Herniated Discs : Remedies?

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by kevman

Truth.

The hardest part about yoga is keeping yourself under control when your face is inches away from some hot 19 year old bum. However, if you can manage to keep it under control you will find you'll be stronger, more flexible and have much better balance. All three of which don't hurt when it comes to quality of life!

I'll stick to cardio and weights. As much pleasure as it would give me to ram my face into a hot 19 year old girls bum, knowing my luck I would be sitting behind some 50 year old morbidly obese woman who smells like slightly moldy cheese.

[Jets4Life]

Just a quick update:

I have been swimming twice a day, usually averages out to be 75-90 minutes a day. it has helped me tremendously, as it is the only exercise that helps loosen my back up. I have found walking distances has helped reduce the tension as well. Unfortunately, cycling aggrevates it, and I am not even thinking about weight training at this point.

As for medicine/drugs, I was given a Rx for Naproxen and T-3's. The Tylenol 3's brought relief initially, but I found I had to rely on them more and more. I switched to marijuana. It is much better, as I was scared of becoming addictive to T-3's, and pot has no addictive properties, I only do it in limited quantities, and since I don't like using it recreationally, it's actually cheaper to boot!

I know this will be controversial, but I had back problems in my late teens, and marijuana was the only thing that brought me relief.

I really hope to get back to work ASAP, becuase I hate not working. I was planning on working the trades in construction, but it looks like that may be out of the question, at least until summer at the earliest. Thanks for the responses, as they have helped me out greatly.

[bossy22]

Find yourself the book, "The Egoscue Method of Health Through Motion". He's helped numerous athletes, including Jack Nicklaus who also had a herniated disk. I used to have back pain, and since I discovered this book, I've never had issues.

[wooohooo]

Originally Posted by Jets4Life

J

As for medicine/drugs, I was given a Rx for Naproxen and T-3's. The Tylenol 3's brought relief initially, but I found I had to rely on them more and more. I switched to marijuana. It is much better, as I was scared of becoming addictive to T-3's, and pot has no addictive properties, I only do it in limited quantities, and since I don't like using it recreationally, it's actually cheaper to boot!

wahh... wait... is this medical marijuana or marijuana from other means?

Just out of curiosity if a bad back can get you some of that legal stuff...

[Jets4Life]

Well, my pain went away pretty much entirely in June 2010. Unfortunately, it has returned with a vengeance in the first week of September 2011. I still work as a Surveyor, and the walking is painful but seems to be better than sitting in the truck, and looking for surveying pins all day or taking topographic measurements.

I am currently on T3's as it makes it possible to work at my job. Otherwise, the pain would literally be too much to endure. I try to swim whenever possible to alleviate the pain, and have lost almost 10 pounds in 6 weeks (I weigh 208). Does anyone know of any doctors or specialists in Alberta that they would recommend with low back pain, especially Sciatica? I'm getting pretty desperate.

[Nage Waza]

I suggest a foot doctor, the inserts I now wear made me way better. Achiles foot clinic is where I went.

[Jets4Life]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

I suggest a foot doctor, the inserts I now wear made me way better. Achiles foot clinic is where I went.

I suppose that would be great if I had foot or ankle problems...

[Shasta Beast]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

Assuming you are ok being an old fat hairy guy sweating his nuts off and trying desperatly not to fart in a room full of young lycra clad hoties.

It's probably more manly to be swinging your sweaty balls in a room full of lycra clad women and not care what they think.

[DrJ]

Best treatment is NSAIDS, muscle relaxants and therapeutic relief through massage, chiro, physio, accupucture, etc.; whatever floats your boat. You can also move onto neuromodulatory meds or narcotics...

A lot of people are walking around with disc herniations but are asymptomatic and most disc herniations are associated with age related degeneration.

There's a study from 1974 by Weber that concluded that lumbar disc herniations either treated surgically or non-surgically had no significant differences in four years. However, at one year, more people in the surgical group had symptomatic improvement.

If your symptoms are so severe that you can't even get out of bed then surgery is definitely an option. ~80% of people have resolution of radiculopathy (nerve root problems) after 8-12 weeks of symptom onset so hopefully you are in that boat!

Surgery is not the first treatment choice in herniations but are first line for emergent situations or myelopathies and even after surg, you may not have relief.

Stick with the conservative options and hopefully you feel better!

[Sr. Mints]

Ever consider having your doctor refer you to a physiatrist?

What is a physiatrist?

Rehabilitation physicians are medical doctors who have completed training in the medical specialty of physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R). Specifically, rehabilitation physicians:

• Diagnose and treat pain
• Restore maximum function lost through injury, illness or disabling conditions
• Treat the whole person, not just the problem area
• Lead a team of medical professionals
• Provide non-surgical treatments
• Explain your medical problems and treatment/prevention plan

The job of a rehabilitation physician is to treat any disability resulting from disease or injury, from sore shoulders to spinal cord injuries. The focus is on the development of a comprehensive program for putting the pieces of a person's life back together after injury or disease – without surgery

[rd_aaron]

Originally Posted by Jets4Life

I suppose that would be great if I had foot or ankle problems...

