Dear CB:

The Mayo clinic website says about slipped (herniated) discs: “Most herniated disks occur in the lower back, although they can also occur in the neck.. If your herniated disk is in your lower back, you’ll typically feel the most pain in your buttocks, thigh and calf.. If your herniated disk is in your neck, you’ll typically feel the most pain in your shoulder and arm… Pain is often described as sharp or burning”- your herniated discs must be in your lower back then because you mentioned sciatica (the italicized). It reads: “Disk herniation is most often the result of a gradual, aging-related wear and tear called disk degeneration. As you age, your disks become less flexible and more prone to tearing or rupturing with even a minor strain or twist… Sometimes, using your back muscles instead of your leg and thigh muscles to lift heavy objects can lead to a herniated disk, as can twisting and turning while  lifting. Rarely, a traumatic event such as a fall or a blow to the back is the cause”. Risk factors: excess body weight which causes extra stress on the disks in the lower back, physically demanding jobs (repetitive lifting, pulling, pushing, bending sideways and twisting), genetics and smoking.

Well, CB, while we are all  fear the coronavirus, a herniated disk, a non-viral problem, is scary enough, a mild case of Covid-19 is way, way preferable to a moderate case of a herniated disk. I need to be careful about lifting objects, twisting, etc.

About your partner of a quarter of a century, that’s a different kind of pain, an addition to the herniated disk and the unpleasant symptoms of menopause. Do your best to alleviate each and every kind of pain that you are experiencing!

anita