Sacroiliac joint dysfunction

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...

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!

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,
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:

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.

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.

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).