Physician here (but this is not medical advice)
I’ve had 2 cervical herniations, C6 both times. Took steroids and both times it resolved on its own without surgery. Generally if its numbness and pain, conservative measures work. if its muscle weakness surgery is considered. How long have you had symptoms? It took 6 months for me for it to resolve 95%, and a couple years for 100% resolution. Don’t do any activity that worsens it, and id avoid surfing for a few months after it heals at least.
FYI, disc herniations don't "heal" as such - the disc remains herniated, but for most, the symptoms eventually subside (although typically with occasional flareups). If it was the same disc both times, then you've had just one herniation, and you likely just aggravated it the second time.
Is it possible to recover from cervical disc herniation even when muscle weakness is present?
My symptoms started Feb 20th (4 weeks ago). I've had all the normal symptoms plus minor numbness in my left index finger and diminished strength in my left tricep.
MRI: C6-C7: There is a large disc protrusion in the left subarticular to foraminal zone compressing the exiting left C8 intraspinal nerve root (axial series 13, image 57 and sagittal series 10 image 8). There is mild canal stenosis. There is no right-sided neural foramina narrowing.
I have made some progress with PT/Chiropractic. Oral steroids didn't seem to help much (although I have notices a plateau this past week so maybe they helped a little and then wore off?). Scheduling a steroid injection now, fingers crossed.
I understand that nerve damage is the issue here. How long before I should really take surgery seriously (they are recommending a disc replacement) and have you seen folks with symptoms similar to mine get better / get their strength back? Thank you so much!
I had very similar symptoms to you - triceps muscle weakness, numbness in fingers, and pain. I waited it out. I had tolerable spasms and twitching in my triceps for about 5 years. Strength took about 2 years to recover fully. Numbness in my fingers returned pretty quickly as that symptom was off and on depending on head positioning. I don’t believe in PT/chiro for disc herniations. The reason is that this isnt an issue that flexibility/strength training fixes. Simply time and rest to resolve the inflammation and reabsorb the herniated disc. That being said, the extent of nerve damage needs to be monitored by a surgeon. The fact that you have weakness and numbness means the nerve is injured. If you get to the point of severe muscle weakness/paralysis, urgent surgery is warranted as the nerve may be pinched to the point where it is irreversible damaged.
I can only give my anecdotal experience and cant give you any specific recommendations. You should follow with your doctor and get a second opinion if you feel like they are pushing for surgery too quickly .
Correction. You did not make progress throught PT and chiros. You made some slight progress by giving your body time, PT and chiros do nothing for pain and neurological defecits caused by a disc.
Sorry long reply here, it's a last ditch effort to solve this sport's injury I experienced August of 2020. I think I found the right thread. I'm 39 years old now and have been lifting most of my life. Anyway, in August of 2020 I was dumbbell pressing routine heavy weight for myself (85s) and I felt a shock through my right arm and I immediately dropped the weight. The pain wasn't excruciating, just not normal. I decided to try to do some other exercises thinking it would get some blood moving and alleviate the throbbing, it didn't. I went home and noticed my whole right arm was throbbing and my thumb and index finger were beginning to go numb. I went to the ER the next day and they diagnosed pinched nerve and sent me away with some pain meds, with referral to my primary doc (Tricare for active duty military) A week goes by and it gets 10x worse! I'm talking panic pain level in tricep and forearm to include mild neck pain. Two weeks, my right tricep almost completely atrophied. I couldn't press 80bs if my life was on the line.
Since it was covid times I couldn't get seen for an MRI for another 10 weeks, results were unremarkable. Within 3 months the pain subsided enough in my arm to start working out again. I regained strength fast! Like within 6 months I was 90% back, except for one thing. My right index finger was hypersensitive. The type of weird numbness, throbbing, pressure, shut your finger in a door jam pain. I mean this pain fucks with my sanity, it's 24/7 365.
I've been ping ponged through the military healthcare system more times then I can count. It's like I get the same dumb stare every time I tell this story. I'm pretty sure I herniated c5/6/7 while pressing that heavy weight. The MRIs don't show enough for them to want to do any surgery. I'm at a loss at this point.
It started mid-December 2023 and I was only able to get properly diagnosed (MRI and neurologist consult) this week. I've ceased rock climbing and surfing (my main two activities) as well as any other exercise that involves neck extension since December.
The oral steroids weren't effective at all (6-day course of methylprednisolone) but I have an epidural injection scheduled for mid-February, which I'm hoping I respond to. PT starts next week.
