Herniated Disc pain and/or something else?

[quagmire]

I have posted my back issues before (sciatica on right side, unable to bend forward more than 15 degrees without pain). MRI has revealed L5S1 herniation.

Sneezing hurts bad unless I am standing up.

Recently I discovered that if I lifted my right leg back, I could bend forward much more, and could pick up dropped pens/books etc off the floor.

This is standard for herniations right?

[patterson]

How long ago did you herniate? I herniated in the same area 3+ years ago. I never took a day off work but that sounds about right. The worst part was straightening out after sitting for a long.period of time, for example driving the van to work. But the more I mover the better it was. Ibuprofen was my friend, but I dont know how much it helped. I thinking I was squatting again in 2 to 3 weeks. However I was 22 at the time and.dont think it healed all the way.

[quagmire]

How long ago did you herniate?

2 years back

[Carlos Daniel]

Sounds like a typical hernia.

[mrcosmic]

How did you herniate it?

[quagmire]

I pushed too hard.

I have been training on and off for many years, what was different this time around was
- I was squatting 3x per week.
- I was pushing too hard, perhaps in part due to there not being safety pins in the squat rack. I didnt think anything bad could happen as it was just 220-240 pounds, I had taken 3-4 months to get to it, and I had trained previously.

I was unaware of disc herniations. I knew that injuries do occur, but I was unaware that discs once injured do not get repaired.

Nothing catastrophic incident, just that after one set one day, I had back pain which got progressively worse. Sciatica started many months later when I was trying to rehab with bird-dog exercise with a 2 pound ankle weight.

[gruntjc]

Quag, you tried a strong remedial massage, decompression and/or dry needling? Anything that will potentially break the cycle.

[patterson]

So 2 years ago and you still cant bend more then 15 degrees?

[quagmire]

Yes. I can bend more, but my knees have to be bent. With knees straight, only 15 degrees.

Be careful with your backs folks, it can mess up your life.

Josh, I used to hang from a chin-up bar using ab straps. That used to help a bit. I have not tried other stuff.

[mrcosmic]

Huh.

Out of interest were you doing things like back extensions, crunches, etc, do you have a past history of doing things which strain the back (ie heavy manual labour, contact sports, past trauma such as a car accident), and do other people in your family have back problems? And have you tried things like a steroid injection?