600 mg Works Like Magic

Seated at a table at my son's last kung fu weapon's class, I suddenly remembered that I carry a small bottle of ibuprofen in my purse. My sciatica has been very painful for the past two days so I was surprised when after gulping down 3 tablets of ibuprofen with some water, I started to feel relief in 10 minutes. It's rare that I'm actually a witness to pain relief.

The recommended dosage is 2 tablets (400 mg). I pop 3 when the pain has been persistent and intense. I didn't know how well 3 tablets worked until one day over 30 years ago when I had super horrible menstrual cramps and an acquaintance gave me one of her magic pink pills. It was actually a 600 mg tablet of ibuprofen, specifically for menstrual cramps, and it worked like magic. And taking 3 regular dose tabs works much the same way. Just be careful not to take more than the daily total dosage. Inflammation is the root cause of so many ailments, and ibuprofen is a very effective anti-inflammatory.

Today my sciatica is much better and only really bothers me when I'm in the car. Car seats really suck for sciatic pain. Having to flex the foot to tap the brake and gas pedals doesn't help at all. I still don't want to stress my hamstrings and glutes since they're sore and just a hair trigger away from spasms. Hamstrings complained when pedaling backward, and I try to avoid sitting on the right glute when possible. Skipping the step machine as well as pull-ups since both involve flexing glutes and hamstrings, something sciatica advises against. 

It's also the Summer Solstice, which happened at 10:57 this morning. Happy Summer! I've been sampling Smirnoff Ice beverages since trying a lemon flavored one. The pure lemons aren't available anymore though, and the Pink Lemonade is a tad too sweet. Today, I buy a lemon/lime flavor and the checkout cashier chuckles that one bottle is overly full, like up to the cap instead of at the shoulder. Maybe things are looking up after all...

21 June 2023
Summer Solstice Wednesday
(Sciatica better after 2x ibuprofen)

Precor elliptical #1
Program 2
Time: 30 + 5 (5634)
Distance: 2.85
Cal: 318
Avg Hr: 148, 200-79

20 Hip Bridges
Crunches 60
Piriformis/Hip/Pencil Stretch
60 Dead Bugs
20 Hip Bridges
Elbow Plank 60s
Quick Child’s Pose
Cat stretch 12x
Fire Hydrants 30 x 2
Child’s Pose / Cobra Pose
Bird Dog Planks 60s x 2
Push-Ups 25
Air Squats 25
Upper body stretch
Eye yoga