I discovered on my own that if I walked a lot (came about naturally since it is non-sitting transportation) it lessened the pain to where I could sit some. By a lot, I mean I was walking 3-5 miles a day. I also bought bench type seats that I could sit on by balancing on my thighs. I was tested thoroughly and nothing else showed up and no other therapies made any different. In the end docs decided that it was a focal pain from fibromyalgia. I started treatment for fibromyalgia (I primarily credit walking and myofacial release therapy) and things got better. Eventually I was able to quit walking so much without the pain coming back. In your case I would make sure I worked with a good chiropractor if you haven’t already, get checked for fibromyalgia, and in the mean while walk and ice the area where the L4-L5 disc is (Ice reduces pain, reduces swelling, and increases blood flow to the area thus speeds healing. Just remember tissue can be damaged if it is iced to long (repeat as often as possible, 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off).

So it may not even be the bulged disc that is causing your problem. My husband had three back fusions and we learned from the first (which we had not choice on as his disc completely ruptured and his spinal cord was exposed and compromised) that with the after effects of such a surgery you want to make sure that the situation is dire before you resort to one. Even if I still wasn’t able to sit I would work around it rather than get a fusion from what I saw him go through.

If you think a pain in your right butt cheek sucks, try radiating pain, along with numbness down your left leg and into your toes along with into your butt cheek and around to the front of your hip…and I’m not a surgery candidate… and I DO have neurological symptoms. I am a TON better since I have begun to see a chiropractor several times per week, have been doing traction therapy, along with physical therapy, e-stim. I also get a massage (insurance does cover it since it is through the physical therapist/chiropractor’s office) twice a week. The pain and numbness is nearly gone now. I herniated the L5 disc in May of 08, did PT starting in June of 08 thru March of 09, as well as saw an occupational therapist regularly in that time. That person taught me to do the things that I was doing regularly in a more correct manner–turns out I was bending and lifting and moving incorrectly my whole life and never knew it. I stopped until August of 09 because it was better, reherniated it in August of 09, and am now doing the Chiro/PT/Massage combo and it’s working for me.

So, I don’t think you need the surgery–you don’t seem to have that big of an issue. Surgery tends to make things worse. I’ve done a lot of reading on the subject, and it tends to cause neurological symptoms. You wouldn’t want those added to your plate…