1. Repairs can be problematic. Few repair people. Ask about repair capabilities before buying.
2. China sells Japanese models for far less than you can get here. Alibaba.com
Try a spa where they rent them by the hour to see what you think before you buy.
Try to buy used, it’s usually a fraction of the cost new, since they are a specialty item
I think proper posture will go a long way towards relieving back pain. However, if one is post-surgery a chair specifically designed for that would be the way to go, I’d think. Check with your doctor.
No matter what it does it will eventually get boring.
Don’t use one myself but Dan Bongino advertises one on his show. Says it has a heater, cooler, adjustable arms, etc. Might check it out.
Off the top of my head, they really don't have any major back pain and just bought it for the "cool" factor.
They tend to be large and weird looking so having it in your living room will result in Martha Stewart coming to your house and making all your pictures hang crooked for the sin of having it. After having straightened their pictures for the hundredth time people sell.
Other reason is the reason lift chairs get sold. The person who used it died.
The first and last reasons are the most probable.
Try hibid.com. There are a lot of auctions, some with brand new merchandise (Amazon, Costco, etc.). I’ve picked up some real steals. You can filter by proximity to your zip code.
this one has a small foot print but does the job from the knees up. Synca Wellness Massage Chair CirC Wine Synthetic Leather Heated SL Track
Try the much much less expensive version first. It’s a shiatsu massager (Naipo) and it has worked GREAT for me, my mother in law, my son who has ice hockey injuries, and pretty much anyone who has visited here and used mine.
Walmart online still carries the brand I have (Naipo). $30 or less. I’ll send you the link PM because it’s long and screws up the page.
I suffer from sciatica so much so that
I ended up claiming disability. 47 years
in office chairs of all sorts.
I’ve tried masage recliners, some with
built-in heating pads, only to discover
they did very little to relieve the pain.
Relief (for me) is to sit slightly leaned
back with a small pillow just above my hips,
feet on the floor. The right amount of
lumbar support seems to help more than
masage.
I even went to a physical therapist 2 times
a week for 6 months. Masage was part of the
therapy. All to no avail. Frequency of
attacks, and pain severity remained the
same.
I do hope you find some sort of relief.
I wouldn’t wish this debilitating
condition on anyone.
For sciatica, get an inversion table. You can get them at Academy and wally world. Don’t buy the one on TV unless you want to blow 3 grand.
Got mine for around 150, works great.
Have you ever tried an Aqua Massage bed or table?
One of my chiropractors had one, and a lot of fitness places have them.
Buying one of your own is probably pretty pricey, and running it even more. But they are absolutely wonderful if you have back issues. A monthly membership in a fitness center that has these might be more economical.
https://www.hydromassage.com/products/
I had family who sold a line of massage chairs years ago... wicked expensive. I liked it but couldn’t justify the price. Then about 5 years ago I was travelling in China and ended up stuck in Shanghai airport for what seemed like half a day. Turns out there was a place there in the airport with a bunch of rental massage chairs that were dirt cheap and so I grabbed one... liked it so much, I must have been on it for about 3 hours. Never been on one since... I guess it fixed me up!
Our son just bought one. We have all used it to get rid of the muscle aches and pains after covid. And it really worked. Covid causes so much pain, stiffness, aches, fatigue. The chair REALLY helped work that out. So I would think it would work on all muscle aches and pains and fatigue.
My only advice would be not to buy one online without trying it out. I purchased two different ones from Costco online based on reviews and ended up returning both. It is a lot of work unboxing and assembling them and they are heavy. Once assembled, they will not fit through a 36” door opening and did I mention they are heavy?
Try tennis ball massage for relief of sciatic nerve pain. The pain is caused by piriformis syndrome. The piriformis muscle between the hip and pelvis swells and traps the sciatic nerve against the sciatic foramen. Tennis ball massage reduces the swelling and releases the nerve.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVCMzPJa8eY&t=62s
It cured my sciatica.
If you live close to a good gym give this a try
Swim therapy
Hydromassage chair
Red light therapy
Disadvantage at my gym is there is a time limit on the chair and you have to go up and ask for another ten minutes.
Plus I do not fit into the ergonomics of the chair so I have to move around to hit spots and it is very loud if your head is near the jets. I have to buffer and wear headphones
A chair is not going to help you. You need to find a good chiropractor, and an associated massage therapist. While you are at it, order the Relief Factor Quick start program, and actually take it.
A cheap “shiatsu” pad can work quite well. I don’t have sciatica but get ‘knots’ I can work out with the portable pads. The big recliner type massage chairs were OK but I prefer laying on top of the shiatsu massages and let it work where I need it by laying on it flat on the floor. I can get right where I need it in a way the recliners can’t. Also.... For nerve pain. CBD and a tiny bit of thc can work wonders for bad nerve pain. I speak from experience.