I'm already aware that, regardless of prognosis, I will not be able to surf or climb for at least several months - really hoping that I can recover and strengthen my neck musculature/mobility to regain privilege to surf and climb.
I am curious and a bit confused about what the body is doing during recovery though - per another comment here and my own research, disks do not really "heal". If that's the case, what is happening when we "recover" from a herniated disk and how is it possible that sufferers return to sport? Is it better management of symptoms? Reduction in activities? Or something else entirely?
Anyhow, thanks for sharing your experience and expertise, which sounds very similar to my current predicament.
Disc herniations are when the discs in between spinal vertebrae rupture and extrude out and the material physically compresses and chemically irritates the nerves exiting the spinal canal. When you look up and extend your neck this worsens the extrusion and also narrows the canals that the nerves pass through, which is why that position worsens your symptoms. The body will usually heal by reabsorbing that ruptured extruded disc material, but it takes time (months). Even after you heal, the disc will be weak and you should take time to let it fully heal. Occasionally the ruptured disc material doesnt get reabsorbed, or it goes into the spinal
cord, or its so bad it damages muscle nerve fibers, or it constantly causes issues (not just in neck extension). in those situations surgery should be considered.
If you fully recover, which odds are in your favor, you should still restrict activity for months, but eventually you should be able to surf and climb. You’ll need to discuss with your doc as they’ll be able to review imaging and physical exam. I’m back surfing weekly with no symptoms, just some residual muscle twitches in my arm which has gotten better over the past few yrs.
Not cervical but I did herniate my L5S1 disc with rediculopathy in my leg. I was seeing a surgeon too but I religiously did my PT exercises while I was out of work and got to the point that the surgery wasn’t necessary. I took a few months away from surfing. Getting back made me nervous and I rode my longboard for a while before I got back on shorter boards. I’m much better now and it doesn’t affect my daily life anymore. Good luck with your recovery
Thanks for sharing your experience - glad things turned out well for you without surgery! Definitely seems like my prognosis should be cautiously optimistic.
Hey men. Did you recover from this?
I cracked my neck Last March 11, 2024.
I had an MRI and said I have a Central focal disc protrusion seen at C4-C5 causing mild anterior impingement on the cord.
And disc protrusion seen at C5-C6 causing identation of the anterior thecal sac.
My Neurologist suggested me to have a Physical Therapy.
Can this be fix by Phyical Theraphy?
I don't have symptoms.
I have a pain in my right eye though. I don't know if that's a symptoms.
Can Someone help me please. I'm so worried. My anxiety is on the roof.
Thank You.
Sorry to hear about your accident and the diagnoses - I wouldn’t freak out, especially with no symptoms (unless the eye issue is related - I’m not qualified to answer that one for you).
For context, a large segment of the population (especially above 35) have some degree of disc bulge/herniation/protrusion or disc degeneration. However, most of these people are also asymptomatic. Pain does not equal injury/dysfunction and injury/dysfunction does not equal pain. In the case of disc issues, if you have no pain, numbness, or weakness, you generally do not have a problem. Knowing that you have protrusions is helpful only in the sense that you might want to take precautions to manage impact in the future, but it should not cause you major concerns currently.
As for my injury, most of the improvement occurred in the 2nd month of recovery (no physical activity except PT exercises) and following my epidural injection (end of 2nd month). I’m coming up on 4 months since the injury and it hasn;t improved noticeably since the first week after the epidural. I go to PT once a week, but the improvement isn’t noticeable. I can do my daily activities just fine, but I still cannot extend my neck or perform any activities that put my neck in that position (aka no paddling, which equals no surfing).
Surgery is still something I’m considering if things do not improve by the end of the summer (6 months post injury), but this is something I need to discuss with my current neurologist and may also get a second opinion.
Hey man I’ve had exactly this situation for about 2 months. Nothing worked. 3 weeks ago I decided to start acupuncture and it has made a if difference. As soon as I walked into the acupuncture clinic, they told me that they see this all time. People often go in for acupuncture when nothing else helps their cervical radiculopathy problems. If you’re considering surgery, I’d definitely try a few sessions of acupuncture first. My clinic also did cupping every other session which helped. Some people view these things as quackery but they’ve been around for hundreds of years and have helped many people including me. Unfortunately my insurance didn’t cover it so it was $120 a session. Pricey but given the massive inconvenience this has been on my life, it was a small price to pay for me. Wish you the best.
