Sacroiliac joint dysfunction

Mustang_Susie

Anyone else dealing with this?
I've been dealing with this for over 15 years.
I was told it happened when the ligaments in my pelvis loosened during my second pregnancy and allowed the joint to move out of alignment.
I went through physical therapy at that time and it was greatly improved for several years.
It had now come back with a vengeance especially since we've done a lot of traveling where I sit in our truck for several hours.
I have been doing strength training for the last few years in the hopes of strengthening the muscles and ligaments in my lower back/hip area.
However, it has gotten to the point where I'm leery to work out because of the pain and fear of causing further injury.

Has anyone found successful treatment?
Physical therapy?
Steroid injections?
Chiropractor?
Physiatrist?

I am an RN with my BSN, so understand the pathophysiology but I'm wanting to hear about practical treatments and their success or lack thereof.

Thank you

Mustang_Susie

Anyone?

ladynocturne

Massage therapy then

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> Chiropractic then

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> Physical therapy

Try to find a very knowledgeable Massage therapist, someone with at least 1000 hours of school. If they don't know what a sacroiliac joint is, then there is a very good chance they aren't the right one for you.

I am in general against steroid injections, they provide temporary reduction in swelling at the cost of weakening everything in that area.

Mustang_Susie

Thanks

Willbenchforcupcakes

Mine are still a little messed up from my second pregnancy, along with the sp joint. There are definitely days when just walking is enough, but I find chiro, and weight lifting to be the best - the stronger the muscles are, the better they are able to support the joints (and I have a laundry list of bum joints).

Mustang_Susie

Mine are still a little messed up from my second pregnancy, along with the sp joint. There are definitely days when just walking is enough, but I find chiro, and weight lifting to be the best - the stronger the muscles are, the better they are able to support the joints (and I have a laundry list of bum joints).

Those darn kids

aliciakay3086

My SI joint started acting up after a fall while running a couple of years ago - for a while there, it was pretty bad (i.e., lying in bed crying due to the pain - and I'm not a cry-er). Strengthening my core helped, also lots of regular hip and back stretching AND occasional chiropractic. It still pops all the time but if I stay active it doesn't hurt.

Elleinnz

I had some issues after my knee replacement surgery.

Physical therapy combined with good posture - I find that when I "slouch" it is much worse, so I have learnt to really sit up straigth - try and take as much pressure off the SI joint as possible - straight back, shoulders back :-) especially when I am travelling long distance...

Mustang_Susie

My SI joint started acting up after a fall while running a couple of years ago - for a while there, it was pretty bad (i.e., lying in bed crying due to the pain - and I'm not a cry-er). Strengthening my core helped, also lots of regular hip and back stretching AND occasional chiropractic. It still pops all the time but if I stay active it doesn't hurt.

What type of stretches do you do?

EmilyJackCO

I can only say that I empathize. I had a dislocated one for 2 1/2 years.... I tried *everything*, short of full blown chiro adjustments because in the state of California, they can't touch me because I've been diagnosed with Marfan Syndrome. The injury was a result of an assault...

I did not respond well at all to massage therapy, but in the many years since, that was not the fault of the therapist or the injury, but the fault of my environment and the life I led - Fukashima is less toxic than that life was, and it showed in my trying to heal. I did do physiotherapy three times a week and stretches twice a day. That was the only thing that made it manageable, and I walked on it. My only other option was surgery, and that was not an option at all. I basically lived on Vioxx and booze to tough through the pain... I'm not proud of it, but I was a sole-income in one of the most expensive cities in the country.

It was repaired, sadly enough, by getting hit by a car. I got hit just perfectly, in my left leg - and hit the ground on my left, and it was set back in....x-rays showed it was almost perfect. I kept up the physio for another 3 months to recover from the accident, and they cut me loose after that.

I still have a boatload of scar tissue that flares up from time to time. And my CURRENT massage therapist helps a lot. But I do work out a lot. I don't run due to asthma, but I lift 4 days a week and I walk on the treadmill. My lifting has been modified a bit to allow for my injuries. I am not allowed to deadlift yet. I don't do some of the powerlifting work, but I do what I can. I would say that the trick is to start out slowly and work through the pain. I'd also recommend starting with a physical therapist as opposed to a trainer, if you can. Just so that you can get started without hurting more than you need to, and then you push yourself as you feel you can.

It's worth it, and so are you!

phonepest

I have DJD and DDD... I've found steroid injections to be useless... at least for me. Physical therapy made it worse. (affected other areas and "tweaked" the sciatic nerve) I had marginal success with trigger point injections, the first couple times, but then they failed. What has helped the most, pain wise AND functionality wise, was stretching, then trigger point massage. This is not a nice relaxing massage... it's very deep tissue work. I have piriformus syndrome (basically an adhesion over the piriformus muscle) When I've had that adhesion worked on, I saw great improvement. I now have a Thera-cane device (basically a "reach-it" that uses leverage to put pressure on trigger points) and sometimes roll a tennis ball over the adhesion as well. It hurts like heck, but used regularly gives me the most relief. I DO know the piriformus muscle and the SI joints are two separate areas, but for me at least, relief in one generally leads to relief in the other. I also have a friend who swears by her Fentynal patch.
Best of luck finding the right treatment for YOU... don't give up, it's out there.

bumblebums

Yep, I've had this for over 20 years. Keeping it strong helped me a lot more than keeping it flexible. Whenever I stop being active, the pain returns with a vengeance--I can throw my back out with a sneeze if I am not careful. So strength is a must. Massage doesn't do an awful lot for me, though.

