r/backpain

26 years old, L4-L5 herniated disc, one year of pain and getting worse. Has anyone been through something similar?

It’s been about a year since this started, and honestly I feel like I’m getting worse instead of better.

It began with mild lower back pain. At the time, I was training almost every day, so I thought it was just a muscle strain or something temporary. But the pain never really went away. Months passed, it gradually got worse, and eventually I had an MRI that showed a herniated disc at L4-L5.

I’m only 26.

At this point, the pain has become a part of almost everything I do. I’m walking more and more hunched over because it feels like my body is constantly trying to find a position that hurts less. Standing hurts, sitting hurts, lying down hurts. Things I used to do without even thinking about them now revolve around trying not to trigger more pain.

Nights are probably the worst part. I often wake up around 2 AM in severe pain, or I simply can’t fall asleep. I use heating pads, constantly change positions, and sometimes I just end up staring at the ceiling waiting for the pain to calm down.

Over this past year, I’ve seen many different doctors and tried several treatments. I’ve taken different medications, including pregabalin, anti-inflammatories and painkillers. I’ve done exercises for my lower back and tried to stay active as much as the pain allows.

I’ve also tried osteopathy and acupuncture because I reached a point where I was willing to try almost anything that could potentially help.

One osteopath even told me that he could “cure” me, that my problem was coming from my gut/intestines, and that a herniated disc itself shouldn’t hurt. I gave the treatment a chance, hoping he was right, but unfortunately it didn’t help either.

Interestingly, both of my parents also have herniated discs, although I understand that everyone’s situation is different.

At one point, a doctor recommended surgery involving fusion/screws. The idea honestly scares me, especially at 26 years old. I’m worried about what that could mean long-term and about going through such a major surgery without knowing how much pain relief I would actually get.

Before making a decision like that, I want to explore other options. Right now, I’m considering trying an epidural steroid injection / nerve block.

The pain has also changed over time. Currently, it starts in the upper part of my left glute, travels down the back of my thigh, then around knee level it seems to move toward the outer/lateral side, and from there I feel it down the front/outer part of my lower leg, around the tibialis anterior area.

That leg pain is currently extremely intense.

What scares me most is feeling like I’m becoming progressively more limited instead of recovering. I’m walking increasingly hunched over because of the pain, I struggle to find any comfortable position, and there are days when it feels like everything hurts.

After a year of doctors, medications, exercises and different treatments, I honestly don’t know what else to try.

So I wanted to ask people here who have dealt with an L4-L5 herniated disc and/or sciatica:

Has anyone had a similar pain pattern? Did you reach a point where you were walking hunched over and dealing with pain almost constantly?

What eventually helped you?

Did epidural injections help? Physical therapy? Did you eventually need surgery? If you had surgery, what kind and how are you doing now?

I’m not looking to replace medical advice or make a medical decision based solely on Reddit. I would just really appreciate hearing from people who have actually lived through something similar.

After a year of this, hearing other people’s experiences would mean a lot.

Thank you to anyone who takes the time to reply.

Hi everyone, thank you for your time and willingness to read this. I appreciate literally
any advice at all.

24F, 115 pounds. I’ll try to make this short - months ago I started having extremely irritating wrist pain, which progressed to shoulder pain. All on my right side. My mom is a doctor and noticed that my right scapula is winging. I went to a PT. PT diagnosed me with 15 degree curve scoliosis and winging scapula and I did some exercises with him for a while. Nothing got better, only worse. I finally got imaging of my spine. Sent to spine specialist. Spine specialist did a cervical spine MRI. MRI showed “military neck” in cervical spine, mild degenerative disc disease, and at C3-C4, a “moderate right foraminal disc protrusion that causes mild to moderate right foraminal narrowing.
Minimal disc bulging is noted from C3 through C7.”

I thought this was the answer for it all, BUT THEN, when I went back to the spine specialist, he said it wasn’t bad enough to be causing the issues I’m having. He sent me to a wrist doctor who says I might have carpal tunnel, and ordered an EMG which came back completely normal today. The only other thing he did was prescribe pregabolin for nerve pain, but he filled the prescription wrong and I haven’t even been able to fill it to this day, 40 days later.

