I’ve now been using the lumbar traction device for about 6 weeks, 3 times a day 15-20 minutes a time. That means I’ve spent 40 odd hours lying there looking ‘odd’.
Well is it working? Simple answer is yes, certainly to relieve symptoms. I can now feel my shin again, its not numb any more. The sciatic pain now doesn’t go below my hip, where as over Christmas is was going right down to my foot. I am more mobile generally and moving less like a robot. The other major difference is that for three weeks in a row, when seeing the physio, my lower back stability is much better, no pelvis / SI joint misalignment, something I’ve not had for years, meaning no crunching and cracking from Ivor the physio!
But…. I still get lower back ache and have to be very careful I don’t over stretch. I use a lumbar roll most of the time and if I stand up for too long I get pain.
I am also icing a couple of times a night and doing core stability exercises when I feel able.
My orthopedic referral has now come through. Staffordshire has an Orthopaedic Triage center which provides initial assessment of backs, hips and legs, to prioritise treatment. My appointment is next Friday, so Ill know then how long I will have to wait for possible injections or other invasive treatments.
In the meantime I will carry only slowly building my Whyte E5 in readiness for whenever I am allowed back on a bike proper !