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Herniated disk is a painful condition. It may start as a low degree pain which slowly grows worse when you are standing, sitting, at night, while bending, sneezing, coughing or even laughing. Slipped disk happens when the outer hard layer of the spine cracks up and the soft inner layer starts pushing out. This puts pressure on the spinal cord or neighboring nerves leading to disk herniation.
Let us explore various forms treatment for herniated disks:
- Physical therapy:
It is one of the most important methods of treating herniated disk. When the pain is too much, passive therapy is given to the patient. After some relief is attained, regular therapy continues to prevent further degeneration. Passive treatments include:
Hot and Cold Therapy:
Your therapist may give you heat treatment on the affected area to increase blood flow. This releases toxins from the muscles and enhances the supply of oxygen to the affected part.
Cold therapy or cyrotherpy involves applying ice pack or fluoromethane spray to cool the affected part. It relieves inflammation, pain and spasms in the tissue.
Deep Tissue Massage:
It is very beneficial in treating herniated disk. Its deep pressure relieves pain and spasms in the affected muscles.When done on a regular basis, it provides relief in back pain. The deep tissue massage is done by an expert and it involves kneading, stroking, massaging and manipulating the muscles in your back. Massage helps in relaxing and healing the affected muscles.
Deep tissue massage helps enhance the blood flow to the back muscles and increases the supply of oxygen. This helps in supplying nutrients to the affected area and flushing out the accumulated toxins from the herniated part. There are more than 100 types of massages. Your doctor will suggest you the best deep tissue massage suited to your herniated disk condition.
Hydrotherapy:
In this form of treatment, you are made to sit under a shower or a whirlpool bath. As the name suggests, water pressure is applied to the affected area. This helps relieve pain and muscular spasms and relaxes the tissue.
Aquatic therapy is also a great way to treat pain in lower back and enhance your muscular strength. You doctor will advise you to perform certain exercises in the swimming pool under physical therapy program with an expert's supervision. Even taking a hot bath under a shower or in a tub will help ease the tension off your back muscles and relieve pain.
Hydrotherapy will promote healing in the areas affected by herniated disk. It helps release stress on the back muscles and increase core strength of the lumbar spine. It will restore your muscular coordination and flexibility.
Traction:
Traction is applied to relieve the pressure of gravity on your spine. It is a type of decompression therapy. Your spinal joints are pulled apart to relieve disk herniation. The traction can be applied either manually or mechanically.
Spinal traction is a non surgical method of relieving pain and correcting the condition of herniated disk. It mostly gives consistent relief to the patients. It stretches the joints and bones to counter the effects of gravitational force on your backbone. It decompresses the joints and enhances the movement in the patient. It helps alleviate the pain and helps the body to heal itself..
Before going for traction, the patient should ask the doctor to create a physical therapy management plan. The physiotherapist may recommend some exercises to be done at home for a few days before traction. Normally, spinal traction is given to aid other therapies for herniated disk. Some patients require a few sessions while others need regular sessions lifelong.
Is spinal traction safe?
In the short term, the patient may temporarily experience muscular spasms or pain after getting traction done. In the long term, there are no risks involved with spinal traction. Your physician is the best person to decide if spinal traction is suitable for your herniated disk condition or not.
TENS:
TENS or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation is another way of relieving painful herniated disk. It involves using a TENS machine to pass electrical current through the affected area. It helps lessen the spasms in the muscles and relieves pain by boosting release of endorphins in the body.
In this form of treatment, low voltage current is passed through the body with the help of electrodes which are taped on your body. This blocks your perception of pain. TENS may not be for everyone due to a variety of reasons.
Apart from the traditional methods, you may opt for alternative methods of treating herniated disktoo. Some of them are as follows:
- Acupuncture:
Acupuncture is based on the premise that there are specific meridians or energy channels in your body. When the flow of energy gets blocked in these meridians, you experience pain and ailments.
Acupuncture involves releasing the flow of blocked energy channels by inserting very thin needles at specific angles and at specific points in your body. The trained acupuncturist will insert needles according to your medical condition for about 20-40 minutes.
Acupuncture helps release natural pain relievers called endorphins in your body. It is also beneficial in treating muscular spasms.
- Chiropractic Technique:
Flexion-distraction is a chiropractic technique for treating herniated disk condition. In this method, a specialized table is used to stretch the spine. The chiropractor uses gentle pumping to allow the intervertebral disk to take its central position in the disk.
The chiropractor uses manipulation and other techniques for properly aligning the muscles and bones, specially the spine. This is done to facilitate the body for healing without using any surgical method. It helps relieve pain in bones, joints, muscles and connective tissues.
Your chiropractor may also put together a diet and exercise plan along with the treatment. Spinal manipulation is an effective and safe treatment method for lower back pain due to herniated disk.
- Acupressure:
Similar to acupuncture, acupressure also believes in the same principle of energy channels or meridians. In acupressure, the energy blockages are released by applying manual pressure by hands, fingers, elbows and other instruments, instead of needles. Pressure is applied by the therapist at specific energy points on different parts of your body for a few minutes.. This pressure unblocks the energy channels and the 'chi' or the life force energy starts flowing to the affected body areas.
