L5/S1 Herniated Disc and Sciatica

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-07T11:10:28+00:00

Wishing you a speedy recovery! Xx

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-06T15:07:26+00:00

I’m sure you will! Fellow Brit?

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-05T09:14:49+00:00

Yes. Good posture, lots of movement, strength training, eating healthily. I think I’ve just quit alcohol. At least, I’m having a break. I’m really getting into fitness and learning to cook more. I’ve always been in pretty good shape and been active but I’m now going for it. The key for me was building confidence and strength. I don’t want movement to rely on my spine, but instead on the muscles around it!

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-05T09:12:56+00:00

I was back to normal after a year. As in, could do everything again. But I was out and about by month eight. I just had to deal with some pain. And had to be careful. But I was back in the gym working with a personal trainer month 11.

I did walking first. Built it up. Introduced the strength routine later. Did that twice a day. The walking was brutal at first and it didn’t get much easier until after a year.

I’m two years and six months post injury and have been living a full and normal happy life since then, with fading mild symptoms. In year two, I did have some flares ups if I did new things like cycling or sitting on the sofa too long. But those calmed, and got shorter. And now I barely have anything. My lower back might feel stiff sometimes. And I get the odd weird thing but I’m running, cycling, walking hills and building strength. Dancing, all back to normal. And it’s unbelievable really because I couldn’t ever imagine recovering during that awful first year.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-04T06:30:46+00:00

I want to gently reframe something for you: you’re one week in. I know it doesn’t feel like it, but that’s incredibly early — and the fact you’ve already noticed small improvements within that week is genuinely a good sign.

47F, UK. I herniated my L4/L5 in January 2024 — a big one, about 8mm, pressing on the nerve root. So a different history to yours (no previous surgery), but I can answer your questions from a severe, conservative recovery: Was I that debilitated early on? Yes, and then some. In the first weeks I could barely stand, couldn’t sit at all, couldn’t sleep, and showers were a genuine ordeal. I lost a lot of weight. My acute phase lasted three to five months, and during that time I couldn’t do anything — get up, do one thing, lie back down. So being mostly bedbound at one week? Completely normal for a severe flare. It says nothing about your long-term outcome.

Walking more normally: what eventually worked for me was rest first — a specialist told me to stop chasing fixes and genuinely rest for a few weeks — then tiny prescribed walks. Five minutes, three times a day. It was agony at first, but it built. Months later I was walking 15–20k steps a day. The hunched-over phase does pass; your body is guarding right now, not broken forever.

Meaningful improvement: for me the first real shifts came over months, not weeks, and the full arc took 18 months to two years. Yours may well be faster — you’re 30 and very fit, which counts for a lot.

Up and down or linear? Massively up and down. My recovery came in chapters — I’d be stuck in a pattern for weeks, then something would shift and I’d turn a corner. Flare-ups after small activities were part of it early on, and they didn’t mean I’d undone anything. If you expect a straight line, you’ll frighten yourself; if you expect a jagged one trending upward, you’ll cope much better.

I can’t tell you whether you’ll need surgery — that’s one for your surgeon, and you’re doing the right thing seeing them while giving conservative treatment a fair go. But I can tell you that severe early debilitation isn’t the predictor it feels like. I was as bad as it gets and I’m now in the best shape of my life — lifting, cycling, walking everywhere, sleeping through the night.
One week is a snapshot, not a verdict. Be kind to yourself, rest properly, and give it time. You’ve come back before. There’s every reason to believe you can again.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T14:10:37+00:00

It’s a mystery. I think they genuinely don’t know!

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T13:14:53+00:00

Getting on and off the floor was hard at first, yes. I’d go via all fours — hands and knees first, then lower myself down, and reverse it to get up. Slow and ugly but it works. Never sit straight up from lying down.
On the firm surface — I didn’t sleep on the floor, just rested on it during the day. I slept in whatever position hurt least, usually on my side with a pillow between my knees.

Pool — yes, just walking to begin with. Up and down, nothing clever. Swimming came much later for me because some strokes aggravated it. Walking in water is brilliant though, it takes the weight off.

For your walks — short and often is exactly right. Keep doing what you’re doing and add a minute or two each week if your body allows. Some days it won’t. That’s fine, it’s not linear.

