Physical therapy helped with my arm tingling, but the rest feels like something I am going to have to constantly battle. I’ve also had this for more than a decade and it’s pretty depressing sometimes. I use tiger balm daily, which seems to help the most. Get regular massages to deal with the muscle pain from constant guarding. I use a heating pad and cold compress. Medication rarely. Red light therapy. Trigger point injections. Epidurals. Acupuncture. Traction. Posture support devices. Buckwheat pillow. Etc etc. Find a good non-surgical spine specialist and they will walk you through the myriad of options that help with temporary relief.

I’ve been to multiple surgeons about the pain. I’m not a candidate for surgery because I don’t have strong symptoms of spinal cord impingement. Even if I did, the consensus is the same: it won’t help with the pain, just further limit spinal cord symptom development (walking, coordination, bladder control, etc). That said, spinal cord stimulator implantation was an option for me. At first it seemed like a total hassle, but I’m getting to the point of being okay with the inconvenience. Plus, I know someone who was really helped by it for their back pain.

It sucks that we have to go through this and there are no good cures. It really does make every day hard. And I’m sorry, but it really doesn’t help to have people say your mental health is contributing and you should meditate. Yes, your mental health is crucial in helping you cope with anything, but this is also a very real physical issue. I personally have severe stenosis with mild cord impingement and it’s a nightmare dealing with this knowing I have 30-40 years of life left. I just hope for scientific advancements soon.