Back injury and tantra yoga

[Orgasmic19]

Hey, guys I have a bulged or herniated disc in the middle of my back. I never been diagnosed by a doctor, but my back gets in so much pain from bending and stooping or lefting heavy objects. I am only in my 20's and would like your opinion if I could or should practice tantra yoga?

[silent thunder]

My wife fell down a long flight of stairs in our home in her early twenties. 

 

She broke her spine in two places and I revived her after her heart and respiration stopped. 

 

The young doctors in the emergency room, did not do a full spine xray and only diagnosed the broken coccyx, fully missing the broken T-7. 

 

She was bed ridden for a weeks initially, couldn't find any relief from the pain in the T-7, standing, sitting, laying, moving... nothing brought any relief from the relentless pain.  It was grim.

 

and then one day she just stood up through the pain and said "fuck this!".

She walked straight over to our stereo and turned on one of my old favorite drumming/dancing cd's. 

 

She began to dance through the pain. 

She danced daily, sometimes for hours.

She rmoved through pain into ecstacy.

She moved from ecstacy to pain again.

She healed through the repeated motions.

Eventually, ecstacy and pain receded into balance. 

 

She then found a system of yoga poses that brought full range of mobility and strength and this maintains the balance in her system and she made a full recovery.

 

It was years later at an exam for an unrelated issue that an astute chiropractor discovered the broken T-7 and inquired... she and I looked at each other and a flood of knowingness rolled over us as we realized what had occured. 

 

What I took from witnessing this process is that the body is a healing system and will be constantly attempting to replenish and repair itself to optimal status, if given the right conditions.

 

for her the right conditions were, a constant supply of loving soups brought by our neighbors and friends (we lived in an artist coop at the time and had a tribal community) and her will to realize that her body could move in spite of the pain, couple with the understanding that with motion, would come revitalization.

 

I have no idea if this would be right in your case.  I share because her situation seems similar, was very extreme and she found complete and total healing through a determination to be whole again and her method was dance and yoga. 

[AussieTrees]

Hey, guys I have a bulged or herniated disc in the middle of my back. I never been diagnosed by a doctor, but my back gets in so much pain from bending and stooping or lefting heavy objects. I am only in my 20's and would like your opinion if I could or should practice tantra yoga?

Hi Orgasmic19,

Your post has brought back so many memories of a four year personal struggle of a similar injury.

silent thunder also gives a description of healing,determination and survival,thankyou both.

 

Pain will be with you for some time,so learn to survive despite the constant pain.

According to the medicos,your hernia will heal in about six weeks,if you stop aggravating the injury.

 

It was four years for myself,2001-2004.

No I refused to see a doctor about it until 2003,CAT scan revealed two herniated discs.

 

Constant pain the whole time,day and night,reduced sleep as the pain would wake you.

After about six weeks after the initial injury,after lying on the floor all those weeks.

 

There was a decision point,where I decided to get up and walk,I was crying openly,taking baby steps walking around yard.

I learnt to walk with the pain as my guide,it was very constant,it was my personal internal world.

 

Refusing to take any pain killers was also a choice,during first weeks,did try paracetamol which was ineffective as it caused constipation,so made back pain worse.

Financially it was a decision to return to work,as I was a casual at the time,had no sick leave.

 

The first day back at work was difficult,I decided to keep my injury to myself,that is no moaning in pain,found a balanced posture was helpful,even smiling when appropriate was a temporary relief.

 

For brief periods when focussing on work at hand,there was relief.

Eventually I started using ibuprofen,it did help,then after three years,had the scans,quizzed the doctor about a 24hr slow release anti inflammatory.Now these were terrific,didn't touch the pain,did make movement less clunky,yes I learned to abuse these.

 

Drug abuse,taking up to three of these 24hr slow release capsules a day was the best I had been for years.

It did churn your stomach quite a bit,but I just didn't,t care,really felt terminal by then,after three years it does feel permanent.

 

Then about six months before healing I had a change in attitude,I stopped doing nearly everything.Stopped all physical duties other than walking,this was nescessary cause I think I was constantly aggravating the injury,by doing things.

 

Then I decided to put on some weight,burgers,beer,forced fed during couple weeks holiday,got a permanent job by then.

My fat reserves were very low,after shedding as much weight to reduce lower back stress.

 

Oh yea,nearly forgot,haha,my left leg was numb from hip to big toe,so just standing with 70-80% weight on right leg,still with constant pain,it was a real trip.There was a mental side,there were highs and very real lows,yeah you can put constant pain to one side,but you only do it,through lack of alternatives.

 

Beer,burgers,chips,I quickly put on weight,stopped sitting on couch,still don,t,the floor was best.

My body did heal,still feeling so fragile for so long,it took another year or two,to have physical confidence,healed.

 

Probably the most significant experience of my personal growth,in hindsight it created awareness in body energies,leading to more and more chi,and chi gong.left leg numbness took longer to resolve, has gone after learning chi cultivation,maybe just 1% numbness remains.

 

No advice,you will journey as you must through your ailment,this is your path.