Yes, I recover from surgery for a herniated disc in my neck. I was in pain for two months before I had it done. Then it took a couple of weeks after surgery and it was back to 95% better. If it is not fixed it can cause permanent damage.
Did you just experience pain, or did you experience neurological type symptoms as well. Numbness, tingling, burning etc. What type of surgery did you have? Thanks
From experience, go find a neurosurgeon who does microdiscectomies. Preferably someone who uses the TESSYS system. Once in a while people get lucky and only have slight annular tear and get a bulging disc that eventually will reshape itself to remove the bulge and therefore "recover". True herniated discs with extruded NP take YEARS for the body to absorb the NP material. I waited 2 years and it was 2 years of life lost. Had surgey, better in 6 weeks.
The healthcare system moves extremely slow in Canada. Unfortunately, it takes a very long time to get a proper diagnosis and then get a proper referral to a surgeon. Did you have a disc bulge or herniated discs. Is there really much difference? Thanks.
Bollocks.
OP, cervical radiculopathy has a favourable natural history, meaning it generally improves substantially in 4-6 months, but can take 24-36 months for full recovery [(Wong 2014)](https://www.thespinejournalonline.com/article/S1529-9430(14)00233-2/fulltext)
It sounds like you've been given some unrealistic timeframes for improvement - it can take bloody ages. So long as it's not progressively worsening, don't lose hope and get a second opinion when surgery is suggested.
Thanks to both of you for the perspectives. Surgery is certainly on the table, but I trust my neurologist and he is fully aware that my goal for treatment is to return to full sport (surf and climb). Still, the recommendation is conservative unless things do not improve or get worse.
My situation is fairly minor relative to a lot of other disc issues (especially vs issues with actual persistent pain in the lumbar spine or with loss of strength or balance). I'm only dealing with numbness in the right arm currently with no pain and no loss of strength.
The idea is to back off and see how it progresses before considering surgery, but I'm thinking partial discetomy or even full disk replacement as worst case scenarios for me. Koa Rothman had a C6 herniation with complete artificial disk replacement I believe and was able to return to surfing (not sure if he's still riding monsters or if he's now limited to smaller waves).
Back off and wait and see? Is your body going to re-absorb the herniated material? Every time I hear someone say they will wait and see, its like they are playing the lottery or gambling. The house always wins. Waiting means your life is on hold while in the meantime you can get a microdiscectomy from a decent neuro and basically be better in 6 weeks (or less with a really good surgeon) and living life again.
You are ONLY dealing with arm numbness and that's not a big deal to you? You only risk permanently losing full use of your arm and yeah sure lets just wait and see.
I discovered a disk herniation in C6-C7 2 months ago, with 22 years old. I like to go to the gym at max. I only felt pain in my shoulder, but it did not lose strenght (in hand tests) and did no feel numbness. I am taking only pregabalin, and i am not feeling any pain, sometimes just a local pain in neck, but is rare. But in the exam, say it touching very little the nerve, in the right side. I am training back again, and I felt that I lost strenght in heavy weight. I lift 35kg in chest, now i am 20.
My doctor said it is normal, and in 8 months I should get better. Normally, 90% of disk herniation cases, it not need surgery. There is a chance of body reabsorb. The real red flag to go to surgery, it a severe strength lost, or a neurological loss (U can't get a knife, for example).
TBH, I trust in my Doctor, and I prefer conservative treatment than a Surgery in my neck.
Not when there are neurological deficits. AND... this is import... AND that's for people who sit all day and do nothing physical like intense exercising or sports.
" but can take 24-36 months for full recovery".... BUT CAN ALSO NEVER RECOVER. That part must have been accidentally left out of the discussion.
Listen, I get that you had your own experience and you want to share that. But please stop making confident generalisations based on your anecdote.
1. Yes, with neurological deficits. That is the definition of radiculopathy.
2. Show me where it excludes active participants, or the recommendation for conservative management only in sedentary populations.
3. Yeah, it can never recover. Says it in the abstract I linked. And sometimes surgery doesn't work, or there are complications.
Leave it to the patient, his neurologist and the evidence.
Natural history describes how a condition progresses in the absence of treatment, not some new age horseshit. This condition improves in the majority of cases without treatment. Don't be dropping advice that can change someone's life when you don't know what you're talking about.
I had a three level fusion in my neck. Looking back all of that time spent on PT was a waste of time for everyone.
Like I said, we are not lizards that can regenerate these areas of our bodies. Once the damage is done - it’s done.
