meralgia paresthetica exercises (outer thigh numbness and pain)

I want to devise some exercise routines to help with the pain in my leg.

There are a lot of things that can cause meralgia paresthetica, basically, something go wrong with this nerve that comes out of L2-L3 in the spine and make bad symptoms on the outside of the upper leg.  Trauma, pinching, or compression of the nerve is most common.  numbness, burning, electric shock, and tearing pain are some of the most common symptoms.

In my case, compression of the nerve when I'm standing or walking slowly like in a supermarket.  The longer I stand, the more numb the leg gets.  Then when I sit down and take pressure off the nerve, feeling returns with mild pain, like skin warming up too quickly from frostbite (yes, that's mild pain by my standards), and when I go to stand after the nerve has started working again, the real pain starts.  I always imagined being eaten alive by a cougar would feel like this, electric shocking,  burning, flesh tearing pain.  

Anyway, symptoms vary among people and different places the nerve is damaged.  

I like the idea of using my expierence to build up some exercises routines that might help future readers as well as help me get through this while I wait for tests to show what's actually wrong with the nerve. Any suggestions you might have, even if I can't use it, others might be able to.

The doctor advised me to be mild with any treatment or exercise I do before the the tests as my specific case may be caused by a more serious spine problem.   Think yoga rather than chiropractor.

What I'm seeking is...
...a 10 min routine I can do a few times a day
...a 2 min routine I can do while standing
... mild stretching I can do without looking weird that will reduce the damage when I'm standing for long periods of time.

This seems a good starting place.

Hmmm, I think I need some sort of way to document which exercises are which.  A name and picture system?

Also, am I supposed to just do the side that hurts, or both?

I haven't watched the video, but I have dealt with low back issues (mild rotational scoliosis at the lower spine for decades).

This isn't quick, but if you have a platform/old table top longer than your height, lay it on the ground so that one end is higher and make up a sling/clip system to hold you with the feet at the high end so you are letting gravity gently  stretch your spine/discs which will give the nerves more space. My friend has a very expensive fancy machine that does essentially this. My son has very strong arms and hands so he will just hang from a ledge by our stairs.

You don't want too much slope to begin with - hard on the blood system that isn't used to it.
You don't want too much time to begin with - even two minutes and build a bit each time to be safe.
Something relaxing so you don't fight it - music, a talking book, what works for you.

I will try to watch the video later.

I'm getting great relief from painful hip and knee joints by placing a flattish pillow under the doona on the mattress at upper thigh position (it varies, just enough elevation to relieve pressure on the lower back)
I still have to fidget a bit throughout the night, but mornings have been mostly pain-free since I started. I don't know if this will help you, but it's worth a try.

I heard him say both sides, r ransom. thanks for posting this.

I know this is not what you are seeking though ...

Just curious, have you tried the magnesium spray made from magnesium bath flakes that I talked to my neurologist about?

Do you take magnesium?

Anne Miller wrote:I know this is not what you are seeking though ...

Just curious, have you tried the magnesium spray made from magnesium bath flakes that I talked to my neurologist about?

Do you take magnesium?

Good thing to think about.

My magnesium levels test on the high end of normal, so I only take what's in the multi vit.  Mag, zinc, and calcium are some of the first things the dr looks at when a chronic pain condition comes up.  Although, I find with my body, it's more related to muscle based pain.  

And that ties in with an observation I had watching way too many videos on this last night, most exercises deal with the nerve pinching in the muscle or connective tissue.  The dr suspects mine is more likely a spinal problem, so only gave me spine based ideas (lumbar support, postures to releases pressure like laying on floor with legs on bed, etc).  But if most people's problem is caused by muscle issues, then minerals imbalance is something worth looking at.

As the mild things haven't done anything to slow the progression, and rest didn't either, I can't see the harm in trying some more gentle exercises.  The doc could be wrong (hopefully) about the cause.  Tests will tell eventually

Exercises I tried so far.

The doorway one in the above video is hard to get right but can be snuck into everyday moments, one or two reps.

The hanging leg off bed one, I don't think will work first thing as I'm too not-awake enough to do anything pre coffee.  But I tried it at night and only had mild snapping. Most of that was ligament, so loud, but not painful.

