I refused to take my muscle relaxer last night after 4/5 margaritas, and I’m feeling it today. Steroids are doing their best though
My L5 :: S1 is paper thin, and I've been dealing with it for 2 years now. Muscle relaxers are pretty much useless for pain management for me, but your mileage may vary. This is probably the last thing you want to hear, but I've basically stopped drinking, and that has helped more than anything. Alcohol and tobacco stir up some serious inflammation.
A stand-up desk has also been a godsend, because sitting for long periods really trigger it. I had covid in January, and my only symptom was extreme fatigue. Spent a lot time sitting around and the back pain became almost unbearable. Used a heating pad so much that I developed "toasted skin syndrome" lol.
The human body is pretty remarkable, but that whole spinal cord thing has some serious design flaws. Back pain is a *****; hopefully you can get some relief without any serious medical procedures.