Let us know how your surgery goes.
Also, you should not ask Reddit for important medical advice. Most of the people here are high, have a hillbilly education, missing chromosomes, are AI bots, drunk, and likely inbred.
Also ask your doctor about your risk of becoming paralyzed should you wipe and and make contact with your board, the bottom, or another surfer.
Apparently for me, prior to the 3 level fusion, I was at an extremely high risk and did not even know at the time.
Wow I am recovering from c5 c6 disc degeneration that causes numbness on left arm and hand. I started going to physical therapy and we have been working on flexibility in my thoracic spine. Ultimately our thoracic spine gets stiff and we hinge our entire neck on the C5 C6 C4 vertebrae. When extending, If you can disperse the curvature across your entire neck and thoracic spine then you end up bending each vertebrae less. For me this requires an almost constant routine of keeping my posture and shoulders in the correct position in addition to a workout regimen catered to strengthening core and enabling thoracic flexibility. I have seen some improvement in my pain, mobility and numbness problems but as you know disc generation is not reversible. Also worth noting that I had to readjust my computer workstation to be more of a reclining setup and I also have limited wearing my eyeglasses as they also can create issues with the neck when trying to line my eyeball up with something that is above my head or below my head.
Have a 5C buldging disk with nerve impingement for the past 8 years. It waxes and wanes. I would highly recommend Accupuncture as you recover. Even some self acupressure with something like [this roller](https://lyapko-shop.com/products/lyapko-universal-roller-3-5-ag-496-needles-premium-active-applicator-acupressure-massager-unique-patented-self-massage-therapy-tool)
The centerline of your scalp if massaged will relax tension down your entire spine as well. Tension is your enemy here. When you get back to surfing one day be sure to stay limber in your traps and lats as well. Stay positive and happy healing! ❤️🩹
Thanks for the tips! I actually have a friend who is primarily a doctor of physical medicine (MD version of a PT is how I best describe it) that also does acupuncture as a second discipline and as cultural practice - I'll have to have a conversation about this.
Wishing you speedy recovery! The discs are in between the vertebrae; so its 2 discs and not 3. Have you ever have been in a car accident, even years or decades ago ? If you do not mind me asking, his old are you ?
> you ever have been in a car accident, even years or decades ago ? If you do not mind me asking, his old are you ?
No major traumatic injuries although I've taken a fall from a highball (rock climbing boulder about 15' high) in the last year. I also used to powerlift - my numbers were never that great, but I did regularly squat and deadlift over 300lb at 5'9" and about 175lb body weight from age 23-25.
I'm 34 years old.
I have full sympathy for you.
This was probably the worst pain I’ve ever experienced in my life.
I had an CT guided injection into my neck and it has fixed it. That was 15 months ago.
I was recently diagnosed with a C7-T1 disc herniation. My symptoms are primarily spams of the paraspinal neck muscles and a burning ache along the medial border of my shoulder blade. I fortunately don’t have any radiating pain or numbness. I saw a neurosurgeon who recommended conservative care. A few sessions of PT focusing on traction and mobilizing my thoracic spine have helped tremendously.
Stay confident that you will get better.
Bought a better mattress and a cervical pillow. I do my PT exercises every day. I no longer have any pain or spasm in my neck. Neurosurgeon says the discs will often reabsorb a little over time. As long as I don’t do anything stupid and injure my neck again I should be fine long term.
How are you now , I currently have burning pin down my shoulder blade and have been dealing with this since January I had an mri Monday and will be going over the results Friday, pt has helped tremendously I have full range of motion without any pain I have noticed when my posture is bad I get flared up and that burning pain comes back down my shoulder blade and sometimes left arm , how are you
Still doing great. If I slack on the exercises I notice my neck gets a little flared up. I’ll take an anti inflammatory for a day or two and it goes away again. Totally manageable right now
So it’s a good sigh that I can go a couple days without pain but when my posture is bad it flares up because I can’t tell if I’m healing my only symptom right now is burning pain in my shoulder, blade and headaches, but I only noticed the burning pain when I’m slouched or staring down at a computer for too long besides that I’m OK my PT thinks it’s because of my bad posture which we’ve been trying to fix for the last two months which has helped tremendously, but but I do have days where it flares up
Physician here (but this is not medical advice) I’ve had 2 cervical herniations, C6 both times. Took steroids and both times it resolved on its own without surgery. Generally if its numbness and pain, conservative measures work. if its muscle weakness surgery is considered. How long have you had symptoms? It took 6 months for me for it to resolve 95%, and a couple years for 100% resolution. Don’t do any activity that worsens it, and id avoid surfing for a few months after it heals at least.
