Bulging disks CAN heal themselves. And they DO heal themselves.
This is how I was trained and I have seen this happen with people who had been diagnosed with disk bulges in their backs.
Clients and friends who were offered surgery got better. They got rid of their pain.
Without surgery!
I’m not talking about people with back aches; I am talking about people who could barely move or walk.
My understanding is that even disks that have ruptured can heal over time. And if you are over 50 years old, here’s some good news:
Your disks are tougher and much less likely to rupture than when you were younger.
What Causes Bulging Disks?
Bulging disks were caused by something. Very often, the cause is your posture or weak muscles.
But the good news is that backs heal all the time. 🙂
Sometimes just taking the pressure off the disks can do the trick. Sometimes doctors will send you to physical therapy and the therapist will try to help you with your posture or weak legs or whatever is causing your back pain.
One side of your body may be weaker than the other and the physical therapist will try to help you get that in balance.
Here’s how muscles work:
Muscles move bones and disks and that’s why working with the muscles can help backs feel better. Unhappy muscles cause pain.
It’s important to know that often the pain is actually caused by muscles rather than the disks. The disks are just what the doctor can see in tests but the muscles may be causing the pain or problem.
Remember, bodies change all the time and they heal themselves, too.
One more thing:
IF there is a bone chip or spur actually pressing on a nerve then the surgeon may want to remove that piece of bone. In that case, surgery is a good idea.
But almost all of the time it is muscles pushing or pulling on that disk or disks. That’s good news because when you take care of the muscles and get them back into good balance your bulging disk can heal.
The job of muscles is to pull on bones. If a muscle or muscle group is stronger on one side of your spine than the other, the spine will be pulled in that direction.
Think of a bow and arrow. The ‘bow’ string will be on the tight side. The disk will be pushed away from the tight side and into nerves on the opposite side of your back.
The goal is to get your muscles back into their most neutral position and this may be done through physical therapy or massage therapy or other manual therapies.
Hi Kathryn,
I appreciated your encouragement regarding bulging disks healing on their own. I just completed physical therapy for a frozen shoulder in my left (non-dominant) arm. I also have the complication of a bulging disc at C8. I noticed that I had no disc related back pain during the last part of physical therapy. Now that I am stiffening again, I wake up in the morning with pain between my shoulder blades -more on the right than the left for about a week-I believe this is all related. I getting a massage today. I will do my exercises religiously and try to stay stretched, strong and de-stressed. Any other suggestions?
Hi Bobbi,
You’re welcome! The question is: WHY are you getting stiff again? Is it the way you sleep or your pillow (too flat, too fat)? Are you a side-sleeper? Could it be daytime posture? Work or leisure related? Do you have a killer couch (the back reclines too much)?
Your disk may be involved depending on the direction in which it is bulging. This is something that would be in your report. It the bulge is toward the front, no nerves get in the way so you wouldn’t have any symptoms.
Glad your frozen shoulder is better and that you are having a massage. I hope the therapist you chose also worked on the muscles on the front and sides of your neck and not just the back. The muscles in the front of your neck pull your head forward and we don’t want that. We want them to be soft and relaxed.
When you stretch, stretch the muscles in the front of your body. Usually the back doesn’t need anywhere close to as much stretching as the front muscles do. Lift your breastbone and let your head ‘float’ over your body. Squeeze your shoulders back toward your spine. Rotate your shoulders up and back, up and back. There is a little video at https://budurl.me/2-CircleArms that can help your shoulders with full range of motion.
I hope this helps you get rid of the pain between your shoulder blades.
Kathryn
The Pain Relief Coach