This helps improve blood circulation, promotes release of toxin build up and relieves pain. You may require a few sessions to completely heal the herniated disk. The time for healing and the number of sessions differ from person to person.
It is generally considered to be safe.Acupressure should be avoided for pregnant women and people with high blood pressure.
Recommended Diet and Supplements for Herniated Disk
Keeping your weight under control is important. Excessive weight will put pressure on your spine and worsen the herniated disk condition.
Apart from this, a well balanced diet with plenty of nutrients should be taken. This will help nourish and maintain a healthy cartilage that forms the outer hard layer of the disk.
The following nutrients should be added to your diet:
- Calcium supplements should be taken as prescribed by your doctor to keep your vertebrae healthy.
- Consume fresh fruits, veggies like bitter gourd, drumstick, neem flowers and plenty of lean protein like beans, fish etc.
- Additional supplements like chondroitin and glucosamine may boost cartilage health.
- You can also take Ayurvedic formula Lumbarite capsules to effectively treat inter-vertebral herniated disk.
- Add foods rich in Vitamins C, D and E to your diet to enhance your spinal health. Tomato, capsicum, leafy greens, papaya, fortified cereals, olive oil etc. should be consumed.
- Avoid foods that increase 'Vayu Dosha' or cause gastric problem like cabbage, legumes, chickpea etc. as they worsen the pain. Choose wheat in place of rice for the same reason.
- Avoid eating sour, sugary and salty foods or drinks. Also eliminate deep fried food items, food stuff made from white flour (or maida), semolina (or rawa), pulses etc.
- You can take omega 3 fatty acids in the form of fish oil capsules as prescribed by your doctor. They are anti inflammatory in nature and hence reduce the back pain.
Are there any yoga stretches that are beneficial in herniated disk?
Yes, there are specific yoga asana that help relieve the stress on the spine due to herniated disk. But extreme care should be taken to learn and practice them only under an expert's guidance after seeking your doctor's approval.
Setu bandha asnana(the bridge pose), Bhujanga asana (cobra pose), Ushtra asnana (camel pose), Ardha chakrasana are some of the yoga postures that are helpful in treating herniated disk. Learn more about yoga poses for lower back pain here.
Deep breathing exercises like alternate nostril breathing technique and meditation also help in keeping you relaxed and thereby relieve the back pain to a great extent.
Home Remedies to relieve herniated disk pain:
- Take 65 ml coconut oil and add 10 cloves of garlic to it. Heat this mixture till garlic cloves turn dark brown. Apply the lukewarm oil on the affected part.
- You can also apply aroma therapy oils to relieve pain in the back. These oils are anti inflammatory in nature and improve general blood circulation. Essential oils of eucalyptus, camphor, basil and rosemary are great for relieving pain.
- Gently massage your body with warm sesame oil and take a warm water bath. This will relax your strained muscles and bring down the pain.
- Drink Bishop's weed (ajwain in Hindi) tea. Boil a cup of water and put half a teaspoon Bishop's weed in it. Let it steep for a few minutes. Sip it slowly when it becomes lukewarm. It helps relieve lower back pain.
- Practice Vayu mudra. This is done by sitting cross legged on a floor mat. On you right hand, place your index finger at the base of your thumb. Keep your thumb over the index finger. Keep the rest of the fingers straight. Make the same mudra with your left hand as well. Place both hands on your knees and slowly breathe deeply with this mudra. Continue for 5-10 minutes for relieving lower back pain.
- Soak 50 gm wheat in water overnight. In the morning, add 30 gm each of poppy seed grass (khas khas) and coriander leaves to wheat. Make a paste of these ingredients. Take 250 ml milk and add this paste to it. Boil the milk till two thirds of it is left. Consume the decoction. It will help lower the back pain.
- Take poppy seed grass (khas khas) and rock sugar (mishri) in 1:1 ratio. Grind this mixture to a powder form. Take 6 gm of this powdered mixture twice a day in the morning and evening with milk. It will help relieve your lower back pain.
Everyday tips to avoid straining the herniated disk:
- Wear lose and comfortable clothes. Tight clothes like jeans can put pressure on your back and aggravate back pain. This is because it interferes with your movement while walking, sitting or lying down and blocks circulation.
- Give your high heels a break. Pointed heels can disturb the body balance and put enormous strain on your back. So, putting them away is a good idea for preventing back pain. You can go for footwear with doctor's sole especially designed for providing back relief.
- Avoid bending and lifting weights. Herniated disk pain will get aggravated if you move your spine in forward bending poses or carry the heavy pile of books.
- Do not sit or stand for too long. Take breaks.
- Lose your baggage. Carry a small hand purse or carry your cash in your pocket. Avoid putting any pressure on your back.
- Sleep in the correct posture. Ask your doctor about the right pose for sleeping.
If you suffer from herniated disk, there is no reason to stop leading an active lifestyle. Get a proper diagnosis and choose the best line of treatment suited to your condition. Follow your doctor's instruction diligently. With proper care and medical help, you will find yourself back into an active life!
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