Herniated disc - newly pregant! Advice needed please!

[MakeAWhish]

Good morning all. Has anyone any advice re bad backs?! On 31st October I herniated a disc in my back. It was the week before we conceived this little peanut. I've been to a chiropractor, and a physio. Took 2.5 weeks off work, then returned last week. By the time I'd done 2 full days last Monday & Tuesday (classroom assistant in a primary school) my back was so bad I felt like I'd gone back to the beginning. So went back to gp who suggested reduced hours and amended duties. Now, they've asked me to do afternoons only, which I did last weds and thurs. Then they needed me Friday morning so I worked then. I rested all weekend then back in yesterday afternoon. Problem is, I have to lean over, crouch down, sit, and all of those things are really painful. Obvs now I'm pregnant (5w2d) it's really important I get it fixed before I get heavier. I have woken up today in so much pain. I've emailed work to say I'm not coming in. I can feel the disc bulge through my skin. I'm lying flat on the sofa with a hot water bottle under me. Anyone got any advice as to how I can get this better? It seems as if going to work isn't helping, but I hate being off.

My husband sometimes found that a TENS machine took the edge off the pain. He also kept up with his chiropractor appointments.

It sounds as though you need to stay away from all activities which aggravate your disc. Pregnancy will put a massive strain on your body, and you need to get the maximum amount of recovery in before this strain starts in earnest. Can you be assigned to a different job which doesn’t require bending? Can you get a doctor’s note to say that you mustn’t do the things which aggravate it?

Also! My husband was encouraged to put an ice pack (we have some reusable hot/cold sports packs which we keep in the freezer), well-wrapped, in his back instead of a hot water bottle. The chiropractor said that he had enough heat there, and needed to cool things down instead. If your chiropractor recommended heat, I’m certainly not going to contradict them, but if they haven’t actually made a recommendation, I’d check with them what they would suggest.

Sorry not to be able to offer advice about how to carry on in your current job, with all its duties. I wish I knew how to make this better, as does my husband! Good luck!

Thank you so much for your reply @Spargle I really appreciate it. I have a doctors note which says may be fit to work with amended duties and reduced hours. I feel like once I'm there, it's really difficult to not bend etc and sitting down hurts, but being on my feet all afternoon makes my hips hurt! It's all so miserable and I hate being like this. Many sympathies to your husband too. My employer has referred me to occupational health who are ringing me tomorrow afternoon to discuss it all. The lady at school who deals with it all says I should tell them about my may be fit to work note, tell them I've tried but it's not helping me, and in that case then the note classes as a sick note. I may just take the time to rest and really give it a chance to get better before pregnancy puts a strain on, as you said.
Thanks for the tip about cold - the physio told me to use heat, but I'm willing to mix it up!!

I passed on your sympathy to DH, who says that you should be feeling mostly better within about 6 weeks, and agrees that you really need to rest now! (Although don’t forget to keep moving - you really don’t want to lose too much core strength at this stage!)

Regarding the cold pack - please check with your physio before using one! Please don’t take advice that someone I (me being a person you don’t know!) don’t know gave to someone I do know about a situation which seems similar to yours as actual medical advice!

I’ve had another thought - can you find a specialist Pilates teacher? They will need to specialise in both pregnancy and back problem Pilates. I’m guessing that they will probably set you back about £20 per session, but for a private session. (Once you are experienced enough, if the teacher offers group pregnancy sessions, you should be able to slot in with them.) This would improve your core strength and posture, and make it easier for your muscles to support your back, reducing the risk of further damaging your disc, and also reducing the risk of developing different problems as you compensate for the pain in your back. If this is something you can do, and your physio says it’s ok (they might be able to recommend someone), I would 100% recommend doing this. I keep trying to get my husband to go (I used to do it a lot and benefited massively), but there aren’t many teachers in my area, and the affordable ones (can’t afford private sessions, and the teachers who do private sessions don’t do group sessions) give pretty bad group lessons - I can’t have him in a situation where he won’t be corrected if he’s doing it wrong! (I can tell you the things which tell you whether or not a Pilates teacher is any good, if you decide to go down that route. But you mustn’t start with group sessions in your situation! If you find a teacher with the correct qualifications who is willing to put you in a group session after one individual session, that could work, but you absolutely must have one individual session with that teacher first, so they know what modifications you will need.)

@Spargle I'm sure the gp told me to alternate hot and cold. I'll check at my next physio appointment.
Thank you so much for the advice. Pilates is a great idea, I'll start researching, there's loads in my area, it's very fashionable here 😂
Been flat on my back all day, enjoying the last hour of peace before the children descend on me. 😬