Ch-ch-ch-cheeeeeto said:
squidley said:
Ch-ch-ch-cheeeeeto said:
Haven't surfed in a month plus, crippling pain still coming and going. Just about any exercise seems to set it off. Had a lumbar/coccyx x-ray today and I start PT in the next couple weeks.
Did you try tennis ball massage? Try it or stop hounding. It costs $1.50.
Another possibility is, stop sleeping on your stomach with your legs splayed. Sleep on your side with your knees together. This one takes a week.
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Yes, I've tried tennis ball massage, lacrosse ball massage, foam rollers, and the tightly-rolled up T-shirt. They mildly help until any exercise flares it again. I've been sleeping on my back with a pillow under the knees, might try the side.
Tennis ball massage takes two weeks, three times a day. Exercising while the piriformis is still inflamed is counter productive. It causes more inflammation.
Explanation: The piriformis, with the sciatic nerve, goes through a hole in the pelvis called the sciatic foramen.. Collagen wraps around the piriformis/nerve complex. The collagen gets broken and inflamed. It causes the complex to swell. The swelling traps the sciatic nerve against the pelvic hole preventing movement.
If you move it anyway then you cause more damage. Massage breaks up the spent collagen, and shrinks the piriformis. The sciatic nerve gets room to move without rubbing on the sciatic foramen. Then you can exercise.
This is all a vestige of the fact that humans evolved an upright gait while living in cool water. The sciatic foramen did not need to be large because the piriformis never inflamed. On land it's a different story.
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