You DO realize crappy footwear can cause back pain as well? He's suggesting getting some custom insoles for your shoes which can help relieve back pain.

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by Jets4Life

I suppose that would be great if I had foot or ankle problems...

I'm dealing with the same stuff you're dealing with right now.

You should absolutely look into shoe inserts/orthotics. You may not understand how much benefit they could give you, but take it from me, you could see substantial reduction in the sharp pain you experience into your legs.

[PIMking]

I've got bulging discs in my neck. They are right above my shoulders and about twice a month my shoulders will basically have a cramp throwing everything out of whack. It's so painful that I can't move at all. I've tried chiropractic help bit nothing. I've tried stretches and that seems to help some. My neck doesn't have a normal curve, it just goes in a straight line.

[Jets4Life]

Originally Posted by rd_aaron

You DO realize crappy footwear can cause back pain as well? He's suggesting getting some custom insoles for your shoes which can help relieve back pain.

MOD EDIT: Removed insult, highly inappropriate.

[Jets4Life]

Originally Posted by Sr. Mints

Ever consider having your doctor refer you to a physiatrist?

What is a physiatrist?

That seems very promising. I wonder if they have a list of Physiatrists for Alberta. If you have any more information on these medical professionals, please PM me...

[nickerjones]

Originally Posted by Jets4Life

I am currently on T3's as it makes it possible to work at my job. Otherwise, the pain would literally be too much to endure. I try to swim whenever possible to alleviate the pain, and have lost almost 10 pounds in 6 weeks (I weigh 208). Does anyone know of any doctors or specialists in Alberta that they would recommend with low back pain, especially Sciatica? I'm getting pretty desperate.

Dude I feel your pain. I had sciatic nerve pain for almost a year. I was getting toradol shots weekly. ( strong anti inflammatory) . It would work for a day and then pain was back. I remember some days I would be almost in tears , curled up in ball on the floor at my work because I was in so much pain. I was finally sent to a pain mgmt doctor here in Oklahoma. I was prescribed Neurotin ( Nerve Pain Pill) and Mobic ( Anti- Inflammatory) . It took my pain completely away for a week or so. Finally the doctor decided Spinal Cortisone injection would work. I was set to have a bi weekly shot for a total of 3 shots. I had the first one and was pain free , so much that I canceled my last two shots. A day after I was supposed to have my 2nd shot the pain came back. I had 3 more shots and have no been pretty much pain free for 10 months now. I have my days where it is tight and there is a small pain. I just do my physio-exercises and it loosens it up. I took the nerve pill for almost 7 months after the shots. The only problem with them is one of the side effects is weight gain. In the 9 or 10 months total that I was taking them I packed on about 37 pounds. Of course I was also laying around a lot with back pain so I am sure that didnt help either ( I was however learning to play hockey at the time too so I did skate 2 times a week in immense pain so I wasnt completely inactive.)

I also found that being pain free has allowed me to go back to lifting weights. I try to do a lot of core lifting to strengthen my lower back. I like to think that is one of the reasons my pain has stayed away.

Anyway good luck and keep us updated.

[Jets4Life]

Originally Posted by nickerjones

Dude I feel your pain. I had sciatic nerve pain for almost a year. I was getting toradol shots weekly. ( strong anti inflammatory) . It would work for a day and then pain was back. I remember some days I would be almost in tears , curled up in ball on the floor at my work because I was in so much pain. I was finally sent to a pain mgmt doctor here in Oklahoma. I was prescribed Neurotin ( Nerve Pain Pill) and Mobic ( Anti- Inflammatory) . It took my pain completely away for a week or so. Finally the doctor decided Spinal Cortisone injection would work. I was set to have a bi weekly shot for a total of 3 shots. I had the first one and was pain free , so much that I canceled my last two shots. A day after I was supposed to have my 2nd shot the pain came back. I had 3 more shots and have no been pretty much pain free for 10 months now. I have my days where it is tight and there is a small pain. I just do my physio-exercises and it loosens it up. I took the nerve pill for almost 7 months after the shots. The only problem with them is one of the side effects is weight gain. In the 9 or 10 months total that I was taking them I packed on about 37 pounds. Of course I was also laying around a lot with back pain so I am sure that didnt help either ( I was however learning to play hockey at the time too so I did skate 2 times a week in immense pain so I wasnt completely inactive.)

I also found that being pain free has allowed me to go back to lifting weights. I try to do a lot of core lifting to strengthen my lower back. I like to think that is one of the reasons my pain has stayed away.

Anyway good luck and keep us updated.

Thanks for that story. It is good to hear from others who have suffered from the same condition. I had the exact same thing in early 2010, but the pain mainly went away after 2 months or so. It has been 6 weeks and I pray to God it gets better. Thanks.