Many people are told they have a herniated disc and immediately assume surgery is inevitable. That assumption causes unnecessary fear — and in many cases, unnecessary procedures.
The truth is simple: most disc herniations do not require surgery.
In fact, many patients respond well to conservative care. However, oftentimes, the typical conservative options like physical therapy, acupuncture, dry needling, and chiropractic seem to fall short. Why?
A disc herniation occurs when the inner material of the disc pushes outward and irritates nearby nerves. This can cause pain, numbness, tingling, or weakness — but symptoms alone do not determine whether surgery is necessary.
These complex conditions need more specific care than your run-of-the-mill treatments. And the truth is, some cases do require surgery.
What actually determines the need for surgery includes:
- Progressive neurological loss (worsening weakness)
- Loss of bowel or bladder control
- Structural instability that cannot be managed conservatively
Outside of those red flags, many disc herniations respond well to non-surgical, disc-specific care that reduces pressure on the disc and allows the body time to heal.
One of the biggest mistakes patients make is jumping straight from pain → MRI → surgery recommendation, without understanding disc severity or whether the disc can still heal conservatively.
That’s why evaluation matters more than imaging alone.
If you’ve been told you have a herniated disc and want to avoid surgery, the next step is understanding how severe your disc injury actually is.
📞 Call 317-854-6116 to schedule a no-obligation Disc Severity Assessment.
If I don’t think I can help you, I’ll tell you.
