Happy New Year!

I had it for years in my left leg only. Went down the outside of my leg into my knee. Then when it was very bad it would pass my knee and settle in my ankle. My mother had it and my DD has it. I always thought it went with being over weight. but my DD is very slender. Mine went away when I had a tummy tuck. So that tells me that my stomach muscles were not holding my back in the right place. But I also lost 65 pounds so it probably a combination of both. I told my Plastic Surgeon he should advertise for sciatica possible cure. I wonder if insurance would pay for that? I never want that pain back. If it is both legs, girl, you are in big hurt. You need to have a physical therapist work on you. They are very gentle and could give me relief so they should be able to help you. My insurance paid for it. .

Wow, I have mild pain with my problem compared to you. Good luck all. Lucy

I'm going to a chiro. He is definitely helping. Mine seems to be in the ankles a lot, too. Isn't that weird?

I actually had my first bout of this type of pain in my early 20s. Won't go into details, but college doc (I was married, ex is BIG) explained we needed to.....uhm, change positions, take stress off those joints. Should have dumped him then, he took that as a personal affront and refused to believe me when I told him.

Can attest it can be sudden and sharp enough to make you scream in misery, and/or dull, aching and chronic enough to drive a teetotaler to drunkeness for relief.

Since it was the infirmary, where they had mostly sports related injuries, they treated with deep heat (and I think ultrasonic?) treatments like they'd give a basketball player. MUCH, much relief.

Bonjon boy can I relate to you. Because of this terrible pain I have to lay down on a heating pad for about an hour before I go to bed each night. I suffer from just about anything and everything there is to do with back and leg pain. I have Restless Leg Syndrom also. The medicine they gave me worked wonderfully the first couple of months. Then the side effects of the medicine became worse than the original problems so I stopped taking it.

Now I take an Aleve in the morning and one at night about 3 0 minutes before I try to go to sleep and it helps more than anything else with no side effects to speak of. I lay on the heating pad on my lower back, and another thing I've been doing for over a year now is to give myself a rub down with one of those long handled hand massagers. I do my hips and both legs while I'm watching something I enjoy on T.V. Then when I'm finished I just put my ankle on it on the bed for about 10 minutes and let it shake out all the kinks that I might have missed. THis has the same effect of the machine they want over $300 for to set your feet on and relax your whole body. I just figured I'd save that money and yet get the same overall effect/workout.

I've had arthuritis for years from playing all kinds of sports all my life. Then tack on top of that gardening and let's just say I have no good body parts left. There is something wrong with all of the joints from over use throughout the many years I thought I had to be involved in some kind of sport or activity. Stack on top of that years of dancing and I can now see that my abused body didn't ever stand a chance.

There are only 2 positions that I can garden now and they both kill me by the end of the day.
1. I bend over at the waist and plant flowers or pull weeds nearly standing on my head. Do not bend knees or squat.
2. Set on my little garden buddy and roll up and down the flowerbeds and pull weeds, plant stuff, or whatever I can
that way. No matter which I do by the end of the day I can't straighten up and it takes a few minutes to get my back to even half way start to work again. But I'm not going to let any of this interfer with my gardening. Because that's what brings me great joy and keeps me sane if there is such a thing. LOL

I'll be glad when spring gets here. Then we can all forget these achs and pains and spend hours and hours out in our gardens. So here's to everyone having a wonderful New Year filled with nothing but happiness and tons of flowers.

Love My Iris Family Here more than you will ever know.
Marian

I think this is High Master but don't hold me to it. LOL

deep heat treatments are not the same as heat pad, Marian. no heat on the surface skin at all.

my chiropractor used electrical stimulation on me at his office last year when I had an attack, it felt similar and it wasn't that expensive. And I have my cylinder of Biofreeze. That stuff is GREAT!

(((weeding positions aren't what I was......oh, never mind....)))))))

I have Biofreeze, too. That does help with the back itself, but not the leg pain.

We're all falling apart here, aren't we? True gardeners, I guess.