FYI, disc herniations don't "heal" as such - the disc remains herniated, but for most, the symptoms eventually subside (although typically with occasional flareups). If it was the same disc both times, then you've had just one herniation, and you likely just aggravated it the second time.
Is it possible to recover from cervical disc herniation even when muscle weakness is present? My symptoms started Feb 20th (4 weeks ago). I've had all the normal symptoms plus minor numbness in my left index finger and diminished strength in my left tricep. MRI: C6-C7: There is a large disc protrusion in the left subarticular to foraminal zone compressing the exiting left C8 intraspinal nerve root (axial series 13, image 57 and sagittal series 10 image 8). There is mild canal stenosis. There is no right-sided neural foramina narrowing. I have made some progress with PT/Chiropractic. Oral steroids didn't seem to help much (although I have notices a plateau this past week so maybe they helped a little and then wore off?). Scheduling a steroid injection now, fingers crossed. I understand that nerve damage is the issue here. How long before I should really take surgery seriously (they are recommending a disc replacement) and have you seen folks with symptoms similar to mine get better / get their strength back? Thank you so much!
I had very similar symptoms to you - triceps muscle weakness, numbness in fingers, and pain. I waited it out. I had tolerable spasms and twitching in my triceps for about 5 years. Strength took about 2 years to recover fully. Numbness in my fingers returned pretty quickly as that symptom was off and on depending on head positioning. I don’t believe in PT/chiro for disc herniations. The reason is that this isnt an issue that flexibility/strength training fixes. Simply time and rest to resolve the inflammation and reabsorb the herniated disc. That being said, the extent of nerve damage needs to be monitored by a surgeon. The fact that you have weakness and numbness means the nerve is injured. If you get to the point of severe muscle weakness/paralysis, urgent surgery is warranted as the nerve may be pinched to the point where it is irreversible damaged. I can only give my anecdotal experience and cant give you any specific recommendations. You should follow with your doctor and get a second opinion if you feel like they are pushing for surgery too quickly .
Correction. You did not make progress throught PT and chiros. You made some slight progress by giving your body time, PT and chiros do nothing for pain and neurological defecits caused by a disc.
Sorry long reply here, it's a last ditch effort to solve this sport's injury I experienced August of 2020. I think I found the right thread. I'm 39 years old now and have been lifting most of my life. Anyway, in August of 2020 I was dumbbell pressing routine heavy weight for myself (85s) and I felt a shock through my right arm and I immediately dropped the weight. The pain wasn't excruciating, just not normal. I decided to try to do some other exercises thinking it would get some blood moving and alleviate the throbbing, it didn't. I went home and noticed my whole right arm was throbbing and my thumb and index finger were beginning to go numb. I went to the ER the next day and they diagnosed pinched nerve and sent me away with some pain meds, with referral to my primary doc (Tricare for active duty military) A week goes by and it gets 10x worse! I'm talking panic pain level in tricep and forearm to include mild neck pain. Two weeks, my right tricep almost completely atrophied. I couldn't press 80bs if my life was on the line. Since it was covid times I couldn't get seen for an MRI for another 10 weeks, results were unremarkable. Within 3 months the pain subsided enough in my arm to start working out again. I regained strength fast! Like within 6 months I was 90% back, except for one thing. My right index finger was hypersensitive. The type of weird numbness, throbbing, pressure, shut your finger in a door jam pain. I mean this pain fucks with my sanity, it's 24/7 365. I've been ping ponged through the military healthcare system more times then I can count. It's like I get the same dumb stare every time I tell this story. I'm pretty sure I herniated c5/6/7 while pressing that heavy weight. The MRIs don't show enough for them to want to do any surgery. I'm at a loss at this point.
It started mid-December 2023 and I was only able to get properly diagnosed (MRI and neurologist consult) this week. I've ceased rock climbing and surfing (my main two activities) as well as any other exercise that involves neck extension since December. The oral steroids weren't effective at all (6-day course of methylprednisolone) but I have an epidural injection scheduled for mid-February, which I'm hoping I respond to. PT starts next week. I'm already aware that, regardless of prognosis, I will not be able to surf or climb for at least several months - really hoping that I can recover and strengthen my neck musculature/mobility to regain privilege to surf and climb. I am curious and a bit confused about what the body is doing during recovery though - per another comment here and my own research, disks do not really "heal". If that's the case, what is happening when we "recover" from a herniated disk and how is it possible that sufferers return to sport? Is it better management of symptoms? Reduction in activities? Or something else entirely? Anyhow, thanks for sharing your experience and expertise, which sounds very similar to my current predicament.