The EMG doctor is now suggesting I see a shoulder specialist but I am at my wit’s end. I have wasted hundreds of dollars and countless hours on doctors and am still at square one. I just want to give up and I don’t know what to do.

The pain is pretty bad and is exacerbated by work and movement - it feels like it radiates down my arm starting in my shoulder area but is hard to pinpoint. In certain positions my hand starts to tingle, and at night I am woken up by my entire arm being completely numb. My right arm seems to have gotten slightly weaker over the last few months. My scapula is still winging. I am unable to keep my arm held up for very long without needing to rest it.

Does anyone have ANY advice on what this could be or how I can try to mitigate the pain on my own? Even natural remedies? Kava seems to kind of help but not much. Stretches? Sleeping positions? What should I do? Thank you…

I’ve been debating whether to share this here, but I figured my story might give someone who is struggling with their recovery a little bit of hope.

In 2013, I had a hiking accident where I fell 30 feet from a collapsing rock cliff. I shattered one vertebra and fractured another. The impact severely damaged my spinal cord. It was crushed, but thankfully not severed.

I was incredibly lucky.

I had to be helicoptered out and had three emergency surgeries over the following two days. The surgeons removed bone fragments discs and ultimately fused my spine from L1 to L5.

I had to be airlifted by helicopter and my back was in shambles immediately after surgery.

The recovery was long. I spent a good amount of time in the hospital and had to essentially relearn how to walk properly. At the time, I had no idea what my life would look like years later.

Fast forward to 2026, and this is what my back/body looks like today.

I'm not sharing these photos because I think everyone with a fusion needs to look like this. Far from it. Everyone's injury, surgery, recovery, and limitations are different, and I know how fortunate I am to have had the outcome I've had.

I'm sharing them because for me, staying active and trying to build as much strength as I safely can has made a huge difference in how I live with my fusion.

That doesn't mean I'm pain-free. I still have plenty of days where my back, hips, legs, or nerves remind me that I had a pretty bad injury. There are exercises I can't do, movements I have to modify, and days when my body simply doesn't cooperate.

But overall, being active has given me a much better quality of life than I ever imagined I would have after that accident.

If you're early in your recovery, or you're having a particularly bad stretch right now, I just want to say: keep going.

Your recovery may not look like mine. You may have limitations that I don't have, or complications that I was lucky enough to avoid. Don't compare your body or your timeline to anyone else's.

But if you're able to move, strengthen, walk, swim, lift, stretch, do physical therapy, or simply take another step today… keep going.

I'm incredibly grateful to the doctors, family, and friends who helped me get from that helicopter to where I am today.

And I'm proud of myself, too. Not because I somehow “beat” my injury, but because I kept working on myself for the last 13 years and didn't let the worst day of my life define the rest of it.

For anyone else here with a fusion, or anyone who's struggling with their recovery: I hope things get better for you. It can be a long road, but there can be a lot of life on the other side of it.

I need some insight on what I should be looking out for or if something has drastically changed.

Background: I have Scheuermann's kyphosis and had surgery in 2002 to fix T9 to L2. This included rods, pins, and bone fusions. In late 2021 I had pancreatitis and shortly following that, I started having back pain (probably unrelated, but so many things started going off the rails since). For the last few years, I couldn't identify if it was lumbar or SI Joint pain. All my doctors kept telling me it was just the SI Joint pain.

Early this year, I relocated due to a promotion. Better doctors and better care have been able to identify that i have both lumbar and SI. With their help i have been able to tell the difference between the 2. Something changed this year, and I don't know what I did, but the lumbar pain has gotten significantly worse. Walking long distances is difficult, standing for more than 15 minutes while cooking is painful, and my fatigue has significantly increased. I cannot get to PT till end of August and can't get a pain management consultation till end of September. I also deal with fatigue on a daily basis as the back pain is causing me to wake up after only 5 or so hours.

Today, I am experiencing something that sounds like it may be restless legs, but I am not sure. The backs of my legs feel irritated when I am sitting or laying down where something is touching the backs of my legs (recliner and laying on my back in bed). This only started this week.

