Natural Healing for Deteriorated or Bulging Discs

Damaged discs are very common and can be very painful. Bulging discs can lead to deterioration or a hernia if proper care is not taken. Although this may sound scary, these conditions can be naturally healed relatively easily if given time and proper treatment.

Causes

• Bulging and deteriorated discs are common because of the tendency for people to damage the supporting discs in the lower back over time, causing the disc to push out and put pressure on surrounding areas, including nerves like the sciatic nerve. Slouching, improper lifting, overusing the joints, or trauma can lead to damaged discs. The good thing is that bulging or herniated discs can heal if you take care of yourself and readjust your bad back maintenance habits.

Treatments

• Use exercises that are specifically formulated for damaged discs. Stretching exercises are some of the best treatments for this kind of condition and are aimed at increasing the range of motion, helping to relieve some of the pain associated with this. Changes in diet and daily habits will also drastically help help damaged discs.

Exercise 1

• Side stretches help with decompressing spinal pressure, assisting the healing process of bulging or deteriorated discs. It helps to elongate the spine, stretch the lateral muscles of the abdomen and back. Sit on the floor, one leg stretched out to the side, the other tucked in. Raise one arm and reach to the side, stretching that whole side. Hold for a bit and switch to the other side. Repeat 10 to 20 times.

Exercise 2

• Grab a yoga ball, hold it overhead and slowly reach out with the ball as you bend at the waist to one side. Slowly pull back up and switch sides. Repeat 10 to 20 times.

Exercise 3

• Lie face up with your arms above your head with a weight in each hand. Remove the arch in the lower back by raising the weights slightly in the air and pressing your lower back toward the floor, paying attention to how your abdominal muscles are working to keep your back from arching. If you can, straighten your legs out to simulate a standing position, training you how to stand properly and reminding your back to support your body. Push-ups and bridges also remind the abdominal muscles how to support the back.

Diet

• Take a look at your diet. Back pain can be caused by processed foods damaging your adrenal glands. This leads to the adrenal glands demanding more of the nutrients that would normally go to the ligaments and tendons in the back, leading to weakened supportive tissue. Changing diet habits will help to strengthen the adrenals, thus helping to strengthen the supportive tissue of the back and helping to prevent further damage to the discs. Processed foods and sugar can also irritate the vagus nerve that sends information about digestion to the brain, causing it to bulge and press on nerves, thus leading to pain. Over time the bulging disc may herniate or deteriorate, causing even more pain.

Daily Habits

• Follow up with good daily habits to reduce pain stay and prevent further damage that causes the pain. Become more aware of how you bend, twist and sit throughout the day. Pick things up using your leg muscles instead of slouching or bending. Make sure you plant your heels into the ground, stabilize your weight and keep your torso straight as you lift. This also protects your knees.

Other Tips

• Stand when lifting weights instead of sitting, which rounds out the back. Exercising with a rounded back can easily injure or damage discs. Some people have used acupuncture, massage, surgery and chiropractic assistance for back pain.