Disc Conditions

Intervertebral Discs are located in between each of the 24 bones of your spine and they serve three very important functions. They absorb the stress and shock the body incurs during movement of the spine. They also enable movement allowing your spine to twist and bend. Lastly, the discs provide space for nerves to exit the spinal column to form the peripheral (outer) nervous system.

Healthy Discs Depend on Motion

At around 19 years of age the bones of our spines harden (or ossify) which ends the blood supply to the discs. This makes the discs become completely dependent upon a natural pumping mechanism of the spine for water and nutrition. The pumping mechanism keeps spinal discs healthy only when all 24 bones of the spine are moving correctly within their proper range of motion.

You are literally at your tallest when you wake up in the morning. Throughout the day, gravity pulls down on your spine and presses some of the metabolites and water out of your discs into the joint spaces. Then, as you sleep, the weight of the head, shoulders, legs and hips pull the spine apart to allow the water and nutrients back into the discs. So, when you wake up in the morning, you are once again at your tallest. This is how the natural pumping motion maintains healthy discs.

Ligaments connect bone to bone. They connect the bones of the spine and keep the discs in place. Spinal bone misalignments stress ligaments. In time, the stressed ligaments weaken and stretch which allows the disc to slip, bulge, move or herniate. Bulging discs, slipped discs and herniated discs all describe when a disc is out of its correct position. These conditions can also be described as Degenerative Joint Disease and Degenerative Disc Disease. Sometimes bulging, slipped and herniated discs are diagnosed as Osteoarthritis which is a form of wear and tear arthritis.

When you look at the spine from the side, in good health there are curvatures that make the spine look like a spring. The neck and low back have curves that bend to the front (they should look like a reverse C shape) and the thoracic spine and sacrum bend to the back. These curvatures distribute your body weight evenly over the length of your spine. Degenerative Disc Disease and Degenerative Joint Disease usually show up in certain segments of the spine that are stressed the most. These conditions are not part of the natural aging process. They are caused by biomechanical problems.

Biomechanical problems occur when the spine stops moving right. When an injury or trauma causes a spinal misalignment, the muscles tighten and guard the misaligned joint. The joint stops moving correctly, the natural pumping mechanism is disrupted and the disc no longer receives the water and metabolites it needs to stay healthy. Then, over time, the disc wears and thins. The most frequent areas for disc problems are between C5 – T1 and L3 – S1.

Typical Medical Interventions

Disc Condition Treatment Options – YouTube

Dr. Lynch uses an adjusting instrument to restore motion to stuck and misaligned vertebra. The adjusting instrument glides up the spine restoring the curvatures, so it can now evenly distribute the body weight across the spine. Dr. Lynch also uses the instrument to gently bump discs back into their proper positions. There is never any twisting, popping or cracking.

Correcting disc conditions may also require Low Level Laser Therapy (cold laser) to speed healing, percussion therapy to release scar tissue and connective tissue adhesions, therapeutic stretching and strengthening, and more. All treatment is safe and gentle.

Dr. Lynch’s Approach to Fix the Problem

Slipped Disc Relief – YouTube

Symptoms of Disc Conditions
Slipped discs, bulging discs and herniated discs are similar conditions. They all have to do with a disc moving out of its proper position between two vertebra (bones) of the spine. Some people with a disc condition do not experience symptoms for a very long time and the condition has lots of time to degenerate. Then, one day, wow, they are in a lot of pain. Often their pain is in their neck or back. Sometimes their pain is in their arms, legs or knees and not in their back.

Other common symptoms of a disc condition include weakness, instability, numbness, tingling, burning, constant pain, pain that comes and goes (usually in the low back or neck), and/or hot, shooting pain into the arms and legs. Sometimes people with disc conditions notice a stiff neck or lower back. In time, symptoms can increase in intensity.

What causes Disc Conditions, Degenerative Disc Disease and Degenerative Joint Disease?
Everything from a traumatic birth process, sleeping on your stomach, sporting injuries, poor posture, motor vehicle crashes and trauma can damage and misalign the spine and its proper curvatures.

Osteoarthritis, Degenerative Disc Disease, Degenerative Joint Disease and Disc Conditions Describe a Breaking Down Process
These conditions are all the same processes. They are progressive conditions. The longer they are present, the worse they become. However, we can stop further degeneration by gently bumping the disc back in its proper position and restoring motion to the spinal joints. We can’t make the discs grow back but we can protect what you have left. Let’s stop the wear and tear process and arrest the arthritic changes so you can be healthy.

You know these conditions gets worse over time. Call (434) 245-8456. Schedule your consultation. I hope to help you.

Bulging, Herniated, and Slipped Disc Treatment – YouTube

You are literally at your tallest when you wake up in the morning. Throughout the day, gravity pulls down on your spine and presses some of the metabolites and water out of your discs into the joint spaces. Then, as you sleep, the weight of the head, shoulders, legs and hips pull the spine apart to allow the water and nutrients back into the discs. So, when you wake up in the morning, you are once again at your tallest. This is how the natural pumping motion maintains healthy discs.