Are they planning to do the epidural to calm down the symptoms while they fix the actual cause through some other method?

Feeling like you've got a "crick" should be giving them a big hint about what the next step should be.

I wish I could get you in to my clinic. We've got a spine specialist that I'd *love* for you to see. Wanna come up to Seattle for a nice long vacation in the middle of the cold and rainy season?