Life around my house is about to change. I am having some major renovations done to my old house and I have to move out of it for the work to be done. This, much to my chagrin, involves planning, packing, and moving heavy items. Ordinarily there would be no big deal about a move, but I happen to have a vested interest in my lower back and have injured it before. Maybe that is why I have seen so many people in the past couple of weeks with disc troubles – I needed a not so gentle reminder of how it all feels. There is a lot to know about disc bulges and how to treat them. I hope you find it useful.
First of all, there is a major difference in a disc bulge and a disc rupture. About 80% of the walking population has a lumbar disc bulge. Most of them are asymptomatic and those who have them don’t even know it. The disc material is very tough and cartilaginous. If a disc is healthy it provides shock absorption and cushioning for the vertebrae, or spinal bones. As a result of normal wear and tear, the outer coating, or annulus, of a disc dries out and develops cracks. The soft inner material of the disc, the nucleus, might leak out through these cracks and this creates what is commonly referred to as a bulging disc. If it is irritated enough, the disc material will put pressure on the nerve roots which exit the spinal cord through tiny holes at the rear of the area occupied by the disc. This results in annoying and sometimes severe pain. Often the pain is not in the lower back, but is in the buttocks, hip, back of the thigh or calf, or even in the foot. This pain is following the path of the sciatic nerve, which is the most commonly irritated nerve when a disc is bulging. Sometimes the pain is very difficult to free yourself from if it isn’t treated soon enough. Chiropractors are experts in this field, and there are many wonderful conservative techniques available to us to treat this problem. Ask your chiropractor about flexion/distraction techniques, which are specifically for decompressing bulging discs. If you can get this type of treatment early enough, you might be able to avoid further damage to the disc and thereby avoid surgical treatment.
In the case of a disc rupture, portions of the disc material are actually outside the annular fibers of the disc itself. In some cases, fragments of the disc erupt into the spinal canal, and this is the cause of nerve root compression. Disc rupture is more serious than a disc bulge, and should be treated accordingly. Conservative treatment of a disc injury should reap results in as little as two to three weeks. If serious symptoms persist, other treatment should be sought.
The best way to avoid serious injury to your lower back and discs is to act as if you have a disc bulge already since about 80% of us do. Always bend with your legs when you pick up anything. Bending at the waist, even to pick up something that is not heavy, puts increased pressure and strain on the discs of your lower back. The large muscles of your legs are better equipped to handle heavy lifting than the layers of smaller muscles in your lower back. Pull objects closer to your body before you try to pick them up, as leaning and lifting simultaneously are a deadly combination for discs. Stretch your lower back every morning before you get out of bed. There is no substitute for limber, warmed muscles when you call on them to work for you. Getting out of bed is a big request when your body has been at rest all night long, and your lower back knows it. Another simple way to keep your lower back healthy is to tighten the muscles in your abdomen. If there is too much weight out front with no musculature to support it, the lower back is under strain any time you are bearing weight, which is any time you aren’t lying down. Any time you are doing any heavy lifting or carrying heavy objects for an extended period of time, use common sense. Know the limits of your body and when you feel pain, stop. Working through the pain is not a smart way to handle a lower back that is sending you signals. After a period of activity, ice it down and rest.
The hard part about taking care of the discs of your lower back is to remember all of this sage advice. I will put myself to the test this very weekend. Treat your body well.