Connect
← Return to MRI results show bulging discs: what are my options?
Discussion
MRI results show bulging discs: what are my options?
Spine Health | Last Active: May 1, 2023 | Replies (21)Comment receiving replies
@anr Hello and welcome to Connect. Having a bulging disc isn't always a problem nor does it always need surgery. That all depends on what other symptoms it may be causing, loss of nerve function, or if it has been several years and the bulging has progressed to a herniation and spilled the jelly like contents of the disc outward. That is when a disc begins to loose height and vertebrae bones get closer together, and the inflammation from that spilled jelly causes bone spurs to grow next to it. That is when you can get into trouble by closing down the space where nerves exit the spine between the vertebrae, or by impinging on the spinal cord if the disc has ruptured into the central canal. That is what happened to me, and only surgery could fix that. It took about 20 years for my bulging disc to herniate. A bulging disc represents an injury, and it can have small cracks in the outer fibrous layer of the disc. Over time and with aging, discs naturally dry out a little bit, and the cracks can open up weakening the outer layer and leading to a herniation.
Bulging discs can change the direction of the curve in your spine throwing it off or by straightening a curve that is supposed to be there. The neck should have a graceful backward curve and often it becomes straight like a pole when cervical discs are bad.
I am a believer in physical therapy because it can correct postural and functional issues of weakness. Posture is very important to maintain a healthy spine and to prevent spine injury. My spine surgeon told me maintaining core strength is the best way that I can keep myself from needing his services again. Physical therapy can help people avoid surgery. Will you pose this question to your physical therapist? That is a conversation they would want to have with you and to better your chances for normal functions and to help avoid surgery. They should be asking you how you feel and what symptoms are improving and sometimes measuring movement ranges with their tools are charting your progress.
Replies to "@anr Hello and welcome to Connect. Having a bulging disc isn't always a problem nor does..."
Connect
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.