I have early stage cervical disc herniation. What is the best way to manage it?

I never even imagined that it was a herniated disc, and I was shocked when the symptoms suddenly appeared one day.

I developed acute cervical disc herniation without any warning symptoms.

One morning I woke up and the area highlighted in red in the photo was in crazy pain.

I have early stage cervical disc herniation. What is the best way to manage it?

I tilted my head back slightly to drink some water, and a sharp pain made me groan.

I had a constant tingling pain in my right neck, shoulder, and upper back.

It was almost impossible to tilt my head back or turn it to the right.

Even just a slight tilt of my head caused a sharp pain that was no joke.

At first, I thought it was just because I didn't sleep well and had phlegm, so I took some medicine, but the pain didn't get better.

The pain was worst when I woke up in the morning, and when I sat down to work, my neck and shoulders were so sore I thought I was going crazy. Later, my head started hurting too.

Actually, until this point, I just thought I had severe muscle pain and didn't think it was a herniated disc. That's why I went to a Korean medicine clinic.

After hearing my symptoms at the Oriental medicine clinic, they said it was a typical symptom of a herniated cervical disc, so I went straight to a neurosurgeon.

I had an X-ray and MRI done at a neurosurgery clinic, and it turned out that my neck was so straight it was embarrassing... haha

And he said my symptoms were very typical early symptoms of a herniated cervical disc.

The teacher even took comparison photos properlyㅠㅠ

It seems that the symptoms of cervical disc herniation appeared acutely because of the severe cervical spondylosis and the stress from work.

Fortunately, my condition wasn't that serious and I wasn't in a condition that required immediate treatment or surgery. I was told to try medication, manual therapy, and physical therapy first, and if that didn't work, I should try injection therapy... They said to postpone the injections as much as possible.

So I received physical therapy and manual therapy, but I think the cost of manual therapy will be quite high in the future.

I'm still young, but I'm at a loss because I have early stage cervical disc disease.

How should I manage my cervical disc in the early stages?

Are there any people who got better with non-surgical treatment in the early stages?

I'm curious which method worked best for you.

I'm already worried about what to do if non-surgical treatment doesn't work and whether it's okay to get nerve injections at an early age.

I'm a little worried because I heard there could be side effects from getting the injection.

If there is anyone who has a herniated disc, please share your experience.

Neurology/Neurosurgery

I have early stage cervical disc herniation. What is the best way to manage it?