[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Bulging disc 4,5,6 anyone? (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 9/5/2013 10:58:18 AM EDT
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MRI tomorrow to confirm. Something arm related. Prednizone until we figure it out for some relief.
Anyone have relief ideas? What works for you? |
| Had a badly herniated one in my neck back in 2004. I went through physical therapy and steroid shots. Finally had to have a fusion. Woke up without any pain at all, but the fusion caused pressure to be applied to the discs above and below. I still have to have steroid shots |
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bilateral herniations C4,5,6 diagnosed 20 years ago. Periodic stretching, exercises, and learning how to relax my shoulder and neck muscles kept the surgeons knife at bay.
Last week I started having neck pain again. Now I cannot raise my right arm higher than waist level - C5 nerve root is being compressed. Pain is gone, I just can't raise my damned arm. |
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I've got dead discs at T5-6-7, drunk driver 20+ years ago. I also have C-spine issues as a side-effect.
Prednisone is evil, it will destroy your body if you use too much of it, I won't touch the stuff. Discs don't really heal, eventually (15-20 years) they stop leaking (die) and then the pain is better. The stronger your core is the less pain you'll have from the discs, but bad discs can make it hard to maintain core strength, you really need to maintain it, or a bad disc can become really crippling. Traction helps a lot, tables work good for L-spine, over the door works good for C-spine, unfortunately nothing really works good for T-spine. |
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I had bulging between C5-C6 & C6-C7. Level 9 pain in my shoulder when sitting or laying, but nothing standing...........go figure.
Had some controlled neck traction therapy done, 13 weeks, 39 treatments to be exact, and it seemed to help. Yours are probably L or T, I'd guess. Google/bing - disc oscillation therapy or spinal decompression therapy. Also IDD therapy. |
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herniated C5/C6 for me about 17 years ago, MRI confirmed.
Neurosurgeon said surgery was the last resort. Rest, proper sleep posture, physical therapy, vicoden. Mine went away on its own but it took about three months. Luckily for me, no residual effects but I am very careful anymore (even when towel drying my hair). |
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Blown L4/L5 many years ago. surgery helped a little but losing weight and lifting smart did the most.
The piece they cut out was about the size of a cocktail shrimp. I can't stand motionless for very long without pain though.Sitting for extended periods of time is no fun either. Stretching and walking seems to be the best when it flares up. Ice, Lorazepam and strong pain meds for very bad times. The pain will take me down about 2-3 times a year. Lasts about a week. Bad muscle spasms and nerve pain in the ass cheek. |
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I've got dead discs at T5-6-7, drunk driver 20+ years ago. I also have C-spine issues as a side-effect. Prednisone is evil, it will destroy your body if you use too much of it, I won't touch the stuff. Discs don't really heal, eventually (15-20 years) they stop leaking (die) and then the pain is better. The stronger your core is the less pain you'll have from the discs, but bad discs can make it hard to maintain core strength, you really need to maintain it, or a bad disc can become really crippling. Traction helps a lot, tables work good for L-spine, over the door works good for C-spine, unfortunately nothing really works good for T-spine. The doc I saw said it's very hard to manipulate T vertebra due to the rib connections and the constant bind they're in. C and L are relatively free to manipulate. |
| Wife had C4 & C5 "decompressed" about 10 years ago. However hers was failing, she was put on restricted activities until surgery was done. She was loosing sensation and strength in her arms. Doc said he was amazed that she was not having more pain than she was experiencing. Her condition was so bad she got an immediate referal to the same doc that was called in to tend to Christopher Reeves when he was thrown from his horse. The only problem she is having today is that arthritis is now setting up in those vertebrae. We'll just have to see where this all goes. |
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Blown L4/L5 many years ago. surgery helped a little but losing weight and lifting smart did the most. The piece they cut out was about the size of a cocktail shrimp. I can't stand motionless for very long without pain though.Sitting for extended periods of time is no fun either. Stretching and walking seems to be the best when it flares up. Ice, Lorazepam and strong pain meds for very bad times. The pain will take me down about 2-3 times a year. Lasts about a week. Bad muscle spasms and nerve pain in the ass cheek. L5 has a 180 deg. Annular laceration. The Ass cheek pain is the worst. Most of the time its not too bad but every so often it gets real bad for a week to 10 days. I'm 36 and had this for 4 yrs or so. |
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Ruptured at L4/L5 and L5/S1, main issue comes from the 5th lumbar nerve being crushed. I also have a damaged T3. Both came from horse accidents.
