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Degenerative Disc Disease Facts
Degenerative Disc Disease Facts and MythsDegenerative disc disease is not inherently painful or harmful in any way. DDD does contribute to the incidence of developing arthritis in the spine, but this condition is also normal, expected and rarely seriously symptomatic. DDD is also responsible for increasing the likelihood of suffering a herniated disc, due to break down of the outer disc wall structure (annulus fibrosus). However, these degeneration induced herniations are seldom problematic or painful in any way. In fact, many exist for years without being discovered…Degenerative disc disease sounds like one of the worst possible disorders a person could have, which is part of the reason for the substantial nocebo effect delivered during the diagnostic process. When I was first diagnosed at age 16, I could not believe that my young and healthy body was suffering from a DEGENERATIVE DISEASE in my spine!!! Degenerative Disc Disease Facts / KnowledgeKnowledge therapy is instrumental in treating DDD, in almost every affected patient. Simply learning the realities of this condition is enough to ward off many of the psychological effects of the grim sounding diagnosis. If I knew then what I know now about DDD, I doubt that I would have ever begun that deep dark descent into the realm of chronic back pain which controlled my existence for 18 of what should have been the best years of my young adult life… Luckily, it is never too late to learn and learn I did…Now I am pain free and help others to overcome the effects of both structural and psychosomatic back pain syndromes. Degenerative Disc Disease Facts and AdviceDo not fear DDD. If you are diagnosed, do not be surprised. I have degenerative disc disease, you have it and we all have it to some degree. True, there are cases of advanced degeneration which can, in extremely rare instances, become a real problem, but these cases do not represent the average 99% of diagnosed people with the condition. DDD is merely a term which describes structural changes in the intervertebral discs. It does not mean that there is any pain or neurological symptoms necessarily associated with theses changes, now or ever. The more you learn about DDD, the less you will fear it. The less fear you have, the better your chances of overcoming any pain which has likely been mistakenly blamed on the degenerated discs in your spine.
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