Injury advice needed

slieber

Hoping someone will know this:

I fell at poolside almost 2 weeks ago (at the gym). I fell directly on the area just above the tailbone (not ON the tailbone), essentially the lower back. The bones are fine, but the tissue is painful. It did not bruise.

I can bend over gently - straightening up uses more muscles and hurts. I can't put any weight on the area at all (e.g. to do a pilates type scissors-type core exercise where you are moving arms and legs together - hope you can work it out!).

I have more intense sciatic pain (had it before, and it was improving somewhat, but now it's all the time on the right side).

What I wanna know is...how long before I can return to normal activities? What should I be doing NOW to make it better (yes, I know ice and heat and all that, but I think it's beyond that level after all this time...or is it?)? Is there anything I can do to speed up the healing?

I lost a week's worth of ballet classes due to this pain, although it's not impeding normal, daily activities. It doesn't feel like an ache that one gets from overusing the muscle, or a muscle strain. Just an impact pain, if you know what I mean.

Any ideas would be gratefully received!!
Thanks! :sad:

slieber

Hoping someone will know this:

I fell at poolside almost 2 weeks ago (at the gym). I fell directly on the area just above the tailbone (not ON the tailbone), essentially the lower back. The bones are fine, but the tissue is painful. It did not bruise.

I can bend over gently - straightening up uses more muscles and hurts. I can't put any weight on the area at all (e.g. to do a pilates type scissors-type core exercise where you are moving arms and legs together - hope you can work it out!).

I have more intense sciatic pain (had it before, and it was improving somewhat, but now it's all the time on the right side).

What I wanna know is...how long before I can return to normal activities? What should I be doing NOW to make it better (yes, I know ice and heat and all that, but I think it's beyond that level after all this time...or is it?)? Is there anything I can do to speed up the healing?

I lost a week's worth of ballet classes due to this pain, although it's not impeding normal, daily activities. It doesn't feel like an ache that one gets from overusing the muscle, or a muscle strain. Just an impact pain, if you know what I mean.

Any ideas would be gratefully received!!
Thanks! :sad:

kerrilucko

Maybe it did bruise but you can't see it, might be deep. I would see a doctor to make sure nothing is wrong though, unless you already did that. Otherwise go easy until you feel 100% again. That sounds VERY ouch! You should file a complaint against that place!

tpdance

yep, maybe bruised deep like tissue or bone, which can take up to 4 weeks to heal (from personal experience). Rest would prob be best, stick w/ cardio for now and any other strengthening that doesn't hurt. I personally use a chiropractor, so that may help w/ sciatic stuff (if u slipped a disk or pinched a nerve), but thats a personal preference.

So much it could really be, need professional advice, after know more of what happened and whats wrong or have a diagnosed injury, then I could try to help u w/ an exercise prescription.

best of luck, hope it's fast healing!

icandoit

Go to the doctor. My husband fell on his lower back. He just rode the pain. It ended up being a broken tailbone. He swears he did not fall on the bone. Just be safe and have it checked out.

natashav

i think you bruised the muscles, which you cant see the bruise all the time. Maybe you should try to put some icyhot on it or maybe a heating pad. that might make it feel better.

tekrueger

I know what you ae going through: Last Wednesday I bruised myback too. For me it was an impact on a vertebrate and on both my scapulas. Not nice.
What I did was ride it out one day then I went to my geneal doctor and he prescribed an appropriateantiinflammatory drug and an xray. Fortunaty, no broken bones for me.
I was able to return to work out on Monday (thanks to the anti-inflammatories!)
I suggest you go to a doctor to check to exclude a major problem...xrays, anti-inflammatoes or whatever you may really ed.
I have found myself that if - with a good doctor - he can match a drug thats appropriate for our problem. There is no reason to "tough it out". Ok?
A few days with the right help (after checking that you haven't a more serious problem) and you are back to functioning.
Interesting that for back injuries I have read several studies that indicated that bed rest did little to help and actually delayed recovery; light activity sped up recovery in most cases.
Take care.
Thomas

slieber

Thanks for the info. That's really helped. I'm sure it's not broken, as I've had broken bones in that general area before (it was h*ll!).

I did tell the place that if mats weren't down within the week, that I would sue them. They got the mats.



It's just really sore. I do worry about the sciatica, which is worse than the back pain itself. I use anti-inflammatories for the back and sciatica, as well as mild exercise (stretching seems to relieve it for several hours, actually).

