How to treat a hernia of the spine with folk remedies

People who are faced with a disease such as vertebral hernia often wonder if it can be treated without surgery. Considering that pathology is quite common in the population and is only getting younger every year, and people rarely want to go under the knife, the problem becomes more relevant than ever.

So is it possible to treat a herniated disc without surgery?

Spinal hernia - what is it

The spine is the structure of the human body that takes on the main support load. His health often directly affects the state of all organs and systems.

The spine is made up of bony structures called vertebrae. Between the vertebrae are cartilaginous discs responsible for the depreciation of the entire structure and its mobility. In the intervertebral disc, doctors secrete the annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus.

They speak of an intervertebral hernia if the fibrous ring, unable to withstand the loads, bursts, and the pulpous contents end up in the spinal canal, squeezing the vessels and nerves that pass there. The pressure of the nucleus that has gone beyond the fibrous ring on the nerve roots explains the appearance of the pain syndrome.

A hernia can form in any part of the spine. The thoracic and lumbar regions are most often affected, while the cervical region is affected in exceptional cases.

It is believed that the risk of developing a hernia increases in people in the age range from 30 to 50 years, if their life is associated with limited mobility (sedentary work) or, on the contrary, the need to often carry weights (loaders). However, doctors say that the disease is getting younger every year. This is facilitated by a sedentary lifestyle, the reluctance of people to give their body minimal physical activity, even in the form of a simple walk.

Symptoms of the disease at first do not cause concern to the patient. There may be complaints of mild back pain, which are ignored by the person. As the pathology progresses, the pain syndrome becomes more and more unbearable, the patient begins to complain of pain in the legs, numbness of the extremities, malfunctions of the internal organs (problems with urination, uterine diseases in women and lack of erection in men). If the disease is not treated in a timely manner, first there will be a significant decrease in the quality of life of the patient, and then his disability.

The main methods of non-surgical therapy

Is it possible to cure a hernia without resorting to the help of surgeons? In principle, if the doctor has chosen the right therapy, and the patient carefully follows all the recommendations, this is possible.

In order to be able to get rid of a hernia of the spine without going under the knife, it is recommended to direct the treatment to achieve the following goals:

relief of back pain and prevention of relapses in the development of acute pain syndrome;
elimination of a feeling of weakness in the limbs, their numbness;
prevention of compression of nerve fibers or, if it has already occurred, its elimination;
normalization of the functioning of the human body.

Non-surgical treatment of an intervertebral hernia most often consists of several stages and involves the use of not one, but several methods at once. The first thing the doctor should do is to inform the patient about the diagnosis and explain what it is, what threatens to refuse treatment. After receiving information about the disease, you can begin to search for optimal treatments. At the same time, the patient should be warned that recovery can be forgotten if he constantly overloads the vertebrae. Rest is almost the main condition for a successful recovery.

In addition to the recommendation not to load the back, the doctor will recommend additional methods of treatment.

Medicines to help

How to treat a hernia of the spine without surgery? In this difficult matter, first of all, various medications will help, which will be especially useful in the first few days from the onset of the disease. In addition to medication, when the first symptoms appear, bed rest and rest are also recommended.

Medicines serve two main purposes. First of all, they relieve pain, which significantly reduces the quality of life of the patient and is the main manifestation of the disease. They also reduce the intensity of inflammatory processes, reduce swelling and help reduce pressure on the nerve roots.

Five main groups of drugs are used, which can be seen in the table:

The name of the drug group	Therapeutic effect
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs	They save the patient from pain, reduce the intensity of the inflammatory reaction. They are effective only if the pain syndrome is not too pronounced.
Opioid-type analgesics	Drugs aimed at eliminating severe pain that NSAIDs cannot cope with. Available only by prescription and have a number of serious side effects.
Muscle relaxants	Muscle relaxants are medicines that can relieve muscle spasms. With their help, you can partially relieve the load on the spine and reduce the intensity of pain.
Glucocorticosteroids	Means with strong anti-inflammatory activity. They are recommended to be used in conjunction with NSAIDs or opioid analgesics, as they also facilitate the penetration of drugs to the diseased area.

