Herniated Cervical Disc- Chiropractor or Physical Therapy

You need to see a neurosurgeon or orthopedic Dr. My neighbor is the head of the Physical Therapy dept at a major clinic. My PT told me most times it's best to see a PT & Chiropractor simultaneously, but he suggested to let the neuro or ortho Dr tell me for sure.

I feel bad for you, I too suffer from chronic pain with a bad disc.

My sister in law had to have surgery while she was 6 months pregnant for the same discs you have & a couple more. They had to go in thru her throat!

Well my husband didn't have a herniated disk, but a bulging disk. In his lower back.
Both are degenerative however.
He got physical therapy. After seeing his specialist.
And it helped him.
He was experiencing pain and numbness in his legs from it.
Surgery was not a HAVE TO. It was an option for him. BUT his nerves were being rubbed, rubbed away from his bulging disk. He did eventually have surgery. It helped. It was not fused or anything.

You should see an Orthopedic Doctor.
Not your Internist.
My Husband saw an Orthopedic Doc and a Neurosurgeon/Neurologist for his, diagnosis and follow up care.

A herniated disk is like a blown out tire.

Your Internist, should have... referred you to a proper Specialist.
An Internist, is not the one to see.
Your Internist.... is probably just referring you to the Chiro in his office... because it is convenient for him, and is in his office and they are "partners?"
So to me, that is not an objective... referral for your medical issue.

You need to somehow, take time off to see an Orthopedic or Neurologist. To get a proper diagnosis and recommendations, for your spinal problems.
The pain and tingling you are experiencing... is due to nerve damage or nerves getting tweaked. See a Specialist, before it gets worse.

I'd do both chiropractic and PT. They're not mutually exclusive. A chiropractic adjustment would probably provide instant relief, but it's a good idea to strengthen the surrounding muscles to provide long term results. My husband has a crushed disc in his back, and he does chiropractic, acupuncture, and works out his core muscles. These three treatments together work great for him.

Yes mine did with chiropractic, pt with craniosacral work, massage, acupuncture, and injections. Still occasionally bothers me and one adjustment at the chiro and icing it does the trick!

Find a sports medicine doctor. A good sports medicine doctor will tell you if a chiropractor could help you, and tell you WHO to go to. I'd be very careful how you approach going to a chiropractor for this kind of injury. (And I do believe in chiropractic and have used them.)

Best of luck in this,
Dawn

My husband is a Chiropractor and owns a clinic in Brevard County. While chiro is GREAT for many conditions, when a herniation is involved the best treatment is actually not chiropractic; its Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression. Some Chiros offer it, as we do, but it is NOT chiro. Neuro's and many other doctors offer this. It is an FDA approved, non-surgical treatment for disc herniations and it works. I realize you are nowhere near us, so please do not take this as a ploy to get you as a patient, rather as a way to offer information. Here is our website for Decompression: Brevard Disc dot com. (Spelled it out in case it would get flagged for posting a link....not sure if its OK to do so). Our Chiro website is Brevard Chiro dot com. This is where I would go 1st. Good luck!

Okay. Get a new internist that you like. Get one who has results given to you by a doctor, a physician assistant or a nurse practitioner, not a receptionist. Forget the office hours - make the time to see someone competent.

Chiropractic CAN work and you should definitely try other things before you resort to surgery. But if you think the doctor is just feeding you to the chiro in his own office and since you don't like the doctor anyway, I'm not sure that's a wise route to go. I would think PT would be difficult while the disc is inflamed, as would chiropractic in some circumstances.

I've worked with many people who have gotten relief from herniated discs and whiplash and other kinds of neck/back injuries. There is a wonderful product you can take with clinical studies proving reduced inflammation and increasing blood flow in joints. You need a referral from a nutritional consultant but you can buy it on line. It has a US government patent so it's been proven safe, effective and unique. The consultant is free and can work with you by phone to help you get results. Why not try this instead of doctor shopping? Happy to connect you with others who will help you.

I wouldn't care if the internist was so wonderful with his hours that he made house calls. The receptionist is giving you results over the phone?? Huge red flag!! How convenient that he has a chiropractor in his office...not!!

I was mowed over by an air conditioning truck four years ago and blew several discs in my cervical spine that ended up pushing on the nerve roots. By the time I was finally scheduled for surgery (neurosurgeon and orthopedist) my right arm had lost the feeling to my finger tips.

Having spinal surgery was the best thing ever. I was fused at several levels with anterior approach (yep, go through the front of the neck, so easy). I was off of work for five weeks but felt very improved right away. I never would have healed on my own, my injuries could not have gone away. We tried conservative physical therapy long before moving to operate.

I don't have herniated discs, but have suffered from head, neck and shoulder pain very much like what you describe. I saw a chiropractor for about a year and saw some progress. Finally I went to my internist and she prescribed physical therapy. I love my physical therapist! She worked out my problem within about 8 weeks time. However, the problem did return, but I only had to go back for about 5 visits and was fine. I just recently went back for some therapy on the opposite shoulder!
Both probably would have achieved the same outcome, but I much prefer my physical therapist over my chiropractor. I have a pretty flexible schedule so I was able to get in with the PT during the day, whereas the chiro I saw offered some evening appointments and Saturday appointments too.
HTH,
A.