I have had a bazillion injection, nerve ablations, and so on and so forth. Actually found relief from injections of the damaged nerve via the sacreilac joint. I go every two months. I have a little discomfort start about the 6-7 week mark, but only 40% of what my pain once was. But mainly, the only reason I have avoided surgery is a dedicated regimine of core strength training and a good diet. Being overweight is bad, being overweight with a bad back is horrendous. I bust my ass doing squats, stiff leg deadlifts, roman chair exercises, etc. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Heard this a feet times. May need to invest. Quoted:
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Inversion table works well Heard this a feet times. May need to invest. The doc I saw said they're OK, but don't go aggressive on them right off the bat. Take it slow. Start at lower angles then work up to full vertical if it seems to help. He's all about controlling the decompression to the Nth degree. |
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C or L? I have a herniated disc @ C6/7 and bulging disc @C5/6. Two epidural cortisone injections, anti inflammatory, and pain meds. Along with 8 weeks of PT and I'm feeling better., but I still can't split wood or dig a hole. Neck. C. Affects my arms bad. Couldn't work today. That was a first. Totally bummed about it. It's been an ongoing thing for years, but today I could not lift my arm much. Felt pretty lame. |
| I have from C4 till C7 - it makes your arm and hand hurt, but there is nothing really wrong with them - the problem is on the neck. I avoid surgery by taking a shitload of cortisone - it is supposed to make the disks shrink back into place - but also gives you skin problems and makes you gain weight. |
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Neck. C. Affects my arms bad. Couldn't work today. That was a first. Totally bummed about it. It's been an ongoing thing for years, but today I could not lift my arm much. Felt pretty lame. Quoted:
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C or L? I have a herniated disc @ C6/7 and bulging disc @C5/6. Two epidural cortisone injections, anti inflammatory, and pain meds. Along with 8 weeks of PT and I'm feeling better., but I still can't split wood or dig a hole. Neck. C. Affects my arms bad. Couldn't work today. That was a first. Totally bummed about it. It's been an ongoing thing for years, but today I could not lift my arm much. Felt pretty lame. C5/C6 herniation here, pressing on the left ulnar nerve. I also have the start of a herniation at C2/C3 and C3/C4. Unfortunately cortisone and prednisone have been no help, PT has been little help, and traction has been little help. On Sept 30th I'm going under the knife to have a cervical disc replacement. Instead of a fusion, which is a bone graft to lock the two vertebrae together, it is an artificial joint that the doctor hopes that by maintaining movement in the cervical spine, and stopping the muscle spasms that the hernations above will either stop or slow down. |
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It can come form a number of things You will sure learn to Lift the correct way from now on Quoted:
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Is this my fault or bad design? No major traumas. 6'1", 215. It can come form a number of things You will sure learn to Lift the correct way from now on From now on is not encouraging. 
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| Herniated L4/L5 here. Can't do Prednisone because it makes me crazy, and can't take pain meds because of job. So I just live with the pain and try not screw it up any worse. Last time that the pain was really bad and I couldn't even get out of bed on my own. I picked up a 25' tape measure off the ground and Boom. I had to crawl to the truck and drive home. My left leg is starting to go numb, too. |
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Herniated L4/L5 here. Can't do Prednisone because it makes me crazy, and can't take pain meds because of job. So I just live with the pain and try not screw it up any worse. Last time that the pain was really bad and I couldn't even get out of bed on my own. I picked up a 25' tape measure off the ground and Boom. I had to crawl to the truck and drive home. My left leg is starting to go numb, too. Sounds like me, several years ago. Hated the pain meds and knew I could not do that. Wanted to stay away from going under the knife as well. I ended up going to a chiropractor and in about 3-4 weeks of two visits a week, I got rid of the pain and ended up not doing anymore damage. |
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I'm lying in bed right now "recovering" from my second Cortisone injection of three. I have a severely ruptured disc and a bulging one. Both of which are impacting my sciatic nerves. After the first shot, I went from constant level 8 pain down to 3. Over the next 2 weeks, it crept back up to a 6. The neurosurgeon I saw said he gives the shots a 40% chance of having a lasting effect. Then... Under the knife. I had the surgery 20 years ago on a different disc and had excellent results. See a neurosurgeon first. If you get the injections, opt for the sedation. Trust me. 5 minutes of Profonol sleep and you won't have to remember the funky, painful injections. If you need surgery, don't put it off. The recovery sucks, but the result is worth it. Living with chronic pain ain't worth it to avoid the knife. It can really put you in a bad way over time. This time I pushed to get it all going as quick as possible. Less than 2 months from first visit to first injection. |
