Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
Hi All,
I just finally got a diagnosis for my pain, bad Sacroilliac Joint. I have THE worst OS as far as providing pain meds. I am totally screwed in that department and I am having a hard time managing the pain. I was wondering if anyone out there has found something that helped them. Sitting or laying on a heating pad helps to some extent, but was just wondering if maybe someone had another method. Thanks!
Re: Any suggestions or remidies that helped your SI Joint pain?
You might try icing if you have not already tried it. Don't be suprised if it is painful in the beginning but give it a chance. It has really helped me alot.
Re: Any suggestions or remidies that helped your SI Joint pain?
I completely agree on the ice. You can get large re-freezeable Ace gel packs that stand up nicely to repeat use for months. Get two so you can switch out. Evertything I've been told & believe says that heat can increase inflammation; makes sense, so consider trying ice. Also, laying on your back on the floor with your knees up is a "safe" position to rest in if you can do so comfortably. Keep reading - lots of great SI info on this site.
Re: Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
Thanks for the advise, I will try the ice again. I have tried it in the past, don't know if it was because it was thicker to lie on or what, but it was uncomfortable for me so I stopped. My Rheumatologist is giving PT a shot, but that will be limited to only what I can do with the affected side as the knee on the other leg has a loose component of a previous replacement, so that can't be agrivated. Plus, I had a spinal fusion just over a year ago, and stinking screws are moving so that hurts. Everyone as got to have felt like they were falling apart, that's me now. In some cases, litterally! I find this SI joint pain just stinking annoying. I will heed the advise given here and hopefully PT can offer some directly related to and within my limitations. My Rheumatologist is only giving PT 2 months, then he said I can have the injection of cortisone. From what I have read, that is very helpfull. Thanks again for the advise!
Re: Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
Hello
Have had si joint, hip and groin and leg pain over 2 years now. Ice , ice and more ice. Also, my chiropractor gave me a portable tens unit to use a few weeks ago in a 10+ pain flare up. It has become my new best friend. Ginger
Re: Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
Those who suffer with SI joint pain usually get better treatment with a pain management specialist. They can determine that the pain is definitely coming from the SI joint and then set up the proper treatment plan. In my case, we opted to do a radiofrequency neuroablation; I've been pain free (in that area) since and it's been close to 2 years now.
Re: Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
I have suffered with SI joint pain for 2 years and also had a radiofrequency nerve ablation done this past April. It was the best thing I ever did. It reduced my degree of pain greatly and enabled me to get off of a fentanyl patch and onto some lower key pain meds. Sometimes I do not need anything. The procedure will have to be repeated in 6-18 months from what I understand and then hopefully it will be permanent. For severe SI joint pain I highly recommend this as the previous poster did. It is done by a PM specialist. For a lesser degree of pain, I know they recommend more conservative methods such as physical therapy. Best of luck to you! Lisa
Re: Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
I have SI joint problem also. I have been this way for 2.5 years. I have an RS Medical stimulator. I love it. It helps me function. It is simular but better than a TENS. the portable stimulator gives you the results that you get when you go to PT or the Chiropractor (they put the little electrodes on you and it sort of massages).
Re: Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
Muscle energy techniques is what you need!
I had sacroiliac strain which made my right leg about half an inch shorter than my left.
The SI joint is not supposed to move round too much, but I had a hypermobile joint that had weakened ligaments because of the strain.
You can go to the chiropractor as much as you want, but the joint will usually slip out of place again after a day or so. This is not always the case, but if they joint is hypermobile then it will.
So you need to self-correct the sacroiliac joint every day. Do this through muscle energy techniques which will reprogram and realign the joint to its natural position. A backchamp is one just one of these muscle energy techniques, but there are a few others.
Sort it now before it becomes a major problem! I has all sorts of rubbish told to me by NHS physios, about how I wasn't strong enough and needed to stretch more. I was even given a heel lift for my right leg which made the pain ten times worse! Now I have a herniated disc at L5 S1 as a result of having this strain.
SI joint dysfunction is quite treatable! Just do the self correct techniques, get strong core muscles and invest in a sacroiliac belt to promote healing!
jeff
Last edited by moderator2; 10-24-2007 at 06:24 AM.
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Re: Any suggestions or remedies that helped your SI Joint pain?
Hello, being so young, 31, I had SI joint pain due to my ligaments being so lax (hypermobility syndrome) that started when I was 26. It was not due to pregnancy nor anything that they can relate to it. Just one day the pain showed up and wouldn't go away. Eventually, it made it so I couldn't work anymore.
Like most of you I went through cortisone injections in my SI joints, very short lived pain relief. Physical Therapy which while I was going through it worked great but insurance only pays for so much and when the therapy stopped so did the relief. Chiropractic care which one day just stopped working and made it worse actually. And I have had many trips to the ER over the past 5 years that just helped when I was injected with a really strong pain killer. I believe I have been put on just about every pain reliever, CNS (central nervous system) inhibitor, Anti-depressant, etc. trying to alleviate the pain.
Then I found Prolotherapy. Which although very painful to get the injections helped a great deal. For a year and 3 months after the last set of injections I was pain free. Then for me it all came back as out of the blue as it started.
Over the last 5 years I went through several Neurosurgeons, Orthopedic Surgeons, Rheumatologists, etc... trying to get permanent relief. After they ruled out it wasn't a form of Arthritis, or some other strange disease. I then found a surgeon that took a look at my tests, films, reports, and told me that surgery would be the only way to fix the instability. And by the time I got to him two of my discs were already herniating but interestingly not to a point where most surgeons will take the risk due to my age. Those doctors said my back had normal wear and tear and I was actually misdiagnosed with something else. But the doctor that took the risk told me that fusing would help especially after he ran several joint blocks and other tests to prove the fusion could help. Since like all the drugs, all the therapy, all the tests, etc. there is nothing out there that definitely works for every one and every case. For me it came down to the fact that I was not willing to give up at my age looking for a way to get better. And I had exhausted all conservative treatment available. And this doctor had done many SI joint fusions which if you ever look for a spine surgeon many doctors have probably done disc fusions but the si joint is an area many doctors including the one I saw before this one told me he just didn't have the experience with. And this one had done many SI joint fusions.
But about mid summer I got my L4-5 to L5-S1 fused along with my left SI joint since the left side was the worst. And two weeks after my surgery I felt so much better than I had felt in months. Two months after the surgery I was able to stop taking Narcotics all together. And now I am just waiting for the si joint to completely fuse. Unlike most surgeons I was told not to go back to work or school until I was completely fused. Most people don't have the ability to stay home that long. Every day I get better and slowly I am getting my life back. I may have to go back to get the right SI joint fused at some point but for me this is what finally fixed my problem. NOTE: the pain is not entirely gone. But it is now manageable. And I can live with it. Before the surgery I was on Oxycontin and it wasn't even really doing anything more than taking the edge off.
So if you get to a point where you are considering surgery take your time. Get all the information you can about the surgery, and I do mean all, like ask your doctors where they go to get their info. Get all the info you can about the surgeon or surgeons you go to, get more than one opinion. Because not every surgeon has the same level of experience or success. And don't be afraid to ask for references. If a doctor is afraid of that then you should be concerned.
And honestly don't give up trying to get better. With all of modern medicine has to offer there is much more out there than most people are even aware of. The internet has a LOT information but unless you check out the source and credibility you could be sent on a wild goose chase.
