Well, it's 11:39 on Friday night. I've already had both hours of sleep I will get tonight.
About 2& 1/2 weeks ago I tripped over the edge of a sidewalk at work (reading while walking is a fool's game) and landed hard on the left knee and point of my left hip.
For the first few days I was sore, but it was lessening each day. Then last Thursday my whole left leg began to throb and burn from the point of the hip to the top of the foot.
Lots of Advil and little sleep Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights. I was so exhausted that I started to hallucinate. My favorite was the grey figure running alonside my car as I drove at 58 mph back from the Walmart where I had bought a deep-heating pain relief creme in a desperate attempt. . .
I did lots of research online and talking to others, and self-diagnosed it as sciatica. Wednesday I went to my doctor, described my symptoms, and he talked about spinal stenosis and inflamed nerves (in layman's terms, Sciatica*) and prescribed Prednisone to reduce the inflammation, and Flexiril to relax the muscles and help me sleep.
I was to start the Prednisone Thursday morning, but the flexiril was for that night. Within one hour of taking it, I was barely able to walk, and the pain was worse than it had been at any time. Worse by far than when I broke my collarbone riding an innertube down an ice-covered ski slope in Anchorage and wound up in traction for a week (youth, foolishness, don't ask).
I spent the whole of Wednesday night /Thursday morning whimpering, as I staggered from bed to computer chair to floor to armchair in the living room, all in a mad whirl of trying to find someplace (ANY PLACE) to be comfortable. I was not even thinking of sleep any more, just a reduction of pain.
Anyway, I took the first 6 Prednisone tablets a little after 2 am (that's morning, right?) and by 5:30 or so was able to sleep a bit. By that afternoon I felt GREAT! No pain, no worry, fit as a fiddle and ready to fight (did I mention that Prednisone is a steroid?). To the best of my ability, I did a little soft-shoe dance.
Trouble is, that having taken it so early, it also wore off early, so by 6:30 I was in bed, already beginning to feel that ache, and praying I could get to sleep and stay there before it went Whole-Hog-Harry on my ass (literally, as it had now moved into my buttock as well) . I made it to sleep by about seven, and made the mistake of moving in my sleep at 11:15.
Did I mention that when taking Prednisone you cannot used any other NSAIDS (i.e.: aspirin, advil, etc) so I had no recourse but tylenol which has about the same effect on me as near-beer on an alcoholic.
So, THIS (Friday) morning, I gave in to the pain and took my 6 pill Prednisone dose at 1:45 (you see where this is leading, right?) and felt not quite as good for not quite as long, but hey, I did get my required two hours of sleep before waking a little after 10 pm.
I promised them I would come in to work, tomorrow, and promised myself I would not take today's Prednisone until at least 5 am, which gives just a little over 5 more hours before the dose (and at least 3 more before I feel an effect).
Oh, and I am on the 'Taper' regimen, so today and tomorrow the dose will be 5, rather than 6 for, I am certain, an even shorter time of good effect.
Ah well. That took about 50 minutes to write, so at least I kept my mind off the aching for that long.
*Note that when the doctor diagnosed, it was capitalized.
