What to Know About Your Herniated Disc

A herniated disc can cause major problems. Depending on where it leaks out, it can pinch on the nerves or spinal cord and cause severe pain and/or numbness to wherever those nerves go. You could be doing things throughout your day to unexpectedly herniate a disc, here’s what to watch out for. 

What is a Herniated Disc?

It’s been shown that anywhere from 80 to 90% of all Americans will experience back pain at one point or another during their life. Some people only have pain that comes and goes, while others might have pain that stays and becomes chronic.

Many people experience back pain that is mechanical in nature. This means, in most cases, it is caused by the spine not moving and working as it should. The spine is made up of 24 individual bones that stack up on each other like blocks. Between every two bones is a vertebral disc. Each disc is similar to a jelly donut. To explain, they are soft and jelly-like on the inside, but protected by a tough exterior. These discs help “glue” your spinal bones together, but it also serves as shock absorbers for your spine. With how the spine is set up, the spinal bones can move freely, which is what allows you to bend, move forward and backward, and twist side-to-side. 

Issues begin with the spinal bones move too far, especially after an accident or an injury. When this happens, the tough outer material of the disc and surrounding ligaments that hold the spinal bones into place can be stretched, which causes a sprain. Due to this, you won’t be able to move as smoothly as you should. This additional stress and strain causes further stretching of the disc and ligaments, which causes further inflammation and pain. With that, your spine will begin to wear unevenly and more quickly than it should. The more time goes on without correction, the more damage is done. After time, the outer layers of the disc will wear out and tear, causing the jelly-like substance to leak out —and that is known as a herniated disc. 

Symptoms of a Herniated Disc

A herniated disc can happen at any location on the spine, so you could experience pain anywhere from your neck down to your lower back. However, it is more common to experience them in the lumbar (lower back) region. Healthline lists the common symptoms of a herniated disc to be:

• Numbness and pain, mostly located on one side of the body
• Pain that extends to the arms and legs
• Feelings of pain that are worse with certain movements or at night
• Pain that is worse after standing or sitting
• Inability to walk short distances due to pain
• Unexplained muscle weakness
• Tingling, aching, or burning sensations in the affected area 

Causes of Herniated Discs

While some people may not know the exact way they herniated a disc, there are common causes. Spine Universe explains the three most common causes of this injury to be:

1. Wear and tear on the spine, often the result of degeneration from our discs not absorbing shock from movement as they should. This means that common activities like walking, twisting, and bending can cause an injured disc. 
2. Injury, often caused after a car accident. The sudden, jerking movement that results from a car accident can put too much pressure on your discs, causing them to herniate. 
3. A combination of degeneration and injury, which can make you more prone to a traumatic event. For some people, they could have such wear and tear that something as small as sneezing can lead to this injury because of the sudden force. 

Risk Factors 

There are a number of different risk factors that could make a person more prone to experiencing a disc injury. These risk factors can include:

• Growing older, due to the natural degeneration of the discs 
• Jobs that involve sitting for long periods of time or heavy lifting 
• Staying sedentary and allowing your back muscles to lose strength
• Gaining excess weight, which strains the spine 
• Being male 
• Smoking cigarettes
• Eating a poor diet that doesn’t provide you with the nutrients you need for joint and disc health

Treatments

At Texas Spine and Sports Therapy Center, we offer a variety of innovative treatments that provide effective pain relief and promote long term healing, which include:

• Spinal decompression therapy and chiropractic spinal manipulation to release pressure on the affected disc or discs
• Class IV Diowave Laser therapy 
• Cortisone injections to provide long term pain relief without dangerous medications 
• Massage to relieve swelling or tension
• Tracking of bulging discs that aren’t causing symptoms
• Medically supervised weight loss to relieve strain on the entire spine

Make an Appointment with Texas Spine and Sports Therapy Center

If you are suffering from a herniated disc, our team at Texas Spine and Sports Therapy Center is ready to help you. Call us today to make an appointment at (512)-806-0015.