I suffered my first herniated lumbar disc at 17 years old and had my first discectomy when 18. The second slipped disc (different lumbar one) came along when i was 29 and I had another discectomy at 33. Im now 34, back pain and Sciatica has been a huge part of my life so far, the discectomy sorts out the Sciatica but the back pain remains at differing degrees depending on my activities.
One thing that can sometimes help me is to lie on my back on a hard surface with my knees bent both legs together, then gently rock my knees left to right toward the floor just as far as is comfortable. It seems to free those pesky muscles up up a bit!