How did I get a herniated disc? I do not remember ever hurting my back, but my MRI told me that I now have herniated discs in my neck and in my lower back. Where did they come from? I am so confused.
We receive lots of correspondence that reads exactly like this… So many people do not really understand why herniated discs exist or how they “got” them. We will try to clarify these issues during this important discussion for every herniated disc patient.
This post details the origins of bulging, herniated and ruptured spinal discs. If you have one or more intervertebral herniations in your spine and are not sure where they came from, then this is the right discussion for your research needs.
How Did I Get a Herniated Disc Without Injury?
I never hurt my back. However, I did develop pain that I had no explanation for. When I went to the doctor and got my test results back, the diagnostic imaging showed a herniated disc at L5/S1. (could be any spinal level…) Where did it come from?
Most people do not seem to understand that bulging and herniated discs are largely considered normal. Most adults develop them as a normal part of spinal aging. Herniated discs are incredibly common (affecting most people) at L4/L5 and L5/S1. They are almost as common at C4/C5, C5/C6 and C6/C7. Having a herniated disc at any of these locations should be no shock to you. We would be shocked it you did not have at least one…
There are many possible sources of disc abnormalities. We detail all of them in our dedicated resource section covering the causes of herniated discs.
Will My Herniated Disc Cause Pain?
This is a great question. In many cases, pain is what leads to the diagnosis of a herniated disc in the first place. This is logical, since without pain most people would never have reason to undergo a spinal CT scan or MRI evaluation. However, once pain develops, the herniated disc is located and most commonly blamed for causing said pain. This is where the entire diagnostic process often goes awry.
Herniated discs can certainly be painful. However, most will resolve within a few weeks time. Additionally, most herniated discs will not cause back pain where they occur, since the disc has no nerve endings and feels no pain. Instead, symptoms will exist when the disc influences nerve tissues and therefore will be located in the areas of the body served by the affected nerves. For cervical herniated discs, this commonly means symptoms in the shoulders, arms and/or hands. For lumbar herniated discs, this most often means symptoms in the buttocks, legs and/or feet.
It should be noted that the vast majority of herniated discs will not cause any pain and exist as incidental findings to any back pain complaint. This is medical fact. To learn why disc issues are so commonly blamed for pain, please read our interesting coverage of herniated disc scapegoats.
How Did I Get a Herniated Disc and How Do I Get Rid of It?
In most cases, there is no need to worry about a herniated disc or even treat it. Most disc issues are not symptom-generating and those which are will tend to resolve organically without any special care. In rare instances, a herniated disc might chronically compress or chemically irritate a nerve root or the actual spinal cord. This can require professional medical intervention and we detail all the best options for conservative care in our herniated disc treatment and the best options for invasive care in our herniated disc surgery sections for interested patients.
In most cases where pain exists, a diagnostic finding of a herniated disc should be considered incidental. This is because upon complete and thorough diagnostic processing (not just taking an MRI scan and making assumptions!), no correlation will be found between the symptoms and the herniations. In almost every case, the symptoms will be far too wide-ranging, diverse and severe to come from a single disc issue. Unfortunately, it is easier for doctors to simply blame the disc and move the patient into unnecessary, but incredibly profitable treatment (which is bound to fail…)
We highly recommend reading our post covering the herniated disc nocebo effect, as this explains much of the problem with how pain and disc abnormalities are truly related via mindbody process, instead of the commonly-held perception of an inherent structural relationship.
Herniated Disc > My Herniated Disc Story > How Did I Get a Herniated Disc?