I'm not a fan of searching for health stuff online.  It's frustrating to find information that fits me.  It's so frustrating, I turned to one of those ai chatbots.  (I'm not a fan of AI chatbots).  After testing it on muscovy duckling care (about 70% correct), sheep care (very accurate) and other things I know a lot about (yarn), I tried for advise with this medical issue.  At first the replies were generic, but I told it some of what the doctor said and it gave me some interesting things to think about.  

It helped design a yoga routine I will try (if I can ever find my yoga mat) and get back to you on.  All the postures it suggests are ones I've seen in videos already like cat-cow.

Then I asked it for suggestions on how to stop the symptoms when standing for long periods.  There was a lot of info, but here is the summary it put at the end.  

Standing Tips for Meralgia Paresthetica
---------------------------------------
• Shift weight every 1–2 min (rock, alternate legs)
• Feet: hip‑width, toes forward/slight out
• Low‑heel, wide‑toe shoes; avoid tight belts/jeans
• Use anti‑fatigue mat or slight platform
• Posterior pelvic tilt: gentle glute squeeze
• Micro‑breaks: sit 30 s every 5–10 min
• Core/glute activation: brief standing bridges
• Check posture hourly (feet, weight, pelvis, breath)

It's worth a try as I can't see anything here going against my dr recommendations.  

I was diagnosed with this, and my symptoms were very similar to what you described.  I saw a physical therapist who had me do some things in his office that satisfied him that it was not from spinal compression.  This nerve travels across the abdomen just inside the hip bone and any compression here from body fat or tight clothing inflames the nerve and creates the symptoms of burning, numbness and tingling.  There is no loss of muscle control or strength from this.  PT prescribed exercises to strengthen the glutes, particularly the minimus.  I did these and they helped, I assume because it altered my pelvis tilt when standing and walking to take pressure off the nerve.  I still do these.  I am a skinny guy so not much body fat.  But what really got rid of my symptoms was when I stopped wearing pants with too short of rise.  With higher waisted pants that put my belt above my hip bones instead of across them, the problem went away.  The problem started when I bought several medium waisted pants and used a stiff belt.  An elastic belt helped, but the real key is getting it above the hip bones.

I don’t know about the first three exercises in this video, but the last two were prescribed by my PT and really made a difference.

Doug Hack wrote:... But what really got rid of my symptoms was when I stopped wearing pants with too short of rise.  With higher waisted pants that put my belt above my hip bones instead of across them, the problem went away.

There are several links between tight clothing and various health problems, so this does not surprise me - I'm *really* glad your PT helped you figure it all out. Chronic pain is nasty and tends to lead to other problems.

I will note here, that I'm having great difficulty finding women's pants that have the waistband at the waist and not over the hips. The part of my brain that relates to the term, "Enshitification" thinks that fast fashion did this to save a nickel's worth of fabric on every pair!

So rather than change the focus of this thread, I will just add links to the sewing forum and the SkIP Textiles Program, and encourage people to help us all keep the skills of home sewing alive - and actually get comfy clothing that fits us!

High waisted mens pants are also very difficult to find - out of ‘fashion’.

My other half has the same difficulty.  She recently found some “First Ascent Guide pants” from Eddie Bauer that she says are almost high enough, and are very comfortable.  Strangely enough these are the women’s version of my favorite pants that caused my problem.  The nylon fabric stretches and is lightweight for active wear and warmer weather.  I love them, except for the not quite enough rise.  If I tug mine up firmly and tighten my belt at my waist they don’t pinch my nerve.  Worn normally they are more like hip huggers.  Apparently the women’s version is cut a little bit higher.

Got my tests results and it's not a sign of other nerve decay (still waiting on mri) but got the okay from the dr to do yoga and stuff.

The nerve dr said it's 100% weight and suggested the normal things.  Problem is, the one nerve dr didn't seem to understand, is my weight isn't from diet or lack of exercise.  I don't eat anywhere near 2k calories a day as hunger has nothing to do with my recent weight gain.  It's the meds making me shorter and fatter.  I often forget to eat until 4pm or later...which reminds me to eat some breakfast.  Plant based diet he recommends has more fibre which is good, but way more calories and less iron than my current leafy green focused diet with red meat 2 or 3 times a week.  I'll take the suggestions and incorporate more beans into the diet as I like beans.  I'm not sure the rest fit well for me.

The standing exercises I copied above are showing promise, but sitting frequently isn't helpful.

Yoga is more exercise, so I decided it fits in with nerve dr recommendations for weight loss.