What treatments or medicines have cured your pain or lessened the pain the most.  And if you have been diagnosed with degenerative disc disease and bulging discs plus arthritis and slight scoliosis.  Tell me what you have tried and what has been beneficial even if only briefly.
125541
I have mild scoliosis along with a herniated disc in my lower back.  I've only had one bout of very severe pain and it lasted about 4 months.  It was so bad it kept me awake at night and I walked with a limp and I thought I was going to have to have surgery but I really wanted to avoid that.  I went to a chiropractor and he did help the limp but the pain only got worse.  What finally helped me get rid of the pain was when my doctor prescribed a round of Prednisone to help with the inflammation.  It finally eased the pain enough that I could get some sleep.  After I finished the Prednisone and was enough better that I could at least function, he sent me to a Physical Therapist to learn some helpful exercises.  I had to do them every day but the improvement in the pain was definitely enough to keep me doing the exercises.  The next step for me was weigh loss. I lost 115 pounds and started doing all kinds of different exercises from aerobics, to running, to weight lifting.  I have been completely pain free for over almost a year and a half now and I managed to avoid surgery.  Good luck with your pain, I know it's excruciating and miserable to have to live with back pain.  I hope you get it resovled soon.
520094
I would ask the doctor if running a MRI on her to see if she has any back disc problems, then if she does physical therapy is good, if that dosent help with the nerve being pinched she may need to see a nurosurgean for more options, I had the same problem, waited to long and now have a fused lower spine,
593794
Although I am not male, I think disc problems are the same.\n\nI have had ruptured discs at L4, L5 & S1.\n\nFirst doctor tried medication, did this for 2 years and I only got worse.\n\nNext I went to a pain center (by this time I was in a wheel chair).  I was starting to get better with therapy and disc injections, but then I had a set back.  Pain doctor sent my to a surgeon and by this time my left leg was completely numb.  He did a lamonectomy (not sure if I spelled it right).  This is where they remove the herniated part of the disc.  I was back on my feet in about 3 days and coaching little legue ball.  I was fine for about a year and then it happened again.  Doctor said he could not tell me why, but part of it had to do with my genes. (I am 3rd generation on both sides with the same disc problem.)  This time he did a spinal fusion.   This is where they remove the bad discs and fuse the vertebrate together.  That has been over 5 years ago and I have not had one single problem with my back. \n\nI will tell you , like I was told by many people that had the same surgery.  You will have problem with your hip where they get the bone to fuse the vertebrate.  I am like a human berometer (sp).  LOL
126235
You could try some accupunture sessions. My nursing instructor used them for chronic back pain and she said after about 4 treatments she hasn't ever had the pain again. You should also see a chiropractor to check for any nerve compression, bugling discs, hernia, etc.
305108
It could be anything really. Your posture. A trapped nerve. A damaged disc. \n\nHave you tried sleeping with lots of cushions to support your legs?  eg making sure you are totally relaxed and supporting any areas that feel not so comfortable? A small cushion in the base of your neck? A couple under your knees to make sure your knees dont lock in the night putting prerssure on your spine?\n\nExperiment with it and see what works.  My friend props herself on her side in the recovery position and places a cushion behind her back so she doesnt roll over, and one inbetween her knees as she doesnt like the feeling of bone on bone. Her back pain has been tons better jsut lately due to this.
59769
Since no one else has answered you, and I have had a similar injury, I thought I'd offer you my experience. I am not a medical expert, just a survivor. My injury was L3 L4, and the disc blew up! In other worded it was not your standard slipped disk. They could not do the laser surgery on me, partly because it was not yet approved but mostly because of the number of disk fragment sthat they had to remove. Prior to the surgery I spent 8 weeks flat on my back while they figured out what was wrong with me, i.e. orthopedics, medical and finally surgical. I had lost all use of my right leg, including the feeling from the hip down, and was starting to loose bowel function. They did the full laminectomy, and sent me home from the hospital the next day. I asked for PT or some kind of rehab but they refused. For the next five years I had to fight on my own to regain use and control of that right leg. For ten years I had a noticable limp. To this day there are certain movements I just cannot do. And the hip is still bad with rampant arthritis. Three years ago I had a relapse, and after the same surgeon did the x-rays and MRI's he said he could not do anything to help me, and that I no have spinal stenosis from L2 down. You should see how little bone mass there is in that picture. It's scary! Anyway, I went to my local gym who has a healthy back program, using Medx equipment. I rehabbed with that program, and am as functional now as I was 5 years after the surgery. If you have a program like that I would seriously check it out before agreeing to surgery. The program at my gym has prevented a lot of surgeries, and has an 85% success rate. They train surrounding muscle to support the bones, and carry the weight. We once trained a dog the same way who was born with hip dysplasia bad enough they wanted to put him to sleep in his first year. He lived to 17, and passed away as a result of an auto injury, not his hips.\nSorry this was so long but your husband needs to know there are options to surgery, and not just PT. Good luck and feel better. I do understand your pain and confusion.
236878
I had a knotted up nerve in my neck one time that was driving me insane.  The doctor gave  me some pain killer but that just made the room spin, so finally out of desperation I went to a chiropractor for the frist time in my life.  He crunched my back in several places and then practically twisted my head off from both sides.  The amazing thing was that within minutes I could feel a noticable difference and after going back a couple of more times it fixed it completely, something pain killers cannot do.
441446
So sorry to hear about your pain.  It seems to be in the acute stage.  Herniated disc must be in lumbar spine, since that's where the 3 sciatic nerve roots emerge (one pair at each of 3 levels).\n\nYes, I've been there.  MRI showed 5 herniated discs, with 2 described as "very large and severe causing severe spinal stenosis," and there were complications as well.  Couldn't stand more than 30 minutes.  Sitting down was an agony as firm chair seat compresses the lumbar spine.  Even morphine did not help.\n\nFlash forward one year.  No surgery, no painkillers these days at all, do own gardening & housework, can easily walk 2 miles.  Only residue is a back that starts to complain fairly easily, so must cease whatever activity is stressing it (too-strenuous gardening, etc).\n\nIt wasn't luck.  It was a lot of very hard work plus a determination to get better plus the ability and the resourcefulness to find extremely effective if somewhat unusual treatment modalities.\n\nThese are:\n\n1) For the acute pain stage, a diet that will lower inflammation throughout the body.  This is quite complicated.  In a nutshell it means mostly vegetables and fruits for a short period of time (about 2-4 weeks) and elimination of all foodstuffs known to trigger inflammation.  I've studied nutrition, my professor helped me individually in his private practice.\n\nImprovement was dramatic.  This approach helped much more than morphine.  Within 2 weeks I began to be able to walk, farther & farther each week.\n\n2) supplements to reduce inflammation.  These are mostly omega-3 essential fatty acids.  Surely you've read about these, there's amazing research coming out about their role in healing/stabilizing inflammatory diseases, everything from cardiovascular disease to Alzheimer's.  The typical US diet at present contains too high a proportion of omega-6.  What's missing are the omega-3 and, for anti-inflammation, the EPA (eicosapentanoic acid) component of the omega-3 EFA.  The high EPA will suppress the inflammatory prostaglandins and encourage the body's production of the good or healing prostaglandin.  Where does one get high-EPA omega-3 essential fatty acids?  Best source is molecularly-distilled fish oils.  Read label for EPA and DHA proportions, you'll need a high EPA count and these products are hard to find.  You should try for 1 gram of EPA a day at first, for about a month.  Can take less later.  Yes, molecularly-distilled high-quality fish oil capsules are expensive, but it's still a lot cheaper than powerful prescription painkillers or surgery.\n\nThere are 4 other supplements I took, all available at health food stores.  Two involved collagen (spinal discs are made of collagen) in interesting new formulations that render the large previouslyi-indigestible collagen molecule into a form that can be assimilated by oral ingestion.  The other two were anti-inflammatories.  It was said that one of these, based on turmeric and other herbs,  is as effective as the controversial prescription cox-2 inhibitors (Celebrex and the banned Vioxx).\n\n3) the 3rd treatment modality is perhaps the most important since it involves permanent rehabilitation of the lumbar spine.  This is physiotherapy.  I live in a country where a new approach to lumbar spine injuries is being taught by leading physiotherapists who work with our national Olympic sports teams. Many sports involve repeated battering or smashing of the spine, as in horse jumping, hurdle racing, downhill ski slalom racing, etc, and many athletes wind up with herniated discs.\n\nThe physiotherapy involves identification by the patient of the transverse abdominus muscle and a long program of exercises to strengthen this muscle.  The trans ab is the deepest abdominal muscle.  It sweeps around the lower abdomen and attaches to the spine at rear.  Picture a basket at the bottom of your abdomen that holds upright all your organs - bladder, uterus, lar
34201
Has she tried therapy?  One friend has 3 herniated discs (C5, C6 and C7).  She just started out on 2 month program of physical therapy.  Another friend has a 2 bulging discs in the lower back.  He does not want to go for surgurey, even though that is an option.  Instead, he is always popping Vicodin.  Probably not a good long term solution.
286181
Hello, \n   Have also COPD, diagnosed in 99, was able to finally shed 30 lbs last year.  For muscle pain (muscle spasms) I take Magnesium and Potassium.  Keeping active (have to push myself) also helps me alot. If you have access to a Pulmonary Rehab Program, try it, had a total positive affect on me. Please contact me if you wish to exchange more info. Also would appreciate learning anything you have done with positive effects...thank you and\n\nTake care and better breathing to you...
