How I Manage My Slipped Disc

A slipped disc, otherwise known as a herniated disc, is a common cause of back pain. numerous things can cause a disc to slip out of position, but it is first useful to be able to envisage what a healthy back bone or spine looks like. The spine is a succession of discs sitting each on top of the one below with all the primary nerves running through and along side of it.That is, they do not sit completely on top of each other, there is a gap between them, which allows us to bend and twist. When we stand up right, the discs are supposed to go back to their original position, which is absolutely horizontal, quarter to and quarter past the hour on the clock face.A slipped disc is normally when the lowest disc does not return to its normal position but sticks at, say, twenty to and ten past the hour. The lower edge of the disc, the side pointing to twenty to the hour might come to sit on a major nerve - like the sciatic nerve which runs from the waist down to the foot on either side of the body.This condition is known as a slipped disc with a trapped nerve. The pain it causes starts in the low back but radiates into the buttock and down the leg following the sciatic nerve. Many people call this sciatica. It is not the sciatic nerve's fault that it is causing pain - it is perfectly healthy - but it is being squashed by the herniated disc which is causing it to become inflamed.Treatment for this condition concentrates on alleviating the pain and getting the disc to float back to the horizontal, thus freeing the nerve and stopping the leg pain. Often the leg pain is much worse than the back pain. In my case, the back pain is always there as a grinding ache, but I am able to live with that. The real pain comes around three to five minutes after standing up. A pain begins in my calf like severe cramp and that rises into my buttock making my leg too painful to place on the ground. The only relief is to sit down again or to take my weight on my arms by leaning on a table.I have found some stretch exercises to help, but because I cannot stand for long, lots of of them are ruled out. Despite not exercising a lot, I have lost about 14 pounds and this has helped my back to some extent.If my back gets bad, I lie on the floor and place my feet up, so that my posture is similar to a sitting position, but without the weight of my upper body on my slipped disc. This is very useful. I have also found that adopting the foetal position helps a lot.I also have massage therapy every 7-10 days. It hurts a great deal at the time, but by the time the masseuse is walking down the drive, I already feel better and my condition continues to improve until she returns. Six weeks ago, I could not walk, now I am able to walk around 500 metres without help.