| All along the spine are soft, flexible, rubbery pads | | | | massage therapy, electronic muscle stimulation, |
| that act as both shock absorbers and support for | | | | cold laser therapy, nutrition, physical therapy, and |
| the back. When part of the center of the disk | | | | non-surgical spinal decompression. Research has |
| pushes out through the edge of these pads and | | | | shown that spinal decompression is very |
| presses against the spinal cord, it is called a | | | | successful in treating pain caused by a herniated |
| herniated disk. People often refer to this as a | | | | disk. The ultimate goal of Progressive Rehab™ |
| slipped disk or a ruptured disk. No matter what is | | | | is to accurately diagnose why you have the pain, |
| it called, the result is the same: Pain. The pain can | | | | eliminate the pain and prevent the pain from |
| be in the neck, back, legs or arms. Occasionally, | | | | returning. |
| instead of pain, numbness is felt in one or both | | | | In a very small amount of cases, surgery is |
| legs or arms. | | | | required to treat a herniated disk. Surgery is |
| In more than 90% of cases, pain from a | | | | needed when a piece or fragment of the spinal |
| herniated disk can be relieved through non-surgical | | | | disk works its way into the spinal canal and |
| treatments. The pain won’t go away | | | | presses on the nerve. In most cases, the surgery |
| overnight, but does decrease gradually over a | | | | involves fusing the disks together. Surgery for a |
| period of time. All exercises and treatments | | | | herniated disk is done under general anesthesia at |
| should be done slowly and carefully. Strengthening | | | | a hospital. Hospital stays can vary from same-day |
| exercises may be needed and getting professional | | | | release to several days in the hospital. Return to |
| advice and guidance may be necessary. | | | | work and normal activities occurs somewhere |
| Seeing a chiropractor for progressive rehabilitation | | | | between 6 weeks to several months after |
| proves useful for many people with a herniated | | | | surgery, depending on the type of surgery |
| disk. Chiropractors will diagnose, create an | | | | needed. |
| individualized plan for physical therapy and treat | | | | Prevention of a relapse is equally important. |
| the problems, all the while educating you on | | | | Maintaining a healthy body weight and exercising |
| prevention. Diagnosing the problem normally | | | | on a regular basis is imperative to a healthy back. |
| includes a physical examination, a complete | | | | To reduce stress on the back, practice good |
| medical history, and some x-rays. Many | | | | posture. Rolling a towel and putting it behind the |
| chiropractors can do this all in one visit and | | | | small of your back helps to maintain proper |
| won’t require you to go to separate | | | | alignment when sitting. At night, sleep on your side |
| appointments or offices to get diagnosed. | | | | with a pillow between your knees. Most |
| After the chiropractor gets an accurate diagnosis, | | | | importantly, use care when lifting. Lift with your |
| progressive rehabilitation can start. Progressive | | | | legs and not with your back. Finally, avoid twisting |
| Rehab™ brings technology to chiropractic care | | | | when you lift. Treat your back with care because |
| and pain relief. It uses modern chiropractic | | | | prevention is better than any treatment. |
| practices with rehabilitation therapy. This includes | | | | |