I have a herniated disc (Sciatica)

[UncleKraut]

and it sucks. I found out about his about 4 months ago. I had an MRI and the herniation is in L5, which is the lowest disc, where your spine attaches to your pelvis. The herniation is pressing on my sciatic nerve, which is causing me to have sciatica in my left leg.

I've been seeing a chiroprator and it's helping a little bit. I also saw a neurosurgeon and he said to stick it out until I can't take the pain anymore before I have surgery. I'd say the pain moves between a 2 on a good day to 7 on a bad day.

Anyone here have any experiences with this? Any treatments that worked for you? Surgery?

[dsw1977]

If you're reasonably active, I'd highly suggest going to a physical therapist that specializes in sports injuries. I had similar (though somewhat worse) disc problems, and rehab (which basically consists of some treatment and a lot of core strengthening) helped tremendously, to the point where there is no pain or limitation in movement most days. Good luck!

[cbloom]

I've had some of these injuries but I'm going to semi hijack :

I hate the way they make you quantify your pain on a 1-10 numeric scale. I mean, I know a lot of people who would be saying 7-8 or more for the pain I'm in, but for me it's like a 3-4 because I have a very high tolerance. What the hell do the numbers of pain mean? Everyone is going to have a different idea of what the numbers mean, I can't imagine it actually being useful at all.

The #1 best thing you can do is core strengthening and flexibility/fitness. A good Pilates teacher that includes structural integration and massage might be the best thing. Chiropractors are quacks.

[MaxPower]

Never had a problem with it, but you might want to check out the writings of Dr. John Sarno.

[Bevo]

Mine was in the 4th disc and I had the surgery. I had heard from numerous people not to have the surgery but after about 5 months it just wasn't getting any better.

Went in to the hospital and was out the next day. Was never in that much pain after the surgery - a little sore and hard to move around for a couple of days. Took percoset (sp?) for a few days and then was in pretty good shape. Anyways, felt tons better within a couple of weeks and now, 3 months later am very happy I had the surgery. I still get a little sore from the surgery (mostly just muscle soreness) but definitely feel a lot better than before. Started running again after 2 months. No problems sitting down now whereas before, I couldn't sit for more than 5 min. or so. My reommendation - make sure you have a good neurosurgen and go for it.

[Iplayragstoo]

My wife had 3 of them this past July, she tried the steriod shot, but the pain was unbareble, and the swelling did not go down. She ended up having surgury, and still has site pain to this day. Good luck man, I understand the kinda pain you must be in, because hers was crazy bad.

[cbloom]

Surgery's great except when it isn't.

Another option is an epidural steroid + anaesthetic. You'll feel no pain for a little while and if you take care of yourself sometimes it gives your body a chance to fix itself without irritation.

Anyway you need to find an expert who gives you a bunch of options and can tell you the pros and cons of each.

[anduril]

depending on how bad your pain is, you should definitely exhaust every non-surgical avenue before considering going under the knife. As an Athletic Trainer and fellow back pain sufferer, I'd recommend trying back exercises/stretching, and if that doesn't provide relief usually the next step is to have an epidural steriod injection. Sometimes they help, sometimes they don't. If after 2-3 injections (depending on physician recommendations), they will most likely suggest a microdiscectomy. A microdiscectomy is when they excise the posterior portion of your disc that is impinging on the nerve. Again, sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. The thing about that type of surgery is that your spinal cord takes a long time to heal.

A good analogy is that when you've had a couch on a carpet for a long time and then move it, you can see the indentation from the couch being there so long. Over time, however, the spot gets smaller and smaller until its gone, but it takes a while. That's more or less what's happening to your spinal cord. The surgery takes the couch (disc) off of the carpet (spinal cord).

If/when it doesn't work over a 2-4 year period, and 2nd microdiscectomy is generally suggested. If after all this nothing seems to work, orthopedists usually (while you are not around) throw up their hands in disgust and tell you you need to have a spine fusion. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. Alternatively, I have found acupuncture to be minimally helpful and maximally expensive. An alternative treatment I know to be effective is called spinal decompression therapy. I know this because I just finished going through it myself. I am not yet cured (9 years of back pain and I am 26 y/o), but my back is definitely doing much better and the therapy is totally non-invasive. The only downside is the expense since insurance doesn't cover it. Good luck.

[inside??]

I am in the same boat since March. Chiro didn't help. Went through 3 sets of the shots and they didnt help. Meet with surgeon in Jan. My pain is about a 2-3 medicated and 6 without it. Doc says they consider a 50% reduction in pain a "successful" surgery. Rehab time is supposed to be 3-12 months but since I just sit on my azz all day and don't swing a sledgehammer or something I am hoping it will be shorter.

[UncleKraut]

Thanks for all the input guys. I really appreciate it. I'm also 26 years old. Sucks to have to go through this at a relatively young age.