Spondylitis Association of America Forums General Discussion General Message Board for Ankylosing Spondylitis and Related Diseases Foam rollers

Hi

I am thinking about getting one of these. Does anyone use it and is it helpful?

Thanks,

Jasmine

I have a foam roller and I LOVE it!! It works well for my SI joint pain. I have noticed that I have less pain after using my foam roller and then the next day, I am almost pain free. It has been the best $20 I ever spent and I use it often.

Miz Que

My sister has one (not for AS) and has been in a lot of pain when used on her muscles by a therapist. But she bought one anyway so it must work. Just make sure you use it correctly.

foam roller fires up my SI joint something fierce. Used to use a tennis ball around the area too. And sat on it to release the piriformis. Worked until it got real bad and now it aggravates it.

Jasmine, on what body part are you thinking of using it? Like jp93, for my SIJs it was a no-go, but when I was a runner it was helpful on muscle pain in my legs.

I use it on my performis (not sure if that's spelled correctly) and IT band, because they are important to SI and knee function, respectively. I wouldn't dream of rolling actual joints, but it's great for stuff that's difficult to stretch.

(whispers) piriformis

They had me try it a few years ago for my IT band. I thought it was one of the most sadistic things anyone ever did to me! It was horrifically painful. We suspect that I have trochanter bursitis, but my whole IT band on both sides is always very painful when touched. But whatever is wrong, the roller was not the way to fix it for me.

So I guess it just depends on what your issue is. Some people like it, but if it makes it worse, don't do it!

Thanks, Jen!

I agree with Brenda, if it hurts too much, don't do it. I work mainly on the lower half of my IT band, though, because it tends to stir up buritis if I go near my trochanter.

My physical therapist just had me lay across it vertically. That's all I do now. Sometimes I roll from side to side to get my shoulders. But I just do what I was doing in physical therapy.