Slipped disc: Should I see a chiropractor?

Two months is a long time to be going without any real relief from physical therapy. Honestly, if you aren't seeing progress, maybe they just weren't giving you the right exercises... I'm not sure what else to say. It might be worth scheduling a consultation with a neurosurgeon just to get a professional opinion on where things stand. You could also try a different PT clinic—maybe one that incorporates more hands-on manual therapy into their sessions.

Thanks, Casey Palmer5 🙂
I'm starting to suspect they gave me the wrong exercises.

casualcanyon40 said:I totally overdid it with the heavy lifting at the gym and now one of my vertebrae is out of whack.
Anyone else dealt with this?
Apparently, a chiropractor is the only way to pop it back into place, but I’m honestly terrified they might actually make things worse. I've heard some pretty scary horror stories about chiropractors.

What kind of lifts were you doing when that happened? Deadlifts?

Just a heads-up though—if you do decide to go the chiropractor route, be extremely careful about who you pick. A radiology professor I know told me he sees about six or seven people every single week who come in for scans after an unskilled chiropractor absolutely wrecked them. Don't mess around with your spine; do your homework first.

I haven’t done any deadlifts.
I can't pinpoint the exact exercise that caused this; I was doing just about everything. My best guess is that sit-up machine—the one where you rest your shoulders on those foam pads and lift your upper body forward against the weight.
I was pushing 150 to 200 pounds, despite only weighing about 120.
I was hitting 600 reps a day on that machine.
My doctor suggested it was likely due to some torso rotation. I was also using one of those oblique machines where you sit and twist side to side.
The truth is, I was overdoing it. This doesn't happen to someone training moderately; my sessions were running three to four hours long.
People at the gym actually warned me I was going to tear something, but I didn't listen. 😢
Or perhaps it was that dumbbell shoulder exercise—the one where you stand, lean forward slightly with bent knees, and press the weights up.

Oh man. Now that’s what I call a dream workout.

casualcanyon40 said:I haven’t even done deadlifts.
I honestly have no clue which specific move did this to me. I was doing basically everything under the sun. Maybe it was that ab machine? You know, the one with those foam pads on your shoulders where you lift the weight by leaning your upper body forward.
I was pushing 150 to 200 pounds, and I only weigh about 120.
I was hitting 600 crunches a day on that machine.
My doctor thinks it probably came from some torso rotation. I was also using that machine where you sit down and twist left and right for your obliques.
But let’s be real, I was totally overdoing it. I don't think this just happens to someone exercising moderately. My sessions were lasting three or four hours straight.
People at the gym were actually telling me I was going to tear something, but I just wouldn't listen. 😢
Or maybe it was that dumbbell exercise for shoulders? You know, the one where you stand up, lean forward slightly, bend your knees, and lift the weights.

It’s no shocker your back is trashed after a workout like that. Honestly, what was even the point of training like that? I hit the gym three times a week, but I do it strictly to stay healthy. If my workout is going to wreck my health, I might as well stay on the couch.

It is what it is. Just be smarter next time and listen to the pros so you aren't dealing with chronic pain in your 40s.

I highly recommend Dr. Miller over in the Quad area... I actually believe he might even be a lead representative for chiropractors in the States (I can't say for certain), but he is definitely the real deal. Honestly, I’ve been seeing him since I was fifteen because of some lingering lower back issues from playing soccer. Anyway, I just wanted to wish you the absolute best. To be honest, I was pretty intimidated during my first visit—it was nerve-wracking—but now? Now, when I walk into his office, I just relax and soak it all in. By the time I leave, I feel like I've lost "15 pounds" 😉 —or at least, that's how much lighter I feel
.

As for your training schedule—from what I’ve gathered through my own experience—staying in the gym for about an hour to ninety minutes is really the sweet spot. That’s when you get the best hormonal response from your lifting sessions. If you start dragging it out way past that, you aren't actually getting any extra benefits unless you're a professional female bodybuilder aiming for the stage... and even then, it's overkill for most people. Once you've knocked out a solid ninety-minute program, you're done. There is absolutely no reason to be grinding away in the gym for four hours straight. If you have extra energy, go hit the track for some sprints, or focus on aerobic work and breathing exercises instead. =) Cheers!