Why Exercise May Be The Worst Thing You Can Do For Your Herniated Disc

The medical world, insurance companies and even the media at large have been seriously misguided…and incorrect….in the appropriate use of “exercise” in the rehabilitation of disc related conditions of the back and neck.

Please listen closely:  If your pain is “discogenic” or originating from damage to one or more intervertebral discs which are compressed, you cannot exercise your way out of it.  Discs are not contractile tissue which can be strengthened by exercise.

In fact, most exercise is additionally “compressive” to disc tissue and can… and will… increase the internal pressure of the disc.  It is technically contra-indicated because of this fact.   Additional compression to an already compressed disc will most likely damage it further.  The standard abdominal strengtheners…. crunches and the like…. will “squish” the disc at it’s anterior region and raise intradiscal pressures as will most rotary type exercise even if it’s passive and applied by a doctor or therapist.  Rotary movements pull on the “Sharpey’s fibers ” which connect the top and bottom area of the disc to the vertebrae above and below. As you twist or rotate the area, these tendinous fibers pull on the disc and can increase the interior stress on the disc.   Thus, these types of activities need to be avoided early on in these conditions.

Similarly, activities like walking, jogging, running, stairmaster, etc… tend to be compressive in nature as the heel strikes the ground or this hips flex up and down.

So, when should exercise be instituted?

Not until the disc inflammation has begun to ease and the healing process has started.  Typically, we will not exercise a patient until they’ve been reasonably symptom-free for at least 1 to 4 weeks depending on the case.   Otherwise, re-weakening of the disc wall and aggravations of the condition are highly likely often setting the patient back weeks, if not months, in their rehabilitative process.  Also, a rehabilitation program must include three-dimensional exercise to strengthen the smaller intrinsic muscles usually neglected by most active regimens.

In summary – don’t exercise too early in your care process and don’t try to exercise you pain away with a herniated disc.  It won’t work.

Want to find out if you’re a candidate. Give us a call at  Waterfront Spine Institute for a no charge consultation  201-840-1980 or go to  www.waterfrontspinerehab.com for more info.

Thank you so much for visiting my site. I encourage you to leave your questions and comments below. And for more information on Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression please fill out the form to the right or give us a call at 201-840-1980

About Dr. Podell, DC: Dr. Dave Podell, DC has been in active practice for over 25 years and has seen countless numbers of the most difficult and previously failed cases.   As the clinic director of the Watefront Spine Institute in Edgewater, New Jersey, just minutes from the GW Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel and midtown Manhattan, Dr. Podell, DC runs one of the Northeast’s most advanced and evolutionary multi-disciplinary clinics for the treatment of disc herniation and associated ailments.   Dr. Podell, DC sits on the advisory board of Spinal Aid Centers Of America and trains other health care providers in the science and art of non surgical spinal decompression in his Edgewater facility.  He continues to train and advance his clinic’s state of the art spinal rehabilitation programs and is known nationwide in his field.  He is additionally certified in neurodiagnostic evaluations, Spinal Manipulation Under Anasthesia and Disability Impairment rating.  In addition to NSSD, he had received advanced training in Spinal Chiropractic Biophysics, Active Therapeutic Techniques, MedX and Spine Force Spinal Rehabilitation, Extremity manipulation, orthopedics and neurology.

Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression Is NOT Traction And Why Traction Can Worsen A Herniated Disc

Many patients and even other physicians often comment that spinal decompression therapy is like old-fashioned from of traction.   THEY COULD NOT BE MORE WRONG.

Here’s why:

First of all, the goal of most spinal surgery is to achieve “decompression” or relieve pressure. It has been generally acknowledged that routine tractions methods, inversion tables and the like, have not demonstrated the ability to lower internal disc pressures or subsequently decompress spinal discs.   Extensive clinical studies, though, have clearly documented the ability of Vertebral Axial Spinal Decompression technology , in fact, to lower the internal pressure of the disc below zero or into the negative range, to unload and “de-weight” the disc  and  therefore actually achieve true disc decompression.  It can do so under precisely computer controlled and monitored conditions with out surgical intervention and no disruption of normal spinal biomechanics. It can do so in totally comfortable application to the patient.