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Neck. C. Affects my arms bad. Couldn't work today. That was a first. Totally bummed about it. It's been an ongoing thing for years, but today I could not lift my arm much. Felt pretty lame. Quoted:
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C or L? I have a herniated disc @ C6/7 and bulging disc @C5/6. Two epidural cortisone injections, anti inflammatory, and pain meds. Along with 8 weeks of PT and I'm feeling better., but I still can't split wood or dig a hole. Neck. C. Affects my arms bad. Couldn't work today. That was a first. Totally bummed about it. It's been an ongoing thing for years, but today I could not lift my arm much. Felt pretty lame. After 20 plus years of chiro , acupuncture, inversion,spinal injections, etc I finally found a doc who is a specialist in disc replacement. This is good because I had 4 C discs that were trashed. The arm pain and numbness are gone, but still getting over the trauma of the surgery after 4 months. A fusion was out of the question, because it requires a change in lifestyle that I am unwilling to commit to at this time. I will be having 3 lumbar discs replaced this year also. |
| L5/S1 here....drop as much weight as you can. Doctor told me 1 pound over weight is 10 pounds of pressure on your back. I'm down 16 pounds, since I started juicing and eating salad's. Starting to like it and have adjusted my eating habits. Inversion tables are good also. |
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The doc I saw said it's very hard to manipulate T vertebra due to the rib connections and the constant bind they're in. C and L are relatively free to manipulate. Quoted:
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I've got dead discs at T5-6-7, drunk driver 20+ years ago. I also have C-spine issues as a side-effect. Prednisone is evil, it will destroy your body if you use too much of it, I won't touch the stuff. Discs don't really heal, eventually (15-20 years) they stop leaking (die) and then the pain is better. The stronger your core is the less pain you'll have from the discs, but bad discs can make it hard to maintain core strength, you really need to maintain it, or a bad disc can become really crippling. Traction helps a lot, tables work good for L-spine, over the door works good for C-spine, unfortunately nothing really works good for T-spine. The doc I saw said it's very hard to manipulate T vertebra due to the rib connections and the constant bind they're in. C and L are relatively free to manipulate. Yeah it sucks. The shoulder belt I was wearing probably saved my life, several people involved in my EMS said they expected a fatality (it was an interesting situation because they all worked for my Dad) but that shoulder belt fucked my back up, basically broke me in half, was lucky I didn't damage the cord. At the limit of survivability those belts do horrible things to you. Good news is most of my life I've had 100% function, I can lift, I can work, I can run. Bad news is I've never had a pain free moment since. |
Opposing ruptures on C4/5 and 5/6. Meaning I can't get relief by stretching without aggravating the other side..  ranges from constant dull pain to shooting pain and incapacitated arm.
Few months of PT and I was feeling decent, but it never goes away completely... Kicker is then insurance company cut off my PT saying that i 'SHOULD' be all better..  . Tried it all. Pain killers and steroids provide temp relief, but can't be used long-term without reliance/addiction or other side effects. Just something I live with now. I'm a mess for how young I am.. Between that and the diverticulitis, I've had a fun couple years. FML
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L4-L5-S1 here..pain in both legs and numbness in both feet.
at times my feet burn like they are on fire and at times the sole of my right foot itches sooooooo bad I feel like digging at it with an ice pick. Most of the time the pain is not real bad, just there and I live with it. When the pain gets in the way I take Vicodin. |
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Was ass plowed 7 months ago. Now introduced to Thoracic Outlet Syndrome.
Right arm aches like a bitch and always goes numb. Have had multiple MRI's nothing showed other then few minor bulged discs would have to look at results pretty sure 5 & 6. Saint Joe's in phx recommends Phy's therapy first. Oh boy ! |
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Quoted: I've got dead discs at T5-6-7, drunk driver 20+ years ago. I also have C-spine issues as a side-effect. Prednisone is evil, it will destroy your body if you use too much of it, I won't touch the stuff. Discs don't really heal, eventually (15-20 years) they stop leaking (die) and then the pain is better. The stronger your core is the less pain you'll have from the discs, but bad discs can make it hard to maintain core strength, you really need to maintain it, or a bad disc can become really crippling. Traction helps a lot, tables work good for L-spine, over the door works good for C-spine, unfortunately nothing really works good for T-spine. I hear you. My doc told be they could operate as a last resort, but since they go in from the front, they need to move the lungs and such. I was like, um, no.
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MRI tomorrow to confirm. Something arm related. Prednizone until we figure it out for some relief. Anyone have relief ideas? What works for you? HOT HOT Shower on the Arm that hurts.... That is the only way I could find relief until my surgery. Also, if they plan on doing a fusion, ask about the Synthes ProDisc-C. They pound it into place, less healing time and you are good to go.... I love it. My last surgery I was back to work in 2 weeks instead of 6-8.... Synthes ProDisc-C Good Luck.. Nerve pain is a Bitch |