Just really, really annoyed. Can't get to the doctor easily because of my job. :-(

Thanks again!
S.

banks1850

Definately see a doctor though, cuz that could be a disk issue. I say that because of the sciatica. That's where a lot of nerves connect to the spine, and if a disk is inflamed or bulging it can cause shooting leg pain. And disk can sometimes feel fine to the touch and still be a problem. a good mri will tell them if there is an issue, it can spot things that XRAY's can't because sometimes the disk is a problem with cartelage(sp?) and not bone.

ariannedavis

Question about the location. Run your thumbs around your hip bones toward the middle of your spine. Before you get there, you will sink into some divit type spots on each side. Is this tender? Is the pain near that, more midline, higher or lower? (This divit is your Sacroilliac joint = SI) You may have simply sprained it as you would an ankle. A grade 2 or three ankle can take weeks to months to heal, so patience is key.

Especially if you already deal with sciatic problems. Typically these affect more soft tissue near the spin or in the butt. The sciatic nerve actually runs through the piriformis muscle, so when that gets inflammed or strained, it compresses the nerve even more. A wonderful viscious cycle that needs reversed! If stretching works for you try this: put your leg on the bed so that your knee is bent at 90 degrees and you are looking at the inside of your foot. slowly lean forward until you feel it stretch (if the bed is too high, select a small chair, step stool, etc). Now begin to rotate the same direction your foot is pointing while still leaning forward. Then across your leg/away from your foot. This is one of the most successful self-manipulations I have come across & use myself. One thing you can have someone help you with: lie on your side so that your hips are directly one over the other. Have someone press down on your top hip bone (do this on a soft surface). You should feel like your hip bones are opening up at the SI joint. Now, while you are being compressed, hug your top leg into your chest, then holding it there, straighten the leg out from the knee. Have the person release while your leg is out in front of you. Repeat about 3 times, then roll over & do the other side.

Try sleeping with a pillow/blanket between your knees so that you take the stress off the SI joint allowing it to rest and heal.

Good luck!
ps, I work in sports medicine; just so you don't think some crazy person is giving you advice!

slieber

Excellent advice, thanks! I'm an ex-ballet dancer, so I know something about the anatomy.

The tender spot is higher than the hip joints, although the angle I fell at would have involved my right hip joint to some degree. The pain is NOT in the coccyx (sp?) at all. If you put a tape measure around the exact middle of my back, it's slightly below that - at least, that's where I hit.

The fall aggravated the sciatica to the point where I'm going to look for an acupuncturist to see if that will help. Chiropractic work actually made it worse, although the chiro/osteopath I had overseas, before, had made it better.

I do the stretches you have suggested, using the ballet barre I have at home and what I use at the dance school. I also do the stretches at the gym, using their railing (little did they know how creative their members can get - I've seen others follow example when they saw me using it! LOL!).

I'm a bit confused about the last recommendation you gave, though - the one where someone presses on the top hip bone? Can you point to me toward an illustration or something of that? I don't want to break anything. I take a private lesson once a week with a ballet teacher, for the sole purpose of bringing me as back as possible to some sort of strength before I go off to an intensive dance camp this summer, and I know she'll help me with this if I can get her the info.

Thanks!! :flowerforyou:

ariannedavis

Hmm, I don't have a drawing for you. It's actually a variation of a special test that I have come to use over the years for therapy. Just lie on your side like you would in bed. Don't allow yourself to roll forward or back: the keeping your hips atop one another description. Have your instructor kneel behind you so that you are able to manipulate your leg in front. I use a double handed grip like doing CPR and rest the heel of my hand along & just under the hip bone. Get up over the hips, again like doing CPR & press straight into the ground, allowing the hip to move toward the front. You should feel significant opening at your SI because of your dance background. It takes a bit of practice to find the right spot but it's easier than it sounds! Good luck!

Oh, and with the stretches you are doing on the bar, try a lower surface so that you can curl over your leg. At least most bars I've seen are a bit higher which will contract the hamstrings more than a lower surface which will allow more focus on deeper hip/back muscles.

slieber

So what you're saying is a bend over the leg rather than the leg being up to shoulder height is better for the stretch? I have a lower surface I can use (my barre at home and the one at school are both double barres).

Your further explanation has helped tremendously. I can vicariously feel the relief, actually!! LOL!

I'm printing it out for her to see. Thanks again so much!!

S. :flowerforyou: