Degenerative Disc Disease

Degenerative disc disease is the natural age-related wear of the discs in your spine, but for some people, that wear becomes painful. You may feel a deep, dull ache in your low back or neck, with flare-ups of sharper pain that can travel into a limb. The disc itself isn’t repairable, but the muscles, posture, and movement patterns around it are very treatable. Spinal decompression often gives meaningful relief.

What Degenerative Disc Disease feels like

• Pain can affect the low back, buttocks, thighs or neck and, depending on where the affected disc is, radiate to the arms, hands or hips
• Tingling and/or numbness in the leg or foot
• Weakness in the leg muscles or foot drop may be a sign that there is damage to the nerve root
• Pain that is worse when sitting. While seated, the discs of the lower back have three times more load on them than when standing.
• Feeling better while walking or even running compared to sitting or standing for long periods of time
• Pain that gets worse when bending, lifting or twisting
• Feeling better when changing positions often or lying down
• Periods of nagging pain to severe, disabling pain that come and go and last from a few days to a few months before getting better

Common causes of Degenerative Disc Disease

• Age-related changes, including the loss of fluid / drying out and shrinking of the discs, the decrease of disc space, and having tiny tears or cracks in the outer layer (annulus or capsule) of the disc.
• Sudden (acute) injury leading to a herniated disc (such as a fall or a motor vehicle accident)

How we treat Degenerative Disc Disease at Physio Wellness

There is no single fix for degenerative disc disease, recovery comes from combining the right treatments for your specific situation. Your physiotherapist will assess your case in detail and recommend a plan from these proven approaches:

• Spinal Decompression, Computer-controlled spinal traction to take pressure off discs and nerves. Learn more
• Physiotherapy, Hands-on assessment and a custom exercise plan to address the root cause, not just the pain. Learn more
• Chiropractic care, Spinal manipulation and joint adjustments to restore proper mechanics. Learn more

When to come in

Book a consultation if your symptoms have lasted more than a week, are getting worse, or are interfering with sleep, work, or daily activities. We offer same-week appointments and direct bill most insurers.