Cervical disc damage can change your life forever. If it’s something you are facing, i.e., because of a particular form of exercise you perform or an operation you are scheduled to undergo or you are suffering from cervical degenerative disc disease, you need to do everything you can to educate yourself about it and how it is treated. Your cervical discs stabilize your neck and make it possible for it to turn from side to side, so damage can obviously be a big problem. This post will explore this topic in more detail, telling you what you should do if you are facing cervical disc damage.
Consider Surgery
If you are facing disc damage, consider surgery. More and more people are opting for cervical disc replacement surgery because it eliminates their pain and allows them to live an ordinary, happy life. However, surgery is not a minor undertaking. It’s something that has the potential to go wrong. You therefore need to think long and hard about whether or not you want to go ahead with it. Study the risks and rewards of cervical disc surgery before you find a surgeon. If you have health insurance, your insurer will pay for your surgery. If you are not insured, you will have to pay for surgery yourself. The cost depends largely on the severity of your current condition and the surgeon that you hire. More skilled surgeons typically charge more money.
If you are interested in cervical disc replacement surgery, you need to conduct extensive online research and find the most qualified, experienced surgeon you can. The more experienced a surgeon is, the more likely it is that they are going to be able to perform your surgery with minimal stress. A good way to determine whether a surgeon’s worth hiring or not is to take a look at their reviews. A surgeon’s reviews can tell you a lot about them and make the process of deciding whether or not to hire them much simpler. In addition to reviews, take a look at a surgeon’s experience. You can do this by visiting their LinkedIn page. LinkedIn is a business networking platform where professionals share information about themselves and their companies. Most surgeons have pages on LinkedIn because it helps them to find work. On a surgeon’s LinkedIn, you will see their educational history and experience.
Follow Your Doctor’s Advice
Surgery is not recommended for everybody. Some people’s cervical disc injuries are not serious enough to warrant it. No matter what condition your cervical discs are in, you need to follow your doctor’s advice. Whatever guidance they give you, you should take as gospel. If you doubt your doctor’s expertise and question their treatment advice, by all means seek a second opinion. As long as you have access to your medical records, you can present a new physician a full, comprehensive history of your condition and the treatment you have undergone for it.
If you are going to find another doctor to talk to because you do not trust your own, make sure that you take great care and find one who’s experienced and knowledgeable about cervical disc injuries. You may actually want to have a consultation with a surgeon who specializes in disc replacements. A surgeon who’s experienced in replacements will be able to give you a level of care that you cannot get elsewhere. Also worth noting is that if you plan on meeting with a surgeon, take the same steps mentioned above in relation to finding one, just in case they do recommend surgery and you decide to go ahead with it.
Pain Relief
Cervical disc injuries or degeneration can be very painful. If you are living with some kind of damage to your cervical discs, you may want to consider searching for pain relief. Some people dislike pharmaceutical analgesics. If you are one such individual, consider medicinal marijuana. Studies show that marijuana when used as an analgesic is just as effective as codeine, one of the pharmaceutical world’s go-to drugs. The good thing about marijuana is that it is legalized in most states, recreationally and medicinally. You may not need to apply for a permit to use it to treat your pain if it is legalized for recreational use.
You do need to know though that if it is not legalized for recreational use and you are caught using it, you can get into a lot of trouble. While jail’s out of the question in 2024, you could receive a fine. The only time you can get into serious trouble for marijuana possession is if you are illegally selling it or have a large amount in your possession. An alternative to the marijuana plant itself is CBD, a derivative of it, often sold in oil form. CBD oil can be an extremely effective way to counter the pain caused by cervical disc problems.
Living Comfortably
A comfortable life is what most people want, beyond everything else. Wealth, family, and good relationships all help make life more comfortable, but for most people, comfort is the end goal. If you are living with untreated cervical disc injuries, the chances are that your life is not going to be especially comfortable. In fact, it’s probably quite the opposite. However, achieving a comfortable life even with injuries is possible, especially if you pursue alternative treatment methods like those mentioned in the section above.
Make sure that for the duration of your treatment, you do not go out and perform strenuous exercise. You also need to be very careful about your posture when you’re at home. Poor posture can make your injuries a lot worse. Make sure that you follow all the treatment advice given to you by your doctor. They will tell you how to walk, sit, and lie down. Until your treatment has concluded, it is best not to do anything that could cause injuries to your neck, either.
Cervical disc damage can ruin a person’s life. If you have received injuries to yours, now’s the time to look into surgery or treatment methods. The sooner you replace or treat your cervical disc, the sooner you will be able to get back to living a happy, free life.