Not fun
but your doc is right, those symptoms will go away in their own in time, once you don’t agitate the sources.
Your best bets for being more comfortable, if you don’t like taking any sort of narcotics, are;
-a physiotherapist
-a chiropractor
-using hot or cold packs on the site (which depends on you, for pain relief some people respond better to cold than heat)
-keep fiber in your system
- just practise simple relaxation techniques, simple stretching and deep breathing
More day to day advice is to not strain to extend the arms more than a comfortable length from your body, don’t stay sitting for too long or even stay on your feet for extended periods of time. Besides seeing your chiro and physio alternatives are acupressure, yoga and aacupuncture.
Having said all that, the
most important thing is just giving your body its own time to heal, a natural healing process with no shortcuts is usually always the best and safest bet in these situations.
The aim is to allow the vertebra to return to its normal size by taking the pressure off. Try not to use the arm and hand more than absolutely necessary.
Hope that helps,
Alexis