The symptoms of degenerative disc disease can make everyday tasks like walking and sitting a painful experience. The severity of your discomfort may lead you to believe that the only viable treatment options are clinical therapies or extensive surgery, but this isn’t always the case. In fact, there are several pain-relieving techniques that you can try in the comfort of your own home.

What is degenerative disc disease?

Let’s review the definition of degenerative disc disease, also known as DDD. This condition describes the age-related degeneration of the spine. As the body ages, the spine’s cushioning discs begin to lose elasticity and become brittle. Degenerative disc disease will affect everyone to some extent as they grow older, but certain individuals may experience more severe symptoms at a young age due to factors like obesity, participation in high-impact sports, poor nutrition or a personal history of spinal injuries.

How can I relieve degenerative disc disease symptoms at home?

With your physician’s guidance, give these at-home pain relief options a try to help relieve your degenerative disc disease symptoms:

1. Alternating hot/cold therapy. Place an ice pack on the affected area for no more than 20 minutes to reduce painful inflammation. Then, place a heating pad on the area or take a warm bath to soothe tensed muscles and improve circulation around the source of pain. Repeat as necessary.
2. Low-impact exercise and gentle stretching. Strengthening and stretching the core muscles that support the spine can help ease degenerative disc disease symptoms and improve mobility. Try low-impact activities like yoga, Pilates, brief walks in comfortable shoes or swimming.
3. Over-the-counter medication. Taking over-the-counter pain relievers and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in accordance with your physician’s instructions can help provide temporary relief from everyday symptoms.

If you are not able to manage your degenerative disc disease pain with at-home techniques and conservative treatments, open neck or back surgery may not be your only remaining option. USA Spine Care offers a minimally invasive alternative to traditional operations for patients with degenerative spine conditions. Our procedures are performed on an outpatient basis, require a less than 1-inch incision and involve less risk of infection and complications than traditional surgery.^

Contact USA Spine Care today to discover more about our approach to degenerative disc disease treatment. If you’d like to learn if you are a candidate for our procedures, ask how to receive a free MRI review.*

Browse Related Resources