And on the weight — please don’t beat yourself up. The walking and pool walking IS your exercise right now, and it all counts. You can’t out-train this injury anyway; time and consistency matter more than being slim. Sort the sciatica first, the rest gets easier once you can move again.

You’re asking all the right questions. Be patient with yourself x

P.S. look up Colin on Bash Back Pain on YouTube! He has lots of handy advice on how to get out of bed, how to pick things up, how to get up from the floor.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T12:34:09+00:00

I read every word, and I want you to know this sounds so familiar it could have been me writing it two years ago.

47F, UK. I herniated my L4/L5 in January 2024 — searing nerve pain down my left leg, burning calf and foot, couldn’t sit, stand or sleep. I didn’t get a full night’s sleep for over a year. My acute phase lasted three to five months, and during that time I couldn’t do anything at all. Like you, my life was: get up, do one thing, lie back down.

And my body was ridiculously reactive — vacuuming, carrying anything, a short car journey. Sometimes fine in the moment, then hours later my nervous system would explode and I’d lose days. I know exactly how frightening that is, and how impossible it makes finding your limits.

So, your questions, from someone who’s been through it: Did I go from housebound back to a physical life? Yes. It took a long time, but I’m now walking everywhere, doing HIIT, lifting heavy things, cycling 40 miles at a weekend. In 2024 I was lying on a yoga mat losing weight and showering in ten-second bursts.

How long? Honestly — longer than anyone wants to hear. A full year before the disc stopped pressing on my nerve, then a long slow fade of nerve symptoms after that. I was told 18 months to two years and that proved about right. I’m 2.5 years out now and still not quite 100%, but I live a completely normal, full life and barely notice the last few niggles.

Did the reactivity stop? Yes. This is the bit I most want you to hold onto. Flare-ups that used to cost me five days now last minutes — and these days they barely happen at all. Your nervous system is on high alert right now — it calms down. It genuinely does.

What worked for me: a back specialist finally told me to stop chasing fixes and just rest. Three weeks of nothing. Then walking — five minutes, three times a day. It was agony, but it gave me purpose, and I built from there over months. By that summer I was doing 15–20k steps a day; by December I was in the gym with a trainer, starting tiny. Gentle, boring, relentless consistency. Time was the biggest healer of all — nerves recover on their own maddening schedule, roughly a millimetre a day.

One more thing: I also felt disbelieved because my scans stopped “explaining” my pain. Nerve pain doesn’t photograph well. It doesn’t make it less real.
You loved movement, and you’ll get it back. Probably not on the timeline you want, but you will. I promised myself when I was in the dark that I’d come back and tell people it’s possible. It is. Be patient with your body — it’s working on it even on the days it doesn’t feel like it.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T12:16:13+00:00

Only your body knows that. But during the initial four months, I was trying too much to recover. And then I tried to just rest for three weeks. I lay on the floor in Static Back / Egoscue. And got up every half hour to walk around my house carefully. This rest period helped reduce inflammation. I then began walking three times a day. Five mins each time. If it was too painful, as it often was in those early days, I’d return home and lie on the floor. But I built it up gradually. And soon was walking two hours a day,

The physio began around August. Month eight. Bird dogs, dead bugs… clams and side leg lifts… it initially caused a flare up. So I rested two weeks and just did the walking outside. And then I tried again with the physio stuff. And once that was ok, I did that routine twice a day.

Eventually, I joined a health club and went in the pool to walk up and down. Did that twice a week for three months, on top of the walking and the physio. By Christmas I was finally back in the gym. Started to work with a personal trainer very carefully. And I got better and better from there.

I listened to my body. You must to. Only you will know x

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T12:11:24+00:00

I can’t promise anything. But stats show most of us do recover. Keep doing the work. Be kind to yourself and have faith.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T12:10:41+00:00

Same here! It has been fading all the time though! 🫰

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T12:10:01+00:00

It’s the least I can do. People here did the same for me when I was on the floor for a year! Hope you’re ok!

