Herniated and Bulging Discs:  These are discs (spongy and shock absorbing tissue between the bones of the spine, most usually in the neck or lower back, that keep the spinal bones separated) that have, through either sudden or long standing pressure on them, lost their normal shape and possibly height, and bulge out of their normal positioning, placing pressure on the adjacent nerve roots and/or spinal cord.  This pain can range from mild to severe and does, in some patients, travel into the buttocks, legs or feet, or if in the neck, into the shoulder, upper back, arm and/or hand.  If present for some time, atrophy of the buttocks or leg muscles, or shoulder and arms is often noted, along with loss of strength of the affected limb.  Conventional treatment for this type of pain is usually oral pain relieving medications, or pain lessening drugs being injected directly into the disc and nerve root area.  Bed rest for a week to a month is also often recommended. Ice, ultrasound or electrical stimulation treatments might also be employed. Often, surgery ends up being performed. When explaining our approach to correcting bulging or herniated discs, we often find it helpful to bring up the image of a marshmallow cookie:  two pieces of cookie above and below a marshmallow, with the cookies representing two of the spinal bones in the neck or low back, and the marshmallow representing the disc.  If we squeeze one side of the cookie, the marshmallow bulges out.  This can be likened to a bulging or herniated disc.  The disc, of course, presses on and irritates the nerve root and/or spinal cord, causing pain and possibly weakness.  You will note in our cookie analogy, that the issue is not with the marshmallow, but rather the squeezing of the cookies.  If we release the pressure and separate the cookies, the marshmallow can come back into alignment between the cookies.   With the spine and disc decompression work we offer in our practice, we do release the pressure on the disc so it can reduce or eliminate its herniation or bulging, and thereby remove the pressure from the nerve root or spinal cord, lessening or halting the pain.  We then teach the patient what to do to reshape the positioning of the vertebrae of the neck and/or lower back permanently so pressure does not recur.  It’s important to note that when surgery is performed, just the disc is wholly or partially removed -- nothing is done to restore the normal placement of the bones and the other discs of the spine, nor to address the optimal head placement over the neck, nor the overall alignment of the spine.  Unless this type postural restoration is implemented, one can be close to certain that the spinal segment just above or below the surgically treated area will speedily degenerate in the same way within three to five years, often requiring additional treatments or surgery.  The sensible way to deal with disc bulges and herniations is to find, and then correct the cause. Through utilizing disc decompression, gentle mobilization and the restoration of (as closely as is possible) normal spinal biomechanics, a healthy spinal alignment can be achieved.