Ever been suffering with back pain and searching for answers only to be told your scans are normal? Or worse, that your discs have “collapsed” and your spine is “bone on bone”? You are not alone, and your pain likely has a different story to tell.
Many people believe that scans like X-Rays and MRI’s are the golden ticket to finding the cause of their pain. As it turns out, however, a picture can tell a thousand lies. Research by Brinjikji et al., (2015) showed that most people over 40 have signs of spinal and disc degeneration on scans even if they have no pain at all!
The simple truth is: you can have pain with perfect scans, and you can have scary-looking scans with no pain at all!
The reason behind this may surprise you: Pain is not an accurate measure of tissue damage, it’s a complex protective output from the brain. It’s your nervous system’s way of signaling perceived danger. Maybe you believe it’s unsafe to move your spine in a certain way. Maybe someone told you your spine is “bone on bone”. Maybe you had an old injury that you think caused irreversible damage.
Each of these beliefs (and experiences like stress, poor sleep, and inactivity) acts as a threat signal to your brain. These signals can cause your brain to “turn up the volume” on pain, even when no structural injury is present. Interestingly, the opposite is also true. Someone with clear signs of age-related degenerative changes may have no pain at all if the brain perceives the spine as safe and resilient.
It’s time to rethink The Scan Scam! A normal scan does not mean that nothing is wrong – it means that nothing is damaged or broken. A scan with alarming degenerative changes does not mean your spine is doomed – it means your nervous system is interpreting those changes as threatening.
The good news? There are many safety cues we can use to tip the scales back towards a sense of safety. Gentle movement, gradual loading and breathwork are powerful tools that can calm your nervous system and “turn down the volume” on pain over time.
With a deep understanding of pain neuroscience and a thorough history and neuromusculoskeletal examination, I can help determine whether scans are truly necessary. More importantly, I can help you restore confidence in your body and learn ways to regulate your nervous system.
Because at the end of the day, the person in the best position to take care of your body is you!
Restore. Rewire. Reclaim.