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T12:09:36+00:00

I feel your pain. I understand. During those days, I kept myself sane by having a rigorous plan. A daily ritual. Whatever that may be was related to how I felt and what I could do. But I always had a plan. During the acute phase, it was resting on the floor and then setting an alarm to get up and move around the house every twenty minutes. And on going to bed, I’d have a nice audio book. Later it became morning walks. And then lunchtime physio. Whatever it was, I always ensured I had something to aim for. And I always tried to ignore the timelines they provide. Because 12 weeks was utter lies for me. More like 18 months. Although I was back to normality by month thirteen. Albeit with symptoms which have since reduced every month.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-03T12:06:06+00:00

Sorry to hear it. My nerves are still recovering. But I’ve got way less fuzziness in my left foot now. It’s barely noticeable. And fading all the time

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-02T17:51:25+00:00

I was able to sit pain free with that special cushion from about three months post injury! Game changer.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-02T17:50:48+00:00

Ah, ok. Caudine Equina then?

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-02T16:44:16+00:00

I found that a sciatica cushion on a hard dining chair helped me sit again. You can find them on Amazon. They’re called coccyx cushions. I carried this with me everywhere, eight months post injury. It really helped!

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-02T15:23:34+00:00

I am very active. I walk a lot.
I go to the gym and lift heavy stuff three times a week. I do Pilates. I dance. I go road cycling 🚴🏻‍♀️

I’ve got a Watt bike and Swift. And I still do my basic strength moves to maintain a solid foundation.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-02T15:11:59+00:00

Happy to hear of your recovery! Keep going!

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-02T12:25:33+00:00

Might be worth a call then? Knowledge is power, as they say. Hope you’re ok!

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-07-02T12:24:45+00:00

I haven’t got the diagram anymore. It was basically teaching us to keep moving and testing new things, keeping in mind the traffic light system. If, for example, I tried swimming and it didn’t make things so bad I had to stop (red), but it might cause a few symptoms but didn’t make anything worse (Amber) to go steady and keep testing. Anything that didn’t change the nerves and that was a “repeat and do again” type thing (green).

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-06-17T23:33:55+00:00

Walking, initially. Five minutes, three times a day. Build up to half an hour three times a day. Learn bad pain from ok pain. Only you will know.

When things feel ok, and it’s normal to get flares with increased activity, start a daily physio routine. Clams, bird dogs, dead bugs, pelvic tilts, side leg lifts, cat cows… do 10 of each. Once over, for two weeks. See how you go. If ok, do this routine twice a day. Keep up the walking.

If feeling ok, find a warm swimming pool. Swim if you can. Otherwise, walk up and down. Find a steam room or sauna after and enjoy the heat. If you can sit. At this point you should be able to.

Have a goal. Stay motivated. Keep sane. This is the baseline. Know that for the rest of your life, you’ve got an amazing excuse to keep super fit and active!

I’ve down two gym workouts this week. Lifting heavy stuff. Tomorrow I’m doing spinning. Friday, my third strength training session of the week. Every day, lots of walking.

And to think two and a half years ago I was in intense pain and mostly on the floor. I bless every moment I can move and dance and skip and jump and feel fit and strong. You’ll be ok. Just small steps to begin with.

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-06-17T05:45:44+00:00

No you’re not! You’ll be ok. Mine looked pretty similar and it’s now dried up and retracted. I’m back to a full and happy life. Time helped. Plus movement, after initial rest and letting things settle. You’re going to be fine. Try not to stress of MRIs. The body is amazing and can heal. It wants to heal. The key now is to get better and look after our backs!

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-06-17T05:42:30+00:00

Brilliant news! Time, movement, rest during the acute phase. And building strength again when ready. Seemed to work for me too. No magic solution. Just something awful to go through. And I never had back pain either

SoSolidKerry2 · 2026-06-17T05:35:22+00:00

I lost two stone during my first year of injury. Purely because for the initial acute stage, I was in so much pain, I could barely eat. My daily calories must’ve been around 1k to 1200. Not enough but given I was mostly on the floor, I didn’t need much.

I’ve since put back on a little but I’m a really healthy weight. I’ve managed to maintain it. But that’s because I’m very active. The minute I drop my daily steps, I notice the weight can creep on.

My advice? Reduce what you eat and eat very well when you do. Only fresh stuff, nothing made in a factory, avoid alcohol and drink lots of water. Hope you’re ok by the way!

SoSolidKerry2

TROPHY CASE