In addition to the listed groups of drugs, vitamin injections may be recommended to the patient. Vitamins A, C, E and D appear most often in recipes. Many patients are saved from hernia symptoms by novocaine blockades. Such blockades relieve pain, help reduce the intensity of inflammation, eliminate pain and swelling.

A herniated disc can only be treated with medication if the disease has not gone too far. It is not recommended to choose medicines on your own without visiting a doctor.

Massage, physiotherapy, exercise therapy and reflexology

How to cure a hernia of the spine without surgery? What else can be used besides various medicines? Many doctors consider the hernia treatment course to be incomplete without physiotherapy exercises and massage courses.

Exercise therapy is mainly prescribed when the acute period of the disease has already passed. It is necessary to consult a doctor before starting classes. Physiotherapy exercises should be carried out regularly, 3-5 times a day. It is strictly forbidden to perform exercises aimed at twisting the body, including any sudden movements.

Exercise therapy goes well with back massage. It is impossible to trust massage effects to a person without experience, which means that a relative or friend cannot perform the procedure. You need to look for a good specialist. The task of massage is to prepare the back muscles for stress, warm them up, and increase plasticity.

It is important to remember that neither exercise therapy nor massage should cause pain to the patient. Pain indicates that a person is doing something wrong.

Physiotherapy is a good help in the non-surgical treatment of spinal hernia.

Can be used:

myostimulation;
electrophoresis;
magnetotherapy;
phonophoresis.

The procedures are aimed at reducing the intensity of inflammation, alleviating the general condition of the patient, strengthening the muscular frame of the back. It is important to remember that in the acute period, physiotherapy is categorically contraindicated.

Reflexology is not the main method of hernia treatment, but it is also used by specialists to restore the patient's health. During the procedure, needles are inserted into spasmodic muscles using a special technology, which leads to their relaxation. As a result, the load on the spine decreases, the intensity of pain decreases. Stimulation with needles of certain points also allows you to activate the reserves of the body and speed up the recovery process.

Kinesiotherapy

It is possible to cure a hernia of the spine without surgery by resorting to the method of kinesiotherapy. The answer to the question of what is the essence of the technique lies in the name itself. This is movement therapy.

Its tasks are as follows:

promoting the processes of strengthening the muscular corset;
activation of regenerative processes in bone tissues;
restoration of motor functions after various injuries and diseases;
prevention of various diseases of all organs and systems.

Before starting kinesiotherapy , the specialist must determine what the capabilities of the human body are after he has a spinal hernia. According to the results of the test, exercises are selected that are best suited in this case. During the classes, various simulators, shells and additional items such as balls, hoops, etc. can be used.

Treatment of a vertebral hernia with kinesiotherapy is a good option for many people. The technique has practically no restrictions and contraindications, and therefore both very young children and the elderly can practice it. The main thing is to choose the right set of exercises and make sure that the body does not overstrain.

Spinal traction

How to treat an intervertebral hernia without surgery? The traction technique, which is often supplemented with drug treatment, can help in this difficult matter. The method itself is simple and effective.

It is possible to cure a hernia in this way due to the fact that when the structures of the spine are stretched, they cease to exert pressure on each other. In addition, blood circulation in areas that were previously in a state of compression is normalized, muscle structures relax, and inflammation decreases. There are several types of stretching.

Water traction for spinal hernia is considered the simplest and most gentle back method. As you can see in the training video, the first few sessions the patient is in a special bath or pool without weight, and then with it.

Dry traction is performed in medical centers on special tables. The table can be positioned both horizontally and vertically. The procedure is painless and causes minimal discomfort to the patient.

Is it possible to get rid of an intervertebral hernia with traction without going to medical centers? Yes, you can do it at home. You can hang on the horizontal bar with outstretched arms for several minutes a day or use the bed, tying bricks to your feet, and pulling yourself up to the headboard with your hands.

