I have a herniation of L5-SI. The incident happened shortly after my last meet on December 6th 2016. I tried to get away from back squats and deadlifts for a month to allow my body to recover. In doing so I went with dumbbell squats to a 12 inch box to train the lower body. I used this as my main exercise twice a week for 3 weeks. My hips were too tight and the box was too low. Something had to give and it was the disc.

My symptoms we intense at first. I had a lot of muscle spams in the upper part of my right glute and an aching pain down my leg to the outside of my right calf. I am in pain when I sit and every time my right heel strikes the floor when walking, I get a stabbing pain in my right glute.

I went to the chiropractor for 3 weeks straight at first with no relief. After that I ended up going to a doctor and he thought it was my sacroiliac joint. He gave me some meds and they helped, but did not fix my issue. I then started to attend physcial therapy without a clear diagnosis. That was a shot in the dark until I got the MRI.

During this time read the back mechanic my Dr. Stewart McGill. I was and still am preforming the Big 3 every morning and night. I use an inversion table also every day after work and that too provides some relief.

I have been dealing with this injury for 4 months now. I am avoiding my pain triggers as much as possible and looking to maintain proper spine hygiene for 24 hours a day. I have also already had 2 epidural injections and most likely getting the 3rd soon.
My biggest question is: Is a mirco discectomy my only option of becoming pain free? I can do most of the daily chores around the house and haven’t missed any work because of it BUT will I ever be able to exercise again!  I have made small progress but it is very very slow. Also will my herniation fix itself over time? How long does it take to become A symptomatic?

I am just a man with a lot of unknowns right now. Any insight will help.

Thank you.