This is precisely why traction is NOT decompression.  Non Surgical Decompression lower discspressures while traction does not.  The outcome of traction is NOT that of decompression techniques.  In fact, studies by many renowned researchers indicate that traction may actually increase intra – disc pressures thus making old fashioned forms of traction “contra-indicated” in case of disc herniation and may make the situation worse.

The development of methods to truly decompress discs without surgery should not be taken lightly.  This is a tremendous advance in the treatment of chronic and severe spinal pain. This a tool that can diminish the need for surgical fusions, discetomies, laminectomies and the like.  Patient risks are therefore minimized and costs savings are maximized.    (AMA statistics indicate a cost north of $154,000 for a spinal fusion).

So, don’t confuse Non Surgical Spinal Decompression methods with forms of traction.  While they may kinda’ sorta’ look alike, their outcomes are on opposite sides of the specutrum

Want to find out if you’re a candidate. Give us a call at  Waterfront Spine Institute for a no charge consultation  201-840-1980 or go to www.waterfrontspinerehab.com for more info>

Thank you so much for visiting my site. I encourage you to leave your questions and comments below. And for more information on Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression please fill out the form to the right or give us a call at 201-840-1980

About Dr. Podell, DC: Dr. Dave Podell, DC has been in active practice for over 25 years and has seen countless numbers of the most difficult and previously failed cases.   As the clinic director of the Watefront Spine Institute in Edgewater, New Jersey, just minutes from the GW Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel and midtown Manhattan, Dr. Podell, DC runs one of the Northeast’s most advanced and evolutionary multi-disciplinary clinics for the treatment of disc herniation and associated ailments.   Dr. Podell, DC sits on the advisory board of Spinal Aid Centers Of America and trains other health care providers in the science and art of non surgical spinal decompression in his Edgewater facility.  He continues to train and advance his clinic’s state of the art spinal rehabilitation programs and is known nationwide in his field.  He is additionally certified in neurodiagnostic evaluations, Spinal Manipulation Under Anasthesia and Disability Impairment rating.  In addition to NSSD, he had received advanced training in Spinal Chiropractic Biophysics, Active Therapeutic Techniques, MedX and Spine Force Spinal Rehabilitation, Extremity manipulation, orthopedics and neurology.

Can Medications, Pain Relievers Or Pain Management Procedures Be The Absolute Worst Thing For Serious Herniated Discs or Serious Neck & Back Pain? Part III

In a post treatment study of successful ….. as well as “un-successful”… spinal pain sufferers treated with non surgical decompression (NSSD), Dr. Dennis McClure, an Ohio based Neurosurgeon who uses these methods in his own practice, reported on several factors which seemed to impair the success of his care.  While overall success rates were 79 to 92% overall with non surgical decompression methods, the one factor in his study that really jumped out me was this… and it really initially threw me for a loop but made a whole bunch more sense after chewing on this data a bit more….was that patients who were taking large amounts of medication were much less successful in their outcomes and some had even more pain.
Keeping in mind that roughly 8 to 9 out of 10 treated with a substantial degree of success, I found it amazing the use of medication did the opposite of what one would think which is to be helpful in alleviating pain.  Also, patients on larger amounts of medication are typically less healthy.   It also appears the use of the drugs seems to impair healing.  Dr. McClures general conclusion, one with which I agree wholeheartedly, is that this certainly lends itself to the idea that more wholistic and drugless or diminished use of drug type  therapies and approaches make better sense for most patients.
Conclusion:  Medications should be used sparingly and short term only for cases of serious back and neck pain as it seriously masks pain while the patient unknowingly continues to damage, or destroy, the underlying tissue which is causing the pain.  Find out what’ causing your pain and get it repaired.
Til next time.