Folk methods

Treatment of spinal hernia without surgery is possible using folk recipes. To stop the pain syndrome, various ointments, decoctions, warming compresses are used.

One of the most popular ways to help get rid of a hernia is clay. It is carefully heated to a temperature not exceeding 37ºC, wrapped in gauze and placed on the affected area.

Horse fat can also be used to make compresses. It is smeared with a thin layer on gauze and applied to the back in the area of pain. An alternative may be the Altai mummy mixed with honey and water in a ratio of 1:100. Before applying it to the area affected by a hernia, it is recommended to lubricate the back with fir oil.

For oral administration, the following means are suitable:

a spoonful of chamomile, brewed with a glass of boiling water (you need to drink ½ cup a day);
similarly, aspen bark is prepared and consumed, but it also needs to be boiled over a fire for an hour;
honey is mixed with aloe juice and drunk in a teaspoon 5-6 times a day.

Completely folk methods are not capable of eliminating an intervertebral hernia, but they can significantly alleviate the symptoms.

laser treatment

How to get rid of an intervertebral hernia if you don’t feel like going to the operation at all, and non-invasive techniques do not have the expected positive effect? A relatively new method of laser correction in medicine can help to cope with the disease. Such an impact cannot be attributed to operating rooms, it is painless, and the patient himself receives only local anesthesia.

Laser treatment may consist in the restoration of the fibrous ring that has become unusable. In this case, the technique is called reconstruction. Vaporization refers to the evaporation of the liquid contained in the disk using a laser beam. Due to this, it is possible to significantly reduce the size of the hernia. Vaporization has a significant age limit. It is used only if the patient is not yet 35 years old.

Manual therapy

How to treat a vertebral hernia yet? In some cases, the treatment course includes manual therapy. Sometimes this technique even allows you to cope with the disease when other methods have already been tried and have not been beneficial.

During a session of manual therapy, a specialist makes a deep impact on bone structures, muscles and ligaments. In this case, the patient may feel pain, and this is considered a variant of the norm. Sessions of manual therapy for spinal hernia can last from several minutes to half an hour, and recovery usually requires a course of 5-15 sessions.

Is it possible to cure a vertebral hernia with this method? Since each person's body is unique, no guarantees can be given. There are many satisfied patients who managed to improve their health with the help of this method of treatment, and many dissatisfied, whom manual therapy did not save from a herniated disc.

Additional methods of non-surgical treatment

It is always necessary to treat a vertebral hernia without surgery in a complex manner. At the same time, the doctor, at his discretion, may recommend additional methods.

In hernia therapy, for example, hirudotherapy . This method refers to treatment with leeches - a very ancient and well-established approach. Leeches are placed at symmetrical points along the spine. Thanks to the enzymes contained in their saliva, it is possible to get rid of puffiness and reduce the intensity of inflammation. The saliva of leeches also helps to prevent the formation of blood stasis in places of compression, improves the processes of blood microcirculation.

Cryotherapy or exposure to cold is another way that can help get rid of a herniated intervertebral type. Exposure to the site of injury with liquid nitrogen allows you to enhance regenerative processes, reduce the intensity of inflammation, and stimulate blood circulation processes.

corsets to patients suffering from intervertebral hernias . These devices allow you to reduce the load on the muscles, but at the same time firmly fix the vertebrae, preventing them from moving and further pinching the structures of the spinal canal damaged by a hernia. Collars and corsets are worn for a long time, in some cases it is recommended to leave them even at night.

The diagnosis of "herniated intervertebral discs" is by no means a sentence. It is also a mistake to believe that with this disease it is necessary to immediately lie down on the operating table under the surgeon's knife. On the contrary, most physicians today are in favor of conservative therapy and will make every effort not to bring a person with a hernia to surgery.

It is important to understand that the success of conservative therapy largely depends on the patient himself. No doctor can force a person to attend massage or kinesiotherapy procedures, to exercise regularly, if the patient does not understand that this is necessary for his own health. Conservative treatment of spinal hernia is the very case when the main responsibility lies not with the doctor, but with the patient, and all the results of treatment depend only on his responsibility.