I get such bad pain in left knee and hip but Chyro is great and go about every 6 weeks now. I also do the lean over from the waist and have a milk crate I sit on and bend over. No knee bends here as you can hear a loud crunching noise and then pain. Back is pretty good so no complaint there but stomach needs tightening for sure and if I could afford it I would get the tummy tuck but my insurance is lousy.
Need to lose some weight and ai know I would do better but it is so hard when I work around food so much.

What I is I use a balance ball that is shaped like a peanut, and lay on the back and row, I also take tonic water each night for the legs. I see the chiro about every 3 months except in spring.

Right now back is in a lot of pain because when I fell the doc said I bruised to the bone.

Hey guys we need to all lose the weight like Sharon (great job there gal) and get in better shape.

D

The best trick to losing weight is not to gain it back. In 1970-71, I lost 98# on Weight Watcher's, but after the death of our daughter in '75, it all came back on over time. In '86 broke my tibia and was stuck in a wheel chair for 8 months. Then I was diagnosed with Diabetes in '89 and lost some weight. I was 5' 5 1/2" tall at 14, but by now, probably 5' 4" or less. My present Dr cut down my metformin medication from 4 pills a day to 2, and the weight is coming back. I'm not a happy camper about that! But, I keep telling myself things could be a lot worse. Believe me, I feel everyone's pain. Gardening in my power chair is Paradise to me in the mountains. Can't hardly wait till Spring.

You Go Happy Jack I love the thought of you gardening in your power chair. There is this little old lady down the street from my sister and she has a huge veggie garden every year. She too is in her little power chair everyday out there working, hoeing, planting, harvesting, and so forth. If someone that didn't know her were to see the her vegetable garden and then see her in her chair, they would not believe that she was the only one that tended to it. It truely is amazing what someone can do no matter what kind of condition they are in if they really want to do something. I think it comes from the heart, and the will to not let the small things stop them from doing/living their lifes to the fullest.

I admire you and many others here on Dave's garden for doing the things that you enjoy even if it is much harder to do than it once was. Nope, I'm not going to let getting old and falling apart at the seams, and forgetting where I've already planted stuff ever stop me from gardening. Just tonight my older sister told me how much she worries about me getting too hot and maybe having a heat stroke, or a heart attack while working in the gardens and flowerbeds in the summer months. My response without missing a beat was "Oh what a wonderful way to go, Doing something that brings me such joy"! Then she said something along the line well what if you do but it doesn't kill you and you just lay out there for hours. My reply was then I guess I'll get a nice tan line or sunburn. She just shook her head and said I was hopeless when it comes to working and playing in the dirt.

I can't wait for Spring either, and winter just got here. LOL

I've changed my wishes since receiving this in an email:

My Wish for All of You in 2010

May peace break into your home and may thieves come to steal your debts.

May the pockets of your jeans become a magnet for $100 bills.

May love stick to your face like Vaseline and may laughter assault your lips!

May happiness slap you across the face and may your tears be that of joy

May the problems you had, forget your home address!

In simple words ............ May 2010 be the best year of your life!!!

Thanks for sharing the card Marian...Happy New Year everyone!!!!!

Happy New Year. I am out of here....!!!!!!@@

Happy New Year all my Friends. 2010 I am determined is going to be very good to us. Love you all.
Steph

Wishing everyone a Happy, Healthy & Blessed New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEARS
HAVE A GREAT 2010!!!

Happy New Year everyone!

HAPPY NEW YEAR IRIS FRIENDS! may 2010 be a great year for us all! May it be filled with God's blessings. And may you never forget He promises you enough strength to endure any hardship.

So many have said they need to lose. Anyone can join in on this if they want to.

I've started a "Get ME ready for iris season" thread.

Posted my goals - they say if you write down your goals you are more likely to achieve them....or at least stick to them longer.

Should have added to that thread-that you are not supposed to lose more than 2 lb per week--so don't believe some of the claims. Happy New Yr again & had great fun watching the rose parade this morning.