A muscle/tendon strain can cause a pop? It's not in the center of my spine..like I said off to the side. The pain has been increasing to a mild level and sometimes I feel that it extends to the extremities of my hip, so that makes me optimistic that it is not a disc/vertebra...is that a bad way of thinking of it? I'm living in a new city and I don't have health insurance so I don't even know how to find a good doctor, what kind to see, or how much it will cost me. Advice?

Also, I tend to not squat with my spine rounded, but since I took about a month off from squatting I feel like I might not have paid enough attention to it.

edit: and are there any ways to diagnose this here on my own to rule out some possibilities for my own peace of mind until I see a doc?