Suffering with a Disc Herniation? (if your not sure, check out my previous on disc herniations)
Probably been through the MRI, running from one specialist to the next?
Suffering all the same.
And, what options have you been given?
In the very least I hope that you have had some relief.
But what I really hope is that you find a permanent “SOLUTION” for “CURING” your disc herniation.
Is that even Possible?
Great Question. Especially for the disc herniation sufferer to ask.
Personally, I’ve come to realize as a disc herniation sufferer first, and a chiropractic physician second, who focuses my private practice on teaching disc herniation suffers to successfully rehabilitate their injured spine, a thing or two about disc herniations .
What I’ve Learned as a Disc Herniation Sufferer
(In no specific order) the Following:
- Having a disc herniation, whether in your cervical, thoracic, or lumbar spine, you MUST think of your condition as a real, legitimate, medical “CONDITION”
So what do I mean when I say think of your disc herniation as a medical condition?
“Condition” is can be defined as: ” The state of something, esp. with regard to its appearance, quality, or working order.”
Disc Herniations are most certainly a phenomena whose “state” must be evaluated, especially in regards to its:
Appearance: swollen, inflamed, flattened, compressed and asymmetric,
Quality: rigid, non flexible, dehydrated, out-pouching, torn, weakened
Working Order: poor, non stable, broken, unsatisfactory
Disc herniations by it’s presentation fulfills the mere definition of a condition.
Given that, the condition of a disc herniation has an appearance of a swollen, inflamed, compressed, rigid, non flexible, out-pouching, torn, weakened, broke, and in an unsatisfactorily working order.
Therefore, If you have a disc herniation, you have to think of your disc herniation as a “condition”
The next thing I learned as a disc herniation sufferer:
- Given that your Disc Herniation is a “condition”, your condition must be MANAGED on a daily basis
How To Manage Your Disc Herniation (Condition) On a Daily Basis
This is the true riddle that has really been baffling all kinds of specialist (Neuro’s Ortho’s, Internal Medicine, and Pain Management) and patients alike.
It may be the question for the ages, but one thing I can definitely say, is daily management of your disc herniation pain is NOT a pharmaceutical answers.
From Tranquilizers, Anti-spasmadics, Analgesics, Muscle Relaxers, Mood Disorder Medications, and even Anti-Inflammatories, NONE are a daily solutions for your disc condition.
What’s worse, the medication most of the time has detrimental side effects that are not only tough on the liver on a day in day out basis, but many times the side effects are muscle pain and rigidity. Both will enhance your pain.
As we mentioned earlier, the condition of a herniated disc, that is worn, torn, swollen, inflamed, compressed, rigid, non flexible, out-pouching, torn, weakened, broke, and in an unsatisfactorily working order, will NOT be cured through medication.
When the disc first injuries, re-injured, or is chronically swollen and inflamed, short term anti-inflammatory use will help reduce what is considered “chemical” pain.
But the actual “condition of the disc” will not improve genuinely, as a result of long term medication use.
Remember the disc is essentially broken, and needs to repair ITSELF.
So a better question should be:
What Can I Do daily to Help My Broken Disc/ Disc Herniation To Repair Itself?
The first thing I would suggest is to look within. Take responsibility.
What do I mean by that?
I always tell me patient’s that I see them for anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour each time. From daily to 1x/month to every other month.
On the other hand, they have 24 hours in a day, and the time we spend together, is but a drop in the bucket to the time they spend with themselves.
Taking personal responsibility for your disc herniation condition on a daily basis starts with you.
- Maintaining a healthy body weight to help deal with your disc herniation.
Doesn’t make sense intuitively that even if you are as little as 10 pounds overweight, that that extra poundage placed on the spine and ultimately the injured herniated disc, will continually stimulate the pain fibers in that injured disc?
Imagine if you are 25lbs, 50lbs, or even 100lbs overweight? Havoc I say.
So maintain an ideal weight, and you’ll find that the disc herniation pain will be managed on a daily basis.
- Be active every day to help deal with your disc herniation pain.
Unfortunately, a lot of medical advice still encourages a sedentary no active lifestyle. I would say this is the WORST thing to do for a disc herniation sufferer.
Yes it is true that activity may be a double edge sword. That is, doing too much can irritate, inflame, and place undue stress on the injured disc.
However, because the disc doesn’t receive a direct blood supply, in order to provide nourishment and oxygen to the disc, movement is necessary.
Staying in bed all day, on the couch, or having a job that is in front of a computer for longer then 3 hours at a time will not provide any oxygen to the injured disc.
Getting up, moving around, laying on your back and bringing your knees to your chest, or thrusting your chin forward and then back (like your trying to retract your chin backwards into the spine) is adequate to deliver oxygen to your herniated disc.
- Eliminate Inflammatory foods from your diet, and eat “Anti-inflammatory” foods
I wrote a fantastic article on food that can help. But as a general rule of thumb, fried foods, any seed oil (like sunflower or safflower), and red meats or grain fed meats are high inflammatory foods.
As you would guess, vegetables and fruits, as well as grass fed meats can be very helpful for reducing your disc herniation pain.
- Drinking plenty of water to reduce disc herniation pain
Seems basic doesn’t it? People typically think that 8 ounces a day is suffice. I would recommend 16 ounces with disc herniations. Dehydration is the enemy of disc herniation sufferers. Keeping hydrated Will certainly help reduce pain.
Lastly, if you have had the disc herniation for some time, then most likely, you have also developed muscle imbalances. Muscle imbalances will perpetuate the pain.
A great resource for effectively eliminating disc herniation pain associated with muscle imbalances.
Incoming search terms:
- bucket gif
- food for disc herniations
- disc prolapse pictures
- which natural foods can help with a herniated back disc
- what foods to aleviate herniated disc
- the worst thing to irritate a herniated disc
- can drinking water help herniated disks
- water disc prolapse drink
- what can I do about a swollen disc in my back?
- things to do on your own
Related posts:
