← Return to MRI results show bulging discs: what are my options?
DiscussionMRI results show bulging discs: what are my options?
Spine Health | Last Active: May 1, 2023 | Replies (21)Comment receiving replies
Replies to "@anr Hello and welcome to Connect. Having a bulging disc isn't always a problem nor does..."
My experience with many, different physical therapists is that they have you do a series of exercises with or without the use of equipment. When I compare the sheets of exercises from different PTs is that they all begin to look a lot alike. I would say that there is no "one size fits all" solution to back pain, especially in regard to physical therapy. Most pain specialists that I have seen over the past 6 years tell me things like, "There's nothing else that can be done"; (2 orthopedic surgeons) to multiple injections, multiple nerve ablations, spinal fusion surgery, spinal cord stimulator surgery ( 2 different types), chiropractic intervention (2); a "chiropractic neurologist" who claims that he can heal everything bad in my back through patented spinal decompression. But he would need $6000 cash because the process is not covered by any kind of insurance. (hard pass). Just had a morphine pain pump surgically implanted last week (4/12). This will require several adjustments to get the right level of pain mitigation. I am already feeling a little better.
I have learned a few things over the past 6 years: Don't take the first diagnosis/treatment as gospel truth. Do your research. Be prepared to be disappointed. What works wonders for others may not work so well for you. Doctors are well-trained people who are often following a set of guidelines to try and find a solution to your problem. Unless they are really passionate about helping you, they may stop short of going the extra mile to help you. Who has been the most up front and caring for me? A chiropractor. His 12 week program of different treatments provided no help after 6 visits. He sat down with me and we agreed that this course of treatment was not going to be of any help. The program was not covered by insurance, so I had to foot the entire cost upfront. He refunded the money for the remaining treatments that I would not be using.
You have to learn to be your own best advocate.