Life Update 4/26/26: Sciatica is killing me . Please don't read this if you're in a bad headspace.

Typed this whole post on my phone so I hope spelling and grammar is ok.Had a hard time doing headers and formatting so it's just paragraphs, sorry . (Ghost really needs a native Android app)

Life has been absolute hell lately. Most recently I have had an absolute huge sciatica flare up. I went to the hospital in a ambulance on Friday night April 17th.I was in excruciating pain to the point they were measuring my vitals , I honestly barely made it to the ambulance itself. Having almost healed myself from a injury from six months ago this was a huge blow to me mentally.

In the hospital it took 7 pricks for them to do blood work and an IV so that was fantastic , though to be fair to the nurses I have hard veins in general so being dehydrated didn't help. I got some nice bruises and huge black and blue marks that still haven't faded from that. I was given an IV with painkillers twice and then promptly kicked out the next morning with a prescription for Arcoxia and Tramadol+Paracetamol.

At home I started taking the above medications for the next few days.The Tramadol did not seem to do anything at all. Sunday I wasn't able to flip over in bed. Monday and Tuesday we're slightly better I think due to Arcoxia calming down the inflammation a bit.I still barely could walk to the bathroom about 30 feet from my room. Having to stop multiple times on the way to lean on things. I slept an average of 2 hrs a night for the rest of the week.

Wednesday was ever so slightly better and I could walk to the bathroom in agony but I didn't need to stop along the way. My mental health at this point had reached a all time low and I was trying to find somewhere to get a steroid injection but to no avail.Phone calls and text galore to different DR's and organizations didn't get me anywhere.

Thursday having given up on a steriods injection I continue calling places and people for close to eight hrs straight. I finally reached a organization that helps with Dr recommendations. I also spoke to my psychiatrist who told me to go off the Tramadol and switch to Lyrica . I don't know if that helped but it definitely didn't make it worse and is much healthier than Tramadol. I was able to go outside for a couple if minutes and make myself a coffee.

Friday was the first day I could walk around without increasing pain. I managed to have coffee with my friend Moshe at out house. I was also able to make it to a Shabbat meal by our adopted family who lives next door to us about 150 feet away.I was feeling good on Friday but tried to take it slow.I managed to sleep 5 hrs though which was good.

Saturday morning comes around and I must have overdone it as I was pretty miserable. My pain levels where somewhere between Wed and Thursday levels around a 8/9 when moving 7/8 when laying in bed. Saturday evening was a bit better to around Thursday pain levels. I managed to sleep around 3 hrs last night.

I am writing this Sunday morning and have a MRI scheduled for tonight. I am absolutely terrified as the typical back with feet raised position used for a MRI with back pain isn't working for me and I can only lay on my side without excruciating pain .

I have basically one position I have been in for a week straight:on my side with pillows underneath and legs curled near me with a circle in my back .I am going nuts worrying about it. Hopefully it will go ok. Today's pain levels currently are around Thursday levels.

I hope to aggressively get in front of this now having learned my lesson of trying to heal by myself. I hope I can get a MRI with things that I can work on and ideally a steriods shot or oral steriods blitz once they check and I run out of Arcaxia .

Checking out for now.

This is day 20 of #100DaysToOffload