Mustang_Susie

Wow, this is almost therapeutic just reading about others!
("I thought I was the only one" syndrome).

The last time I went to my GP when the pain was really bad, he quickly told me that I strained a muscle and threw some muscle relaxers at me.
They do help me sleep in the camper after we've been traveling all day and my my hip is throbbing, but obviously not a long term solution.

Thanks for the input

Shari325

Mustang Susie,
You are definitely not alone. I have been struggling with this since my first pregnancy (27 years ago). Mine really flared up after a bout in the hospital - 8 days in a hospital bed - two years ago. I have good days and bad days now. Good days, it is just an irritation; bad days, I struggle to walk. Bad days, nothing seems to help - pain pills, pain patches, massage, chiropractic, physical therapy, stretching, rest, nothing!
I will say, four months of physical therapy taught me how to use and strengthen muscles to support the joints. I am getting to a place that I can move during a flare up without making the SI joints worse. I still can't run or even walk for any real distance. But, I can use the Elliptical and Bicycle (things that keep the pelvis stable) and I'm learning to lift some weights. :bigsmile:

Mustang_Susie

Thanks Shari. :flowerforyou:
It's so nice to be understood.
I get really frustrated when people say, "just lift heavy" and they have no idea what it feels like to have the joint shift out of alignment when I'm just sitting in a chair and have shooting pains go across my back, hip and down my leg.
I lift at the level I am able to but I need to be able to function- take care of my daughter and work as a nurse.

CoachDreesTraining

I don't know the level of your SI dysfunction, but a good percentage of my clients have some form of SI dysfunction.

My best advice is a lot of soft tissue work with a roller, lacrosse ball, or a tennis ball. Hitting your piriformis, glutes, tfl, and hip flexors. Once you restore your muscles to their original length, you can then perform various hip activation and stability exercise. Then of course it is important to strengthen your posterior chain, whether that is through squats, deadlifts, or any other exercise.

Stretching really won't do much because your muscles are not necessarily tight, but "overactive" as more of a guarding technique by your body.

aliciakay3086

My SI joint started acting up after a fall while running a couple of years ago - for a while there, it was pretty bad (i.e., lying in bed crying due to the pain - and I'm not a cry-er). Strengthening my core helped, also lots of regular hip and back stretching AND occasional chiropractic. It still pops all the time but if I stay active it doesn't hurt.

What type of stretches do you do?

Yoga stuff - twists, pigeon, butterfly, cat/cow. Anything that focuses on lower back and hips.

ealinn

I have this also. Pregnancy related as well. Chiropractor & yoga have helped. Also, I work at a desk so I make sure I get up frequently and stretch. Also sometimes sit on an exercise ball instead of my desk chair. You can get a chair disk to sit on in your truck.

Mustang_Susie

I have this also. Pregnancy related as well. Chiropractor & yoga have helped. Also, I work at a desk so I make sure I get up frequently and stretch. Also sometimes sit on an exercise ball instead of my desk chair. You can get a chair disk to sit on in your truck.

Practical, applicable advice!
Thank you. :flowerforyou:

bumblebums

Just my 2 cents here--excessive flexibility, especially in the SI joints, did not help me, and if anything it made the problem worse. I did yoga for years, and in classes, when the teacher sequenced the poses in just the wrong enough way, I would sometimes be unable to stand up straight after doing one of those one-sided "hip opening" asanas.

Conversely, strengthening--especially the kind of exercises that require bilateral symmetry--helps me a lot, and it helps quickly nip an incipient attack in the bud. I mean things like planks, Purvottanasana, and of course barbell squats, loaded back extensions, and deadlifts (though you have to do all of these carefully if you are prone to blowing your back out with a sneeze).

Mustang_Susie

Just my 2 cents here--excessive flexibility, especially in the SI joints, did not help me, and if anything it made the problem worse. I did yoga for years, and in classes, when the teacher sequenced the poses in just the wrong enough way, I would sometimes be unable to stand up straight after doing one of those one-sided "hip opening" asanas.

Conversely, strengthening--especially the kind of exercises that require bilateral symmetry--helps me a lot, and it helps quickly nip an incipient attack in the bud. I mean things like planks, Purvottanasana, and of course barbell squats, loaded back extensions, and deadlifts (though you have to do all of these carefully if you are prone to blowing your back out with a sneeze).

Yes, SI dysfunction is either from the muscles being too tight or too loose.
Mine are definitely too loose.
I hear all kinds of cracks and pops in my hip and lower back just when I'm walking.
When I go down to do a plank my spine sounds like bubble wrap being popped.
Planks actually don't cause me any discomfort, it's more the squats and dead lifts that make me leery... :noway: