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Herniated Disc Specialist

BodyWorks Medical Center

Integrative Medical Clinic located in Carol Stream, IL & St. Charles, IL

Herniated Disc Q & A

What causes pain from a herniated disc?

“Herniated disc”, “pinched nerve”, “slipped disc”, and “bulging disc” are terms that are often used when referring to the same medical condition. Something as simple as a slip and fall or lifting an object that’s too heavy can cause a disc to slip out of line.

Essentially, a herniated disc is when a disc in the spine, usually the lower spine, has slipped out of place and is now putting pressure on nearby nerves. When this happens, you can feel pain, numbness, tingling, or a combination of the three in areas that surround and radiate out from the disc.

How is a herniated disc diagnosed?

Your healthcare professional will likely use a combination of your medical history and your current symptoms to diagnose your herniated disc. If necessary, further tests can be ordered to ensure that your pain is in fact coming from a slipped disc.

What can I do to make the pain stop?

Certain positions, rest, over the counter pain medication, and hot/cold packs may be your usual go-tos when trying to stop the pain from a herniated disc. However, if these home remedies are no longer working for you, you might be looking for a more effective, more permanent solution.

If surgery is one of your concerns, take comfort in the fact that surgery is not the only answer when it comes to ridding of herniated disc pain. Other treatment options like chiropractic care, rehabilitation or decompression therapy can be just as effective and much less invasive than surgery.

How long will it take to recover?

Through chiropractic adjustments, rehab and other related pain management methods, you can begin to feel your pain lessening even after just the first visit to BodyWorks Medical Center. It might be advised, however, that you receive a number of treatments as part of your pain management plan, to minimize the amount of pain you feel as much as possible.