Neck bulge blues

[DTQ_Blue]

Saw the specialist. The bulging disk is compressing the C5-6 nerve root and may be causing very slight pressure on the spinal cord. Not good.

We are going to try a "conservative" treatment option first, if that doesn't bring relief, he is likely to recommend disc removal and fusion.

I will do what I have to do for my long term health but I wanted to ask the forum if any of you are aware of FP umpires who have been able to continue working after cervical fusion surgery.

I particularly wonder about the neck angle when I go into my plate crouch. I work games down to the 10s and 12s level and I have to get low in the crouch and flex my neck backward to get a level eye angle to the pitcher.

Maybe this will be my gateway into slo-pitch for the rest of my career.

Mike

[CelticNHBlue]

My wife and I are strong believers in Chiropractic. We have been going regularly for years now. Initially it was for corrective issues. My wife was in a not-so-bad car accident but the jolt was enough to cause some misalignment. After two years of PT, we decided to try Chiropractic and within six months she was pretty much back to normal. I twisted a disk in high school that was initially fixed but started to show signs of returning to a lesser degree. A visit a week and and month later, back to normal. We now visit for routing maintenance and general health. We even bring our two kids (4-1/2 & 19 months) for preventative maintenance. You'd be amazed how an adjustment can help with migranes, lethargy, numbness, all sorts of minor ailments that can be triggered or exagerated due to minor misalignment of your spine.

In your case, the extent of the problem may be beyond the solution of a good Chiropractor, but I would suggest that a set of x-rays and review is well worth the trouble if there is any possibility that non-invasive correction is an option. It can get expensive, depending on your insurance coverage, but I would suggest that fusion is a final, last resort, no-going-back solution and I would want to investigate every other oportunity short of that first.

Best of luck to you, back problems are never fun.