Hi Elaine: I've had this problem for years, off and on, and feel for you. Have you been doing "any" cycling, rowing or exercises that use your coccyx?
Usually this type of strain goes away by itself, but you "really" need to limit your sitting. If you have to sit use a pillow that has the cut out at the back of it or center so you aren't putting pressure directly on the tailbone.
If you have access to PT, they could do deep tissue massage, heat/ice or if you want to try a trigger point injection (of cortisone) those can help quite a bit, but everyone reacts differently to them so the relief could be for days, months, or up to a year, but I would only consider this if this goes on for a much longer time or the pain is unbearable.
This usually happens when you injure the tail bone by falling on it, or doing exercises that cause repetitive strain on that section of the spine.
The pain is usually caused by chronic inflammation to the area, so anti- inflammatories can help a lot. I like Motrin IB, but that decision would be up to you.
If the pain persists, you need to have an x-ray. Since you said it's easing up a bit, that's a good sign, but sitting for "any" length of time will make it worse. If you can't get one of the cut out pillows, make sure you sit on a firm chair; soft chairs cause your spine to put pressure on your sit bones, which in turn applies more pressure to the tail bone.
I hope it gets better, just keep an eye on it and don't do any exercises that use that part of your spine like those mentioned above and "squats". If you have "any" bladder or bowel disturbances, see a dr asap (which is not common) but something to watch out for; this only happens in severe cases, where you have a lot of trouble walking, sitting and standing and is caused from a direct trauma to the bone, like when you fall in a seated position.
Good Luck...
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