist, trans-vaginal sonogram and endometrial biopsy done. i just received a call tonight informing me that a polyp was found and I will need to have a D & C. It sounds like endometrial hyperplasia and this is a very sudden onset - I had the same sonogram in February and all was fine.
I have now found out that steroids can "wreak havoc" with our hormones. I was schedule to have epidural injections of steroids for back and neck injuries. I will not have them now or ever- they are not as benign and helpful as many doctors would have you believe.

I took prednisone for 6 days ( the pack). Six the first day and five the next till day six I had one pill left. I have never experienced hair loss like this. I have a patch of hair that fell out in a circle the size of a 50 cent piece. I didn't notice it really falling out but noticed a bald spot and I freak out. I came on line to get info about this medication. This drug was ordered for me because I have severe pain in my back due to osteoarthritis, sciatica and back surgery. I was told taking this would help with the inflammation and might relieve some of the pain symptoms. Well, I think the pain would be better then the side effects that I suffer. I had loss of appetite and acne on my face. I feel dizzy and bloated. I pee all the time and seems like i visit the bathroom much more often for other reasons too. I have felt like a crazy lady and have less patience than normal. I hope that this does not last for ever. This is a small amount of the medication. I am sorry for those of you that have experienced a long period of time on this medication. I pray for you that they will find another alternative with less effects to your bodys.

I'm a physician. Usually Kenalog injections can be avoided and oral steroids used like prednisone. The local dimpling effect may occur if the injection is too shallow, actually there is a temporary "disolving" of the subcutaneous tissue, the muscle and joints are not damaged. It is usually viewed as a "cosmetic" adverse effect. The Kenalog injections was primarily designed for joint injection and the kenalog or similar depo form stays active in the joint for a few weeks. All steroid medications can cause irritability and this is usually temporary for a few days. Steroids can cause muscle weakness- this is usually associated with high doses for prolonged use like being on prednisone for 3 or 4 months. Steroids can have an adverse effect on menstruation, but this is usually associated with chronic use. The most serious problems with the steroids result in bone weakness(osteoporosis) and serious damage to joints like the back and hip. Steroids can also result in weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure and cataract formation. I don't think Kenalog is any different than other steroids such as Medrol or Prednisone in terms of the side effect profile. These are dangerous medications that can also be very helpful in saving lives and diminishing pain.

I have experienced severe weakness in the legs and numbness and tingling feelings. I take a child's chewable dose as I am very sensitive to medications because of allergies. I think I will cut the pill in half and try that for a while and see if it is better. It was really scary when I had that weakness. Also notice an increase in back pain, sciatica, etc.

I have experienced several episodes of nasal congestion, post nasal drip and shortness of breath since beginning this medication, which are becoming more frequent. When I don't take it, this does not occur. I asked my doctor to change me to a different BP med but was told it was not possible to have that side effect after taking it for 1 1/2 years. She wanted me to use Flonase which is a steroid that will only give me more side effects. I hate this and am considering seeing another doctor.

Well, the Mirena is history and although still very sore, the cramps have completely gone and the sciatica has already reduced by 25%. Bring on the POP!

It's so encouraging to hear everyone else's views about this "device"!! I've had my Mirena since 16th March 2007 (yes, I remember the day like it was yesterday as inserting the thing was the most painful experience I have ever had, although I haven't had children!!).

The literature says you will get cramps and bleeding for up to about 3 weeks (I think) ... yes, try about 6 months.

Then, just when I thought things were settling down, I got sciatica over Christmas for no apparent reason. It was mild to begin with and then after £100 and 3 trips to the chiro, I am now on physiotherapy and have been for a month. I've also starting having cramps for about a month yet, but no sign of a period, so I got to thinking I wonder if this sciatica has got anything to do with the Mirena. I googled and sure enough, people are suffering and also from a whole host of other things I now recognize is happening to me. The blurred vision is interesting as when I went to get the Mirena removed this morning (it has got lost up there!!), the nurse said I've never heard of anyone getting sciatica. Check the internet love, the uterus is very close to the sciatic nerve and bearing in mind mine (the Mirena not the uterus) has gone walkabout, I'm pretty certain this is the root of my problems.

Someone had asked for the Mirena to be removed because it was affecting their contact lenses, so there must be something in the rumour.

Anyway, hopefully the doc can remove mine tonight or I can get a scan quickly and have the damn thing removed. Only 12 weeks until I get married and I refuse to walk down the aisle on crutches!!!!!