1) Side-lying position: This sleeping position is achieved by lying on your side with a pillow between your legs. It will help keep your spine aligned and take pressure off your herniated disc. 2) Back-lying position: When you sleep on your back, using a pillow under your knees is vital to keep your spine in alignment.
The optimal sleeping position for a herniated disc is on your back. Lying on your back keeps your spine in a neutral position so you have less chance of pinching the nerve. For added comfort, nestle a small pillow or rolled-up towel under your knees and lower back.
Skip movements that involve significant axial loading on the lower back, such as squats and leg presses. Avoid toe-touches, sit-ups, and yoga poses that worsen the pain and lead to significant bending of the back.
Treatment with rest, pain medication, spinal injections, and physical therapy is the first step to recovery. Most people improve in 6 weeks and return to normal activity. If symptoms continue, surgery may be recommended.
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.
It is proper to sit up straight without slouching. When you slump, you put extra pressure on the discs in the spine and can aggravate your herniated disc. Additionally, you want to ensure your knees are level with your hips. Your hips should be slightly above your knees if you sit at a desk.
Deep Tissue Massage: There are more than 100 types of massage, but deep tissue massage is an ideal option if you have a herniated disc because it uses a great deal of pressure to relieve deep muscle tension and spasms, which develop to prevent muscle motion at the affected area.
Most disc bulges resolve in 6-8 weeks, but it can take longer depending on the size of the bulge (i.e. if the bulge is hitting the nerve behind it like described above).
A herniated or bulging disc can lead to muscle spasms in your back. Thus, it's recommended that you stretch your muscles as often as possible to ease the pain and prevent muscle spasms from becoming chronic.
Sitting is not really the preferred position when you have a herniated lumbar disc. Most physical therapists will recommend standing up, moving around or lying down over sitting.
Bed rest is usually considered an efficient treatment for acute low back pain.
Your symptoms feel worse when you bend or straighten up from a bent position. Movement can increase pressure on the herniated disc and the surrounding nerves, causing symptoms to increase. Many people find that sitting or lying in specific positions makes their pain worse as well.
Non-surgical treatments can include physical therapy or bracing to try and gradually ease the bulging disc back into its rightful place. When these conservative options fail, and there is still a lot of pain, a minimally invasive surgical procedure can be used to correct the bulging disc.
Generally speaking—as long as they're performed correctly—core and back exercises are beneficial for bulging discs, as are activities like walking, elliptical exercise, swimming, and riding a stationary or regular bike.
An L4-L5 disc bulge or slip-disc (slipped disc) pinches and leads to serious health issues, including impotence, reproduction issues, infertility, loss of bowel and bladder control, or paralysis in one or both legs.
Chiropractic is a preferred treatment option for many people with bulging and herniated discs because it is a non-invasive process and does not require drugs or injections. Once you have reached your diagnosis, you and your chiropractor can work hand in hand to look for the best way to treat your condition.
Bulging discs can be treated by physiotherapy through a few different techniques. What happens in your appointment: In your first appointment, your physiotherapist will assess your body, your movement and your pain. Information and education to understand your bulging disc through scans/x-rays (if you have one).
It's not that one or the other is better. It's a matter of balance. Some studies suggest that it can be just as painful to stand for long periods as it can be to sit for too long. While the balance may look different for everyone, it can be beneficial to discover what that is and how to adjust accordingly.
Potential aggravating forward bending activities: Slouched sitting where you are flexed forward. Tying up shoes.
If the pain does not subside within a few weeks or worsens, surgery may be necessary. If you continue to experience numbness, weakness, have difficulty standing or walking or have loss of bladder control, you may be a candidate for spinal surgery for your disc herniation.
Signs Your Herniated Disc is Healing
However, the first symptom that will reveal that you are on the way to healing is that the sharp, shooting pain in your legs or arms will go away, followed by some muscle weakness in that nerve path. However, if you have numbness, it might take longer to heal.
If you're experiencing back pain when sitting, your impulse may be to lie down and then try to slowly progress back to sitting, says Dr. Atlas. But this is the wrong approach. You should lie down to relieve the pain, but the goal should be not to return to sitting, but rather to regain your ability to stand and move.
Face-Up Position
Your eyes should be watching the ceiling. Now keep a pillow right beneath your knees at an angle of 30 degrees. This will assist your spine to decompress itself in addition to elongating it. You may also keep a pillow under your neck to support it and maintain it in a neutral position.