536661
first of all, disc problems do not heal themselves.  you must do something for them in order to restore them back to their normal orientation.\n\ni am a chiropractor and specialize in spine related injuries. the disc acts as both a cushion and a spacer between each vertebrae. if a disc is bulging/herniated, that bulge can put pressure on the nerves exiting between each vertebra which causes a "pinched nerve." also if the disc is wearing out (getting thinner) you lose the space between the vertebra, which leaves less room for those nerves to exit--and again can pinch a nerve. the nerves in your cervical spine (neck) go all the way down your arm while the nerves in your lumbar spine (low back) form the sciatic nerve which runs all the way down your leg. if any of these are "pinched" they can cause pain, numbess, tingling, weakness wherever these nerves go (down arms/legs).\n\nas a chiropractor i see this type of scenario on a daily basis. for those who have degenerative disc disease, disc herniation, disc bulging, etc.--normal chiropractic care can usually help with those problems. but there are also many people out there that have had this problem for many years and can't find relief with anything they try--including chiropractic. \n\nbut now there is a treatment that is perfect for your situation and the best part is: it's non-surgical and non-invasive. if you haven't heard of it yet it is called spinal decompression. this type of treatment focuses on disc injuries and the problems they cause. i use the DRX9000 spinal decompression system in my office and it works wonders for people with these types of injuries (approx. 90% successful). the DRX9000 is fda approved and is the best decompression system available (there are cheap knock-offs that don't give the same results). \n\nmy recommendation would be to see a chiro, especially if you've never tried it before-just to see what they have to say. also do some research on this treatment and then contact someone (usually a chiro) who uses it in their office. i would just google "DRX9000" to find info on it and doctors in your area who may have it. this treament is able to encourage the disc to go back to it's normal orientation and also rebuild its height--which then takes the pressure off whatever nerve it is compressing. pain meds, cortisone shots, epidurals won't do anything to solve the problem--all they do is cover it up and they become less and less effective over time. surgery AT BEST is 50% successful and usually doesn't solve the problem since most people need another surgery 5-10 years down the road for the same issue. it's typically a viscious cycle. remember: surgery is always an option, so try something prior to surgery to see if you can avoid it--cause once you do the surgery there is no going back.\n\nthis treatment is extremely effective for degenerative disc disease, disc bulging, herniation, etc. and also sciatica type of cases, especially if you haven't had surgery yet. i've had many patients who were scheduled for surgery, tried this treatment as a last resort, and then ended up cancelling their surgery altogether after treatment was completed. it really does work and that's what my recommendation would be for you. good luck and hopefully this gives insight to others experiencing similar problems--there is a solution!!!
394762
I go to the chiropractor for scoliosis and TMJ. The first week I hurt because my muscles and spine were moving. It is completely natural for you to hurt. I took ibuprofen to take away some of the pain. After a couple of weeks you won't hurt anymore. That is, unless you miss a visit! ;-)
434942
I was in the same boat, 2 surgeries and all was well...crashed racing again then......had 2 world class neurosurgeons that wouldn't touch me saying surgery at this point will damage more tissue. After about 6 years of nasty death inducing pain, it did fuse and go away to a bearable point.\n\nSince then they have come up with a papaya injection. It was too new when I was hurt but may be an option, check into it. It dissolves the disc causing trouble and if in the hands of a skilled Dr... I think it would be the way to go. Few do the procedure  though.\n\nTake care....\n\n\n====================
538591
I have degenerative disc disease as well. I have had 5 lumbar fusions as a result. Although each was done to repair a different disc space. I do not regret any of them. The pain that I had before the surgery was almost unbearable. The pain that extended down my leg is now gone & I can stand up straight again. This choice however should be made by your mom hon. At her age there are bound to more risks involved. On one hand I know that you want her quality of life to improve. But you should know that it can take a full year or better to recover from this type of surgery.
611056
The answer to your question really depends on the problem with your disc and the symptoms of this problem.  More information please.
505849
I delivered 7 kids...(6 natural, 1 with an epidural)...THEN found out I had scoliosis! I also have fused disks in my lower back. I dont know how bad the curve of my spine is..altho I have had two different drs tell me I have the most crooked spine they have ever seen. You may just need to give your back time to heal since you just had a baby a few months ago. Also doing yoga stregthens the back muscles, which could help if you decide to have another baby. Since you dont have insurance maybe you can find a Health Department or Clinic that would be able to see you. GOODLUCK!
642510
Yes, there is an alternative solution. Go for a manual one-time treatment called Atlasprofilax. The effects on all these symptoms are really amazing, even slipped discs will regenerate completely due to a correct pressure distribution in your spine.\n\nJust - the treatment is available in California and Europe only, costing approx. 220 dollars. It's really worth travelling far.