The good news is that the vast majority of herniated discs can be treated without surgery using manual therapy and exercise or with IDD Therapy disc treatment. It is only a small percentage of cases which go on to have surgery.
How long does a herniated disc take to heal without surgery? How long a herniated disc takes to heal often ranges between six and eight weeks. Additionally, patients with this condition often heal just fine without surgery.
If you leave a herniated disc untreated, you may experience intense, sharp pains, partial paralysis, or the inability to control bowel movements in relatively dire situations.
Once a healthy disc herniates, it will never return to its normal anatomical state—the disease or injury is permanent in nature.
Herniated disk surgery is often very effective, and it works faster than other treatments. You should start to see an improvement in symptoms like pain, weakness, and numbness within a few weeks after surgery. Physical therapy or rehab can help you recover quicker. You can go to a rehab center, or do exercises at home.
The best way to foster healing in these cases is to rest, avoid activities that cause pain, and take over-the-counter pain killers like acetaminophen or ibuprofen to relieve symptoms. During your home treatment, you can also: Alternate applying heat and cold. Stay as active as you can.
The average amount of time it takes for a herniated disk to heal is four to six weeks, but it can get better within a few days depending on how severe the herniation was and where it occurred. The biggest factor in healing a herniated disk is time, because most often it will resolve on its own.
A herniated disc is a common spinal disorder, and it typically responds well to conservative treatment like gentle exercise or over-the-counter pain medication. But some ruptured disc symptoms warrant a trip to your doctor to prevent serious—and potentially permanent—nerve complications.
The pain from a herniated disc usually is worse when you are active and gets better when you are resting. Coughing, sneezing, sitting, driving, and bending forward may make the pain worse. The pain gets worse when you make these movements because there is more pressure on the nerve.
With a herniated disc, the capsule cracks or breaks, and the nucleus squeezes out. This can irritate the spinal cord or nearby nerves, causing weakness and numbness in the arms or legs. A severely herniated disc can cause paralysis.
You may continue to experience pain for many reasons. Sometimes, the nerves are actually damaged by the pressure from the disc herniation and may not recover completely. You may also develop scar tissue around the nerves weeks after the operation that causes pain similar to what you had before the operation.
According to Spine Universe, chiropractic care is a non-surgical option for herniated disc treatment. This makes choosing a chiropractor to address problems with a herniated disc a viable option if you want to avoid undergoing any surgical procedures.
Seek Physiotherapy
Physiotherapists are highly trained medical professionals who can provide non-invasive, customized, and drug-free services that are shown by research to relieve herniated disc symptoms, heal disc tissue, and prevent recurring or chronic pain.
Though it can cause intense pain and discomfort, the good news is that there are a wide range of treatment options for herniated discs in the lower back. “A lot of pain from disc herniations will subside with time,” says Dr. Mukai. In fact, 85% of people with a herniated disc feel better within 8 to 12 weeks.
Although rare, the long-term effects of untreated herniated discs can be severe. They can cause permanent nerve damage, causing a loss of sensation in the legs, loss of bowel control, or partial paralysis. This is why it's important to seek treatment for herniated discs.
According to research cited by Harvard Health, about 10 percent of patients with herniated disc issues require surgery after six weeks. Similar research suggests that 90 percent of the time, surgery is not necessary for a herniated disc.
These discs can become weakened over time as you age. This can increase the risk of a herniated disc, also called a ruptured disc. When this happens, the jelly-like nucleus substance leaks out into the spinal canal, putting pressure on the nerves.
There are a few different factors that can affect how long it takes for a herniated disc to heal. The first is the severity of your injury. A more severe herniation will take longer to heal than a less severe one. The second factor is your age.
Your doctor might also prescribe muscle relaxants to ease muscle spasms in your back. And nerve pain medicines, such as amitriptyline (Elavil, Vanatrip), duloxetine (Cymbalta), gabapentin (Neurontin), pregabalin (Lyrica), and tramadol (Ultram) are options to ease nerve-damage pain.
The good news is that in most cases — 90% of the time — pain caused by a herniated disc will go away on its own within six months. Initially, your doctor will likely recommend that you take an over-the-counter pain reliever and limit activities that cause pain or discomfort.
Therapy may include massage, heat and cold therapy, electrical muscle stimulation, and stretching. Following a regimen by your therapist which includes exercising 30–45 minutes a day, helps you to manage herniated disc pain relief at home.
Your doctor might recommend surgery as an option for your herniated disc if: Your symptoms have lasted at least 6 weeks and make it hard to do your normal activities, and other treatments haven't helped. You need to get better quickly because of your job or to get back to your other activities as soon as possible.
No bending, lifting, or twisting whatsoever should be attempted for two weeks after your discectomy surgery, because this can hinder your recovery and increase your risk of reherniation.