55 year old, overweight (5'9", 220 lbs) male with intermittent, sharp pain that appears at the rear of the top of the legs, just below the buttocks that has persisted for several years.
Usually, there is no pain on rising in the morning, and I can easily walk the 5.5 miles to work without discomfort. However, extending the spine _ as in reaching for something on a high shelf, looking at the moon, missionary sex, sleeping on my
stomach with my head on a high pillow, stretching in bed in the morning, etc _ will bring on the pain described above. Similarly, slow walking or standing _ as in grocery shopping or attending a cocktail party _ also elicits the pain, but only after fifteen or twenty minutes. The pain worsens as the day goes by so that by the time I get to bed, even turning over can be quite uncomfortable.
Interestingly, if I touch my toes or squat on my heels, the
pain disappears immediately, just as if someone had turned
off a light switch. (However, for some reason, my wife says its
embarrassing to walk with me in the park, when I'm duck walking.)
Such flexion usually brings relief that lasts several minutes.
Similarly, sitting down, especially while keeping a curve in
my back, kills the pain.
I wonder if someone can attach a name to this condition or point me to some information. I have variously thought that it could
be spinal lumbar stenosis or pyriformis syndrome, but the pain
is so tightly focused to the one area that I am unsure. My GP
says, no doubt rightly, that, since I can walk several miles
without pain, I am not a candidate for surgery.