Herniated Disc Recovery Time According to the Medical Literature
Herniated disc recovery time involves reduced pain and decreased disc herniation size on imaging. The medical literature shows that herniated disc pain typically lasts anywhere from 6 to 12 weeks. So a month and a half to three months.
The pain will typically decrease long before the disc is completely healed. This is good news. You don’t have to suffer for an entire year until the disc heals.
What if you still have pain after 6-12 weeks?
This is not uncommon. It is also not uncommon for the pain to come and go. When this is the case, you’re doing something that is exacerbating the disc symptoms and not allowing the disc to heal.
You will need to incorporate some disc healing principles into your every day routine.
Three Herniated Disc Exercises to Relieve your Pain and Heal your Disc describes the hip hinge movement pattern and avoiding early morning lumbar flexion. Watch this video and incorporate these two disc healing principles today.
These two simple and immediately applicable concepts are game changers.
Even if you’re not experiencing lower back pain after several months it’s still important to move and exercise in ways that promote disc health and healing.
Check out Safe Exercises to do With a Herniated Disc and get started on an exercise program to optimize disc health and healing.
How long does it take for a herniated disc to heal?
Like all biological tissues, there is a wide variance in healing time of lumbar discs. The medical literature states that herniated discs take anywhere from 5 to 22 months to heal. The average is 13 months, so right around 1 year.
What constitutes healing?
Regression or healing of a disc in the medical literature is defined as an MRI that shows no disc herniation where there was a herniation. It’s important to remember that herniated lumbar discs can be asymptomatic. So there does not have to be a complete regression of a herniated disc to be pain-free.
This brings us to the next question.
How do herniated discs heal?
Discs heal through a process termed spontaneous regression. Herniated discs are more likely to undergo spontaneous regression when they’re more severe.
A disc that is completely extruded or sequestered has the best chance of spontaneous regression. This is good news. The worse the herniation is the greater likelihood your body will take care of it naturally.
Extruded Disc
Sequestered Disc
When a disc herniates the inner part (the nucleus pulposus) pushes out through the annulus fibrosus (outer part of the disc).
If the inside is pushed completely out ( disc extrusion) or pushed out and part breaks off (sequestered disc herniation) there is a good chance spontaneous regression will occur.
With smaller disc herniations spontaneous regression happens, just less frequently.
Herniated Disc
The three ways spontaneous regression happens
- The herniated piece of nucleus pulposus dehydrates and shrinks.
- The posterior longitudinal ligament pushes the herniation back into the disc.
- There is an inflammatory and autoimmune response that basically cleans up the extruded nucleus pulposus.
It is likely that each of these proposed theories play a role in the healing of a herniated disc. In some cases each method of spontaneous regression could play a role.
With the more severe disc herniations that result in sequestered disc material into the epidural space it’s likely that an inflammatory and autoimmune response is at work. It’s also likely that part of the disc material does dehydrate and shrink.
With a less severe disc herniation that does not result in sequestered nucleus pulposus the posterior longitudinal ligament could push the herniation back in to a degree.
Discs Heal
The take home message is; DISCS HEAL.
The more severe the herniation the more likely spontaneous regression is.
Even if you have a disc herniation that doesn’t completely resolve on MRI you can still be pain-free.
It’s likely your body does not completely heal small disc herniations because they are normal and not problematic.
How Herniated Discs Heal covers the spontaneous regression process and the likelihood that it will happen.
Three Simple Ways to Heal Bulging Discs describes three principles that will decrease forces through your lumbar discs. Less force through your discs translates to less pain and healing.
If your symptoms are related to a herniated disc stay away from these types of exercises.
Herniated Disc Recovery Time Recap
Based on the medical literature herniated disc related pain tends to last for 6 to 12 weeks.
Disc herniation size may decrease over time, although the herniation or bulge may remain unchanged.
When the size of the disc herniation does decrease there is a wide range in the time it takes for this to occur, 5 to 22 months. The average is 13 months.
As outlined in this article, specific exercise training, movement pattern training, and avoiding lumbar flexion oriented exercises facilitate the recovery process.
FAQ
What is the recovery time for a herniated disc?
Herniated disc pain typically lasts 6 to 12 weeks. According to the medical literature herniated discs take 5 to 22 months to heal. The average is 13 months. Most people have less pain or no pain within 6-12 weeks. The disc does not heal, on average, until 13 months. So one year. It’s important to move and exercise in ways that are healthy for the disc, even once pain is no longer an issue.
What is the healing time for a L5 S1 herniated disc?
L5-S1 disc bulge recovery time?
Most people will have significantly less or no pain within 6-12 weeks. For some people pain can linger and come and go for up to 6-12 months. Even if pain is gone after 6-12 weeks the disc is not healed completely. It takes on average 13 months for a disc to heal. It’s important to move and exercise in ways that facilitate disc healing, even once the pain is gone.
Signs herniated disc is healing?
- Reduced pain
- Improved ability to tolerate activity
- Reduced lower back stiffness in the morning
- Periods of being pain-free
- Less severe pain when pain is present
- Positions or activities that increase pain no longer increase pain or increase pain to a lesser degree
References
Altun I, Yüksel KZ. Lumbar herniated disc: spontaneous regression. Korean J Pain. 2017;30(1):44‐50. doi:10.3344/kjp.2017.30.1.44
Fardon DF, Williams AL, Dohring EJ, Murtagh FR, Gabriel Rothman SL, Sze GK. Lumbar disc nomenclature: version 2.0: Recommendations of the combined task forces of the North American Spine Society, the American Society of Spine Radiology and the American Society of Neuroradiology. Spine J. 2014 Nov 1;14(11):2525-45. doi: 10.1016/j.spinee.2014.04.022. Epub 2014 Apr 24. Review. PubMed PMID: 24768732.
