Still in Pain After a Disc Injury or Surgery? Here's Why And What You Can Do
I talk about disc injuries in the clinic all the time. You're not alone if you're wondering why the pain, tingling, or nerve symptoms are still hanging around even after the disc has “settled” or you’ve had surgery.
Let’s break it down. This one’s for all of you in Cromwell (and beyond) dealing with back pain, disc bulges, or nerve irritation that just won’t let go.
Why Do I Still Get Pins and Needles After Disc Surgery?
Great question, and you're not imagining things. Even after surgery to relieve pressure on a nerve, you might still feel things like pins and needles, buzzing, or tingling.
Let’s unpack why that happens.
🧠 Nerves Can Be Irritated in Two Main Ways:
Physically irritated — like being squashed, pulled, or stretched (that’s what a disc herniation does).
Chemically irritated — caused by inflammation or a lack of oxygen to the nerve.
When nerves are under prolonged pressure, like with a disc pressing on them, they can start misfiring, sending odd messages to the brain (we call these ectopic impulses). That’s what creates sensations like tingling, burning, and numbness.
"Pulling on a nerve root for just 15 seconds produced a sensation of pins and needles in the toes."
– Smyth & Wright, 1958
🌱 What Happens During a Disc Herniation?
The disc bulges or herniates and presses onto a nerve. That’s the physical irritation.
But it doesn’t stop there, the pressure also reduces blood flow, which starves the nerve of oxygen. Inflammatory chemicals build up. That’s the chemical irritation.
Both types of irritation can cause a nerve to send abnormal signals. The result? That classic nerve pain: pins and needles, shooting pain, or numbness.
🛠️ Why Might It Continue After Surgery?
So — you’ve had the surgery, the disc pressure is off… but the nerve is still acting up?
That’s because nerves take time to settle down. Think of them like a bruised fruit or a kinked garden hose, even once the pressure is off, the signal might still be wonky.
The longer a nerve has been under pressure, the more sensitive it becomes. It might continue firing off ectopic impulses even after the structural issue is fixed.
And if the inflammation or reduced oxygen stuck around for a while, the nerve might take weeks or months to calm down. This doesn’t mean damage — it just means it’s healing.
🔁 When Pain Lingers Too Long: Enter Nociplastic Pain
"Ectopic discharges from nerve roots can continue even after pressure is relieved — and this can be reinforced by central processing changes."
– Jesson, 2021
Sometimes, even when the disc has healed, pain hangs on. That’s when we start thinking about nociplastic pain, a term used when the nervous system itself becomes extra sensitive.
It’s not because the disc is still damaged. It’s because your brain and spinal cord have learned to stay in protection mode, even when the threat is gone.
🧠 Wait — what’s the difference between nociplastic and neuroplastic?
Nociplastic pain is the name we use for this kind of lingering, sensitised pain.
Neuroplasticity is the process behind it — your nervous system adapting (sometimes in unhelpful ways).
So basically:
Nociplastic = the type of pain
Neuroplastic = the brain’s ability to change and adapt (which sometimes leads to pain sticking around)
You might notice:
Pain spreading beyond the original area
Tingling, buzzing, or aching with no clear trigger
A sense that your body is “overreacting” to normal movement
This is the hallmark of nociplastic pain, the “software” of your nervous system is glitching, even if the “hardware” (disc, nerve) has been repaired.
💭 Beliefs, Emotions, and Fear Matter….A Lot
Here’s where it gets really interesting.
Your brain doesn’t just process physical pain. It also processes thoughts, emotions, and fear. And those things can amplify your pain experience.
After an injury or surgery, it’s totally normal to feel worried:
“What if it happens again?”
“Can I trust my back?”
“Should I even be bending or lifting?”
But if those thoughts stick around too long, your brain stays in protection mode, and your pain system gets stuck on high volume.
Pain lives in the same brain circuits as fear, stress, and emotion so yeah, it makes sense that it all ties together.
🧠 Here's the Cycle We Often See:
Pain sticks around → you get worried
You move less → you feel stiffer and weaker
You feel fragile → you get more fearful
Your nervous system stays on edge → the pain feels worse
And so on…
✅ What Helps Break the Cycle?
Good news: your nervous system can change. Just like you can train a muscle, you can train your brain and spine to feel safe again.
At The Recovery Project in Cromwell, we work with disc pain patients every day — and here’s how we help:
We build safe, progressive movement that retrains your body and nervous system.
We teach you the science behind pain so you’re not stuck in fear.
We challenge unhelpful beliefs (no, your back isn’t “out” or “stuffed” — it’s healing).
We help you calm the nervous system with breath, support, and resilience-building.
You Are Not Broken.
You’re just dealing with a nervous system that’s been through a lot, and it needs the right input to calm down again.
If you're in Cromwell and you're still dealing with disc pain or nerve symptoms, we’d love to help. You’re not stuck. You just need a plan.
