I have a cervical disc issue: should I just endure it?
These days, every morning my neck feels stiff and my arm goes numb. I went to the hospital and they said it's early stage, so they told me to exercise—but with this pain, exercise...?
I want to avoid surgery as much as possible. Do manual therapy or injections actually help? I'd appreciate advice from anyone who's been through this.
5 answers
Agreed, neglect is the most dangerous. You need to address it early.
I went through the same symptoms for 3 months last year, and honestly, manual therapy varies from person to person. I had about 10 sessions, and I didn’t feel much difference until the first 5, then after that it felt a bit loosened up? But I still don’t know if it was because of the manual therapy or just because time passed lol. Injections differ depending on whether they’re nerve blocks or steroids, but they’re meant to manage acute pain, not fix the root cause.
Well, that's a bit... If you don't exercise just because it hurts, it'll only get stiffer. Try starting with strengthening the muscles at the back of your neck at a lower intensity. A doctor doesn't tell you to exercise for no reason.
There are quite a few studies showing that manual therapy isn't effective, so wouldn't it be better to spend that money at a good rehabilitation hospital instead?