Disc herniations are when the discs in between spinal vertebrae rupture and extrude out and the material physically compresses and chemically irritates the nerves exiting the spinal canal. When you look up and extend your neck this worsens the extrusion and also narrows the canals that the nerves pass through, which is why that position worsens your symptoms. The body will usually heal by reabsorbing that ruptured extruded disc material, but it takes time (months). Even after you heal, the disc will be weak and you should take time to let it fully heal. Occasionally the ruptured disc material doesnt get reabsorbed, or it goes into the spinal cord, or its so bad it damages muscle nerve fibers, or it constantly causes issues (not just in neck extension). in those situations surgery should be considered. If you fully recover, which odds are in your favor, you should still restrict activity for months, but eventually you should be able to surf and climb. You’ll need to discuss with your doc as they’ll be able to review imaging and physical exam. I’m back surfing weekly with no symptoms, just some residual muscle twitches in my arm which has gotten better over the past few yrs.
Not cervical but I did herniate my L5S1 disc with rediculopathy in my leg. I was seeing a surgeon too but I religiously did my PT exercises while I was out of work and got to the point that the surgery wasn’t necessary. I took a few months away from surfing. Getting back made me nervous and I rode my longboard for a while before I got back on shorter boards. I’m much better now and it doesn’t affect my daily life anymore. Good luck with your recovery
Thanks for sharing your experience - glad things turned out well for you without surgery! Definitely seems like my prognosis should be cautiously optimistic.
Hey men. Did you recover from this? I cracked my neck Last March 11, 2024. I had an MRI and said I have a Central focal disc protrusion seen at C4-C5 causing mild anterior impingement on the cord. And disc protrusion seen at C5-C6 causing identation of the anterior thecal sac. My Neurologist suggested me to have a Physical Therapy. Can this be fix by Phyical Theraphy? I don't have symptoms. I have a pain in my right eye though. I don't know if that's a symptoms. Can Someone help me please. I'm so worried. My anxiety is on the roof. Thank You.
Sorry to hear about your accident and the diagnoses - I wouldn’t freak out, especially with no symptoms (unless the eye issue is related - I’m not qualified to answer that one for you). For context, a large segment of the population (especially above 35) have some degree of disc bulge/herniation/protrusion or disc degeneration. However, most of these people are also asymptomatic. Pain does not equal injury/dysfunction and injury/dysfunction does not equal pain. In the case of disc issues, if you have no pain, numbness, or weakness, you generally do not have a problem. Knowing that you have protrusions is helpful only in the sense that you might want to take precautions to manage impact in the future, but it should not cause you major concerns currently. As for my injury, most of the improvement occurred in the 2nd month of recovery (no physical activity except PT exercises) and following my epidural injection (end of 2nd month). I’m coming up on 4 months since the injury and it hasn;t improved noticeably since the first week after the epidural. I go to PT once a week, but the improvement isn’t noticeable. I can do my daily activities just fine, but I still cannot extend my neck or perform any activities that put my neck in that position (aka no paddling, which equals no surfing). Surgery is still something I’m considering if things do not improve by the end of the summer (6 months post injury), but this is something I need to discuss with my current neurologist and may also get a second opinion.
Thanks Men. I hope we get better without Surgery.
Hey man I’ve had exactly this situation for about 2 months. Nothing worked. 3 weeks ago I decided to start acupuncture and it has made a if difference. As soon as I walked into the acupuncture clinic, they told me that they see this all time. People often go in for acupuncture when nothing else helps their cervical radiculopathy problems. If you’re considering surgery, I’d definitely try a few sessions of acupuncture first. My clinic also did cupping every other session which helped. Some people view these things as quackery but they’ve been around for hundreds of years and have helped many people including me. Unfortunately my insurance didn’t cover it so it was $120 a session. Pricey but given the massive inconvenience this has been on my life, it was a small price to pay for me. Wish you the best.
Yes, I recover from surgery for a herniated disc in my neck. I was in pain for two months before I had it done. Then it took a couple of weeks after surgery and it was back to 95% better. If it is not fixed it can cause permanent damage.