Dr. Dave Podell, DC

Want to find out if you’re a candidate. Give us a call at  Waterfront Spine Institute for a no charge consultation  201-840-1980 or go to  www.waterfrontspinerehab.com for more info

Thank you so much for visiting my site. I encourage you to leave your questions and comments below. And for more information on Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression please fill out the form to the right or give us a call at 201-840-1980

About Dr. Podell, DC: Dr. Dave Podell, DC has been in active practice for over 25 years and has seen countless numbers of the most difficult and previously failed cases.  As the clinic director of the Watefront Spine Institute in Edgewater, New Jersey, just minutes from the GW Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel and midtown Manhattan, Dr. Podell, DC runs one of the Northeast’s most advanced and evolutionary multi-disciplinary clinics for the treatment of disc herniation and associated ailments.  Dr. Podell, DC sits on the advisory board of Spinal Aid Centers Of America and trains other health care providers in the science and art of non surgical spinal decompression in his Edgewater facility.  He continues to train and advance his clinic’s state of the art spinal rehabilitation programs and is known nationwide in his field.  He is additionally certified in neurodiagnostic evaluations, Spinal Manipulation Under Anasthesia and Disability Impairment rating.  In addition to NSSD, he had received advanced training in Spinal Chiropractic Biophysics, Active Therapeutic Techniques, MedX and Spine Force Spinal Rehabilitation, Extremity manipulation, orthopedics and neurology.

Can Medications, Pain Relievers Or Pain Management Procedures Be The Absolute Worst Thing For Serious Herniated Discs or Serious Neck & Back Pain? Part II

A brief word or two on epidurals and pain management procedures today.

First of all, like drugs, epidurals cannot and will not heal anything.  The reduce pain in about 50% of the cases.  However, pain relief is usually short term in many cases.

Number two.  It requires invasive needling of the spinal cord and “epidural space” or the little channel between the spinal cord itself and the internal bony aspect of the spinal canal.

Now, I am not against this procedure in and of itself.  But is not an answer to “discogenic” pain or pain originating from disc herniation, bulge and the like.  It can be helpful to patients who are in acute distress and cannot even be placed in a prone, lying down position on a spinal decompression machine to treat the disc properly or to those that have let the condition run wild and can barely move without pain.

But keep in mind that an epidural is just the use of a “liquefied”  medication that is injected in the area of the swollen or herniated disc so as to bathe it in anti-inflammatory medicine and calm it  down…temporarily.  That’s it.  No healing will be done by an epidural procedure.

The bad news is two fold:

1. If fools your body your better or “healed” and you continue with harmful activity and damage the disc further….much further.  Quite similar to the affect of oral medications.
2. Some feel that too many epidural injections can actually damage the outer shell or “annular” portion of the disc and thus weaken it further.

Both of these downside affects will often lead to significantly more serious issues and could possibly lead to permenant negative changes in the disc tissue.

So, only engage in these procedures with great caution and only if absolutely necessary.  I have a pain management doc as part of my team and these procedures are applied very judiciously for our patients.

Want to find out if you’re a candidate. Give us a call at  Waterfront Spine Institute for a no charge consultation  201-840-1980 or go to  www.waterfrontspinerehab.com for more info and instant free detailed report.

