L4/L5 Herniated Disk - looking for advice

[u/sreylas843]

Any fellas in here dealt with a herniated disk, specifically at or around the L4/L5 area? Pain started Saturday morning 8/23 when I woke up at the station before shift change and progressively got worse throughout the day to the point I couldn’t sit, stand or lay and could barely walk. Decided to go to a small urgent care/ER that night and had an xray done which showed nothing, they gave me a steroid injection and muscle relaxer injection and prescribed me Methylprednisolone and Orphenadrine. No relief whatsoever from the injections or the meds. Woke up the next day (Sunday), same amount of pain and symptoms. Went to a chiropractor that afternoon, did some twists and pops and told me to up my water intake and keep icing it. No relief. Monday (8/25) I decide to go to an actual ER for CT scan or MRI just to at least get some answers. Did the CT scan which showed the herniated disk. Gave me a dose of Vicodin and a lidocaine patch which didn’t touch the pain. Physical therapist came into the room afterwards and did some stuff, actually felt a bit better after that. Getting up from sitting or laying still hurt but walking was actually less painful. Hospital switched me from methylprednisolone to prednisone and continue taking orphenadrine, but neither seem to help.

Fast forward to today, pain comes and goes but when it comes it’s rough. I start physical therapy this afternoon and hoping for some progress from that. But just posting to see if anyone here as some insight or advice on what worked for them. Just looking for some light at the end of the tunnel.

P.S. take care of your backs.

[u/jomar99]

I’ve been dealing with a herniated L4/L5 for 10 years. First advice I can give you, stop going to the chiropractor. They made it much worse for me. Look into cortisone injections. This was by far the best treatment I received for my pain. It took a couple of weeks until I was able to start training again, but the cortisone allows you to strengthen your core. Stretching is the second best thing you can do. Loosening up your quads, glutes, and hamstrings makes a huge difference as well. When you’re at home, lay on the floor and rest your legs on a chair or sofa. This helps alleviate the strain on your lower back. Good luck.