Due to a very long history of chronic pain, my pain tolerance is high. I don't know if this is a new symptom unrelated or if I should be concerned. My Neurosurgeon said if I experienced burning, spikes of pain, or numbness in my legs I should go to the ER.

I am also aware that some of my pain is due to my weight, I probably carry 40lbs or more on my stomach (I am trying to lose weight, but it is a long journey).

What are your thoughts?

TL;DR;

Sciatica for 11 months, no nerve compression on the MRI. Only annular tear and tiny bulge.

MRI report:

• L1 to L4: No relevant degeneration.
• L5/S1: Median annular fissure at L5/S1 with mild disc bulging. Minimal, non-irritated facet joint degeneration at L5/S1 on both sides. No neural compression within the examined volume.

I have sciatica for 11 months already. It improved only a little bit. The spine surgeon genuinely said that MRI doesn't explain my symptoms and with this MRI they don't do any interventions and offered only ESI. I have positive sciatica straight leg test.

I did ESI today and seems numbing agent worked because my symptoms were reduced significantly. After 2.5h the pain came back.

Doc told that they don't have a plan what to do with me if the injection helps for short period of time. I'm praying the it helps me for longer time...

Did anyone have something similar? From one side the MRI looks not bad which is good. People do have much worse imaging. From the other side PT doesn't relieve and I'm kinda stuck with this condition. Maybe PRP?

My Bf has numbness and pain in the arm, neck and shoulder since 2-3 weeks. Will this require surgery or can it be managed? He is currently only taking pain meds and starting physio soon.Anyone with similar experiences? The issue is he has a physical job, is that sustainable?

Thanks for any input

Demographics & Background

Age/Sex: 44M

Timeline: 3 years with no meaningful improvement

Location of Issue: Severe disc bulge / protrusion at L4-L5 and L5-S1

Symptom Profile

Primary Complaints: Nerve compression symptoms rather than classical localized lower back pain.

Mobility & Walking Limit: Severe walking limitation (struggle to walk beyond ~500–600 continuous steps before symptoms flare up).

Neurological Signs: Numbness and altered sensation radiating down the left leg into the left big toe; persistent gluteal nerve irritation.

Aggravating Factors: Prolonged sitting and extended travel/commutes significantly worsen symptoms; currently managing with modified activity and rest.

What I Have Tried So Far

Orthopedic / Spine Specialists: Consulted multiple spine surgeons and orthopedic doctors; the majority strongly recommended surgical intervention (microdiscectomy/decompression).

Ayurvedic Treatment: Completed structured traditional protocols without sustained relief or functional improvement.

Chiropractic Care: Currently undergoing active chiropractic sessions/adjustments.

Activity Modification: Strictly limiting prolonged sitting, avoiding strenuous travel, and prioritizing rest and conservative posture management.

Questions for the Community

For those with multi-level (L4-L5 / L5-S1) bulges causing distal neurological symptoms (toe numbness, walking caps) rather than central back pain: did conservative care (specific PT protocols, McKenzie method, decompression/traction) ever restore full walking capacity after the 2–3 year mark?

If you pursued microdiscectomy after years of conservative management, did your nerve-related walking limits and toe numbness resolve completely, or did residual deficits persist?

Are there specific core stabilization routines (e.g., McGill Big 3 adaptations), physical therapy modalities, or spinal decompression tools that made a noticeable difference when standard rest failed?

Ich habe seit längerer Zeit Beschwerden im unteren Rücken, hauptsächlich rechts, die mich im Alltag ziemlich einschränken. Nach Monaten mit wiederkehrenden Schmerzen (vor allem nach langem Sitzen oder bestimmten Bewegungen wie z.B. Fußball spielen) habe ich jetzt endlich ein MRT machen lassen und den Befund heute erhalten.

Der Befund zeigt eine leichte strukturelle Veränderung im Bereich L5/S1, aber nichts Dramatisches. Trotzdem sind die Beschwerden im Alltag deutlich spürbar, dass sitzen zur Qual wird.

Deshalb meine Frage an euch:
Was hat euch bei ähnlichen Problemen wirklich geholfen?