Thank you so much for visiting my site. I encourage you to leave your questions and comments below. And for more information on Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression please fill out the form to the right or give us a call at 201-840-1980

About Dr. Podell, DC: Dr. Dave Podell, DC has been in active practice for over 25 years and has seen countless numbers of the most difficult and previously failed cases.   As the clinic director of the Watefront Spine Institute in Edgewater, New Jersey, just minutes from the GW Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel and midtown Manhattan, Dr. Podell, DC runs one of the Northeast’s most advanced and evolutionary multi-disciplinary clinics for the treatment of disc herniation and associated ailments.   Dr. Podell, DC sits on the advisory board of Spinal Aid Centers Of America and trains other health care providers in the science and art of non surgical spinal decompression in his Edgewater facility.  He continues to train and advance his clinic’s state of the art spinal rehabilitation programs and is known nationwide in his field.  He is additionally certified in neurodiagnostic evaluations, Spinal Manipulation Under Anasthesia and Disability Impairment rating.  In addition to NSSD, he had received advanced training in Spinal Chiropractic Biophysics, Active Therapeutic Techniques, MedX and Spine Force Spinal Rehabilitation, Extremity manipulation, orthopedics and neurology.

Can Medications, Pain Relievers Or Pain Management Procedures Be The Absolute Worst Thing For Serious Herniated Discs or Serious Neck & Back Pain? Part I

Easily 75% of the patients who enter my office looking for relief have been on an extensive array of drugs… both prescribed and over-the-counter… And many have had multiple pain management procedures including epidiruals, nerve injections, electro or thermal “melting” of the disc (known as IDET) and the like.  Some have had 15 spinal injections or more … without significant long term relief.

However, in my opinion, the waste of time and your own or your insurance companies money is not the worst of the issues here.

The most serious issue at hand is clearly:

DELAY OF APPROPRIATE CARE AND FURTHER DAMAGE TO THE DISCS AND SURROUNDING TISSUES.

What do I mean by this?  Simply put, by masking the pain caused by the underlying damage, the patient is deceived feeling his “problem” has been solved.  But all that really happened was that the pain was artificially masked.  The patient continues to engage in activity that is damaging the delicate, pain sensitive tissue even more… but doesn’t know it because the pain killing medication either swallowed or ingested is acting as a cover-up.

Brief example:  70 something year old Craig came to see me with pain that had been progressing rapidly for 3 to 6 months but had started years before.  He had been actively engaged in tennis, mountain climbing, golfing and biking…but could only due so after downing some type of pain killer.  While he killed the pain, he was quietly destroying his discs. Then one day years later, the pain killers stopped working.

And he showed up at my door step in serious pain… and more serious disrepair.  MRI studies revealed massive degenerative decay at every level from the lower thoracic to lower lumber areas with multiple herniations and areas of instability.  He was as serious of a case as I’ve seen and I categorized him at a level 5 requiring the most serious and intensive care program I have available.

While Craig is slowly repairing and feeling somewhat better, he’ll never do better than 50 to 60% improvement.  Why?  Because he was kidding himself that drugs were making the “problem” better.  Truth is: it was the worst thing he could have done and has caused himself permanent and irreparable harm.  The tissues can never truly heal at this point.

Do yourself a favor.  Don’t kid yourself that drugs heal you. They don’t.  And there are other options.

I’ll explore more on epidurals in my next posting and how they should be used more judiciously and in combination with non-invasive rehab procedures.

Want to find out if you’re a candidate. Give us a call at  Waterfront Spine Institute for a no charge consultation  201-840-1980 or go to www.waterfrontspinerehab.com for more info and instant free detailed report.

Thank you so much for visiting my site. I encourage you to leave your questions and comments below. And for more information on Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression please fill out the form to the right or give us a call at 201-840-1980

About Dr. Podell, DC: Dr. Dave Podell, DC has been in active practice for over 25 years and has seen countless numbers of the most difficult and previously failed cases. As the clinic director of the Watefront Spine Institute in Edgewater, New Jersey, just minutes from the George Washington Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel and Midtown Manhattan, Dr. Podell, DC runs one of the Northeast’s most advanced and evolutionary multi-disciplinary clinics for the treatment of disc herniation and associated ailments. Dr. Podell, DC sits on the advisory board of Spinal Aid Centers Of America and trains other health care providers in the science and art of non surgical spinal decompression in his Edgewater facility. He continues to train and advance his clinic’s state of the art spinal rehabilitation programs and is known nationwide in his field. He is additionally certified in neurodiagnostic evaluations, Spinal Manipulation Under Anasthesia and Disability Impairment rating.  In addition to NSSD, he had received advanced training in Spinal Chiropractic Biophysics, Active Therapeutic Techniques, MedX and Spine Force Spinal Rehabilitation, Extremity manipulation, orthopedics and neurology.

