[runner]

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Thanks so much, Sara, for your post.

Yes, you have to be careful. On Aug. 22, I was in PT and felt a sharp pain on my right side of my back and then nothing. I was doing the side stepping band exercise and felt it again and my therapist noticed.
After that we took out some back exercises and that seemed to help.
My therapist then thought that my muscle soreness was caused by my weak back and hip flexor muscles. My core muscles have gotten a lot stronger but getting the back muscles strong has been more difficult.

Anyway I didn't feel any sciatica until Sept 5th and around the same time, I started getting increased numbness in my lower legs and for the first time since my surgery, numbness above my knees.

Any exercise causes me pain, it is eighty-sixed.

The thing is it is real easy to tick off your back muscles after surgery. People have mentioned on here that walking hills can hurt as well as walking too far.

It is a balancing act to try to get core/back muscles strengthened and not cause more problems.
I think this is the case whether you have ADR or fusion.

The sciatica I have been feeling intermittently cranked itself up this morning. It feels like I tore my right hamstring.
Taking tylenol and aleve for pain and inflammation and using ice, of course.

Resting a little, too. There just is not much downtime in my household with four kids running around. But there is no boredom, either. Too much to do.