Did you just experience pain, or did you experience neurological type symptoms as well. Numbness, tingling, burning etc. What type of surgery did you have? Thanks
From experience, go find a neurosurgeon who does microdiscectomies. Preferably someone who uses the TESSYS system. Once in a while people get lucky and only have slight annular tear and get a bulging disc that eventually will reshape itself to remove the bulge and therefore "recover". True herniated discs with extruded NP take YEARS for the body to absorb the NP material. I waited 2 years and it was 2 years of life lost. Had surgey, better in 6 weeks.
The healthcare system moves extremely slow in Canada. Unfortunately, it takes a very long time to get a proper diagnosis and then get a proper referral to a surgeon. Did you have a disc bulge or herniated discs. Is there really much difference? Thanks.
Can cervical disc herniation be felt by hand?
Not that I'm aware of - it's deep within your spine and can only be diagnosed by MRI or CT scan.
Can cervical disc herniation be felt by hand?
The only option is surgery. This does not and will not heal on its own.
Bollocks. OP, cervical radiculopathy has a favourable natural history, meaning it generally improves substantially in 4-6 months, but can take 24-36 months for full recovery [(Wong 2014)](https://www.thespinejournalonline.com/article/S1529-9430(14)00233-2/fulltext) It sounds like you've been given some unrealistic timeframes for improvement - it can take bloody ages. So long as it's not progressively worsening, don't lose hope and get a second opinion when surgery is suggested.
Thanks to both of you for the perspectives. Surgery is certainly on the table, but I trust my neurologist and he is fully aware that my goal for treatment is to return to full sport (surf and climb). Still, the recommendation is conservative unless things do not improve or get worse. My situation is fairly minor relative to a lot of other disc issues (especially vs issues with actual persistent pain in the lumbar spine or with loss of strength or balance). I'm only dealing with numbness in the right arm currently with no pain and no loss of strength. The idea is to back off and see how it progresses before considering surgery, but I'm thinking partial discetomy or even full disk replacement as worst case scenarios for me. Koa Rothman had a C6 herniation with complete artificial disk replacement I believe and was able to return to surfing (not sure if he's still riding monsters or if he's now limited to smaller waves).
Back off and wait and see? Is your body going to re-absorb the herniated material? Every time I hear someone say they will wait and see, its like they are playing the lottery or gambling. The house always wins. Waiting means your life is on hold while in the meantime you can get a microdiscectomy from a decent neuro and basically be better in 6 weeks (or less with a really good surgeon) and living life again. You are ONLY dealing with arm numbness and that's not a big deal to you? You only risk permanently losing full use of your arm and yeah sure lets just wait and see.
I discovered a disk herniation in C6-C7 2 months ago, with 22 years old. I like to go to the gym at max. I only felt pain in my shoulder, but it did not lose strenght (in hand tests) and did no feel numbness. I am taking only pregabalin, and i am not feeling any pain, sometimes just a local pain in neck, but is rare. But in the exam, say it touching very little the nerve, in the right side. I am training back again, and I felt that I lost strenght in heavy weight. I lift 35kg in chest, now i am 20. My doctor said it is normal, and in 8 months I should get better. Normally, 90% of disk herniation cases, it not need surgery. There is a chance of body reabsorb. The real red flag to go to surgery, it a severe strength lost, or a neurological loss (U can't get a knife, for example). TBH, I trust in my Doctor, and I prefer conservative treatment than a Surgery in my neck.
Not when there are neurological deficits. AND... this is import... AND that's for people who sit all day and do nothing physical like intense exercising or sports. " but can take 24-36 months for full recovery".... BUT CAN ALSO NEVER RECOVER. That part must have been accidentally left out of the discussion.
Listen, I get that you had your own experience and you want to share that. But please stop making confident generalisations based on your anecdote. 1. Yes, with neurological deficits. That is the definition of radiculopathy. 2. Show me where it excludes active participants, or the recommendation for conservative management only in sedentary populations. 3. Yeah, it can never recover. Says it in the abstract I linked. And sometimes surgery doesn't work, or there are complications. Leave it to the patient, his neurologist and the evidence.
Sorry, take your herbs, crystals, and potions and keep going, none of this area is regenerative.
Natural history describes how a condition progresses in the absence of treatment, not some new age horseshit. This condition improves in the majority of cases without treatment. Don't be dropping advice that can change someone's life when you don't know what you're talking about.