Home Remedies for What To Do When You’re Herniated Disc, Neck Or Back Pain Flairs Up At Home And You Need Relief

Chronic sufferers of spinal pain may have periods of feeling better ….. and feeling a lot worse.  There’s a few things you can do (and things you should NOT do) at home for those bad days:

• Get immediate application of ice packs to the area in pain.  You can also ice the area where the pain is radiating such as if your neck pain is going into the shoulder or upper back, the ice both the neck and upper back area.
• Gel packs are better than ice cubes in a plastic bag as the gel pack will contour to the natural curves of the body and are more comfortable to use.
• Keep the ice on 15 to 20 minutes per application and no more.  It will have the reverse
• affect if left on too long.
• Repeat these applications hourly.  You can do this on and off procedure all day without harm.  Repetition is key to reducing inflammation.
• Keep a thin towel over the ice.  Don’t take it so cold so as to burn the skin.

DO  NOT   APPLY  HEAT   IN   ANY     FORM

• Get off your feet.    The least “compressive” or stressful position to the disc and joints of the the spine is recumbent.   There is no ONE correct way to be positioned.  The one that is most comfortable for you is telling your body it is correct.

Most low back sufferers seem to feel better face up with a few firm pillows under the knees whereby the thighs are 45 to 90 degrees to the surface upon which you are lying

• Do NOT try to exercise the pain away.  Exercise is compressive and damaging to the disc.  While quite important in a comprehensive spine rehab program, exercise should not be done in the inflammatory stage and certainly not for acute flare ups.
• Medication:    OTC ant- inflammatories such as Alleve may “take the edge”   off.  However, any drug may be harmful to the liver or kidney if overused.   Keep it to a minimum where possible.

Special Note:  Drugs may artificially “fool” the body that your are healed.  Many will overdue it with activity and ignore the underlying damage as these drugs mask the pain and further damage the discs and underlying joints (much more on  this in another posting)

This should be helpful for short term relief during those rough times.   If you’re pain continues, seek professional consultation from a non surgical decompression specialist.

Til next time.

Dr. Dave Podell, DC

Want to find out if you’re a candidate. Give us a call at  Waterfront Spine Institute for a no charge consultation  201-840-1980 or go to  www.waterfrontspinerehab.com for more info

Thank you so much for visiting my site. I encourage you to leave your questions and comments below. And for more information on Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression please fill out the form to the right or give us a call at 201-840-1980

About Dr. Podell, DC: Dr. Dave Podell, DC has been in active practice for over 25 years and has seen countless numbers of the most difficult and previously failed cases.   As the clinic director of the Waterfront Spine Institute in Edgewater, New Jersey, just minutes from the GW Bridge, Lincoln Tunnel and midtown Manhattan, Dr. Podell, DC runs one of the Northeast’s most advanced and evolutionary multi-disciplinary clinics for the treatment of disc herniation and associated ailments. Dr. Podell sits on the advisory board of Spinal Aid Centers Of America and trains other health care providers in the science and art of non surgical spinal decompression in his Edgewater facility. He continues to train and advance his clinic’s state of the art spinal rehabilitation programs and is known nationwide in his field.  He is additionally certified in neurodiagnostic evaluations, Spinal Manipulation Under Anesthesia and Disability Impairment rating. In addition to NSSD, he had received advanced training in Spinal Chiropractic Biophysics, Active Therapeutic Techniques, MedX and Spine Force Spinal Rehabilitation, Extremity manipulation, orthopedics and neurology.