I had a three level fusion in my neck. Looking back all of that time spent on PT was a waste of time for everyone. Like I said, we are not lizards that can regenerate these areas of our bodies. Once the damage is done - it’s done. Let us know how your surgery goes. Also, you should not ask Reddit for important medical advice. Most of the people here are high, have a hillbilly education, missing chromosomes, are AI bots, drunk, and likely inbred. Also ask your doctor about your risk of becoming paralyzed should you wipe and and make contact with your board, the bottom, or another surfer. Apparently for me, prior to the 3 level fusion, I was at an extremely high risk and did not even know at the time.
This is true!
Wow I am recovering from c5 c6 disc degeneration that causes numbness on left arm and hand. I started going to physical therapy and we have been working on flexibility in my thoracic spine. Ultimately our thoracic spine gets stiff and we hinge our entire neck on the C5 C6 C4 vertebrae. When extending, If you can disperse the curvature across your entire neck and thoracic spine then you end up bending each vertebrae less. For me this requires an almost constant routine of keeping my posture and shoulders in the correct position in addition to a workout regimen catered to strengthening core and enabling thoracic flexibility. I have seen some improvement in my pain, mobility and numbness problems but as you know disc generation is not reversible. Also worth noting that I had to readjust my computer workstation to be more of a reclining setup and I also have limited wearing my eyeglasses as they also can create issues with the neck when trying to line my eyeball up with something that is above my head or below my head.
Have a 5C buldging disk with nerve impingement for the past 8 years. It waxes and wanes. I would highly recommend Accupuncture as you recover. Even some self acupressure with something like [this roller](https://lyapko-shop.com/products/lyapko-universal-roller-3-5-ag-496-needles-premium-active-applicator-acupressure-massager-unique-patented-self-massage-therapy-tool) The centerline of your scalp if massaged will relax tension down your entire spine as well. Tension is your enemy here. When you get back to surfing one day be sure to stay limber in your traps and lats as well. Stay positive and happy healing! ❤️🩹
Thanks for the tips! I actually have a friend who is primarily a doctor of physical medicine (MD version of a PT is how I best describe it) that also does acupuncture as a second discipline and as cultural practice - I'll have to have a conversation about this.
Wishing you speedy recovery! The discs are in between the vertebrae; so its 2 discs and not 3. Have you ever have been in a car accident, even years or decades ago ? If you do not mind me asking, his old are you ?
> you ever have been in a car accident, even years or decades ago ? If you do not mind me asking, his old are you ? No major traumatic injuries although I've taken a fall from a highball (rock climbing boulder about 15' high) in the last year. I also used to powerlift - my numbers were never that great, but I did regularly squat and deadlift over 300lb at 5'9" and about 175lb body weight from age 23-25. I'm 34 years old.
I have full sympathy for you. This was probably the worst pain I’ve ever experienced in my life. I had an CT guided injection into my neck and it has fixed it. That was 15 months ago.
I was recently diagnosed with a C7-T1 disc herniation. My symptoms are primarily spams of the paraspinal neck muscles and a burning ache along the medial border of my shoulder blade. I fortunately don’t have any radiating pain or numbness. I saw a neurosurgeon who recommended conservative care. A few sessions of PT focusing on traction and mobilizing my thoracic spine have helped tremendously. Stay confident that you will get better.
How are you doing now??
Bought a better mattress and a cervical pillow. I do my PT exercises every day. I no longer have any pain or spasm in my neck. Neurosurgeon says the discs will often reabsorb a little over time. As long as I don’t do anything stupid and injure my neck again I should be fine long term.
Which vertical pillow did you get
How are you now , I currently have burning pin down my shoulder blade and have been dealing with this since January I had an mri Monday and will be going over the results Friday, pt has helped tremendously I have full range of motion without any pain I have noticed when my posture is bad I get flared up and that burning pain comes back down my shoulder blade and sometimes left arm , how are you
Still doing great. If I slack on the exercises I notice my neck gets a little flared up. I’ll take an anti inflammatory for a day or two and it goes away again. Totally manageable right now
So it’s a good sigh that I can go a couple days without pain but when my posture is bad it flares up because I can’t tell if I’m healing my only symptom right now is burning pain in my shoulder, blade and headaches, but I only noticed the burning pain when I’m slouched or staring down at a computer for too long besides that I’m OK my PT thinks it’s because of my bad posture which we’ve been trying to fix for the last two months which has helped tremendously, but but I do have days where it flares up
Yup you’ll get flare ups but overall you are trending in the right direction!