Speaking from experiene as I have 3 ruptured discs in my back from the age of 22. You can live with them & the pain, over time. But they will never come good(if that is what he has done).
The first time rupture takes probably 3 months to settle down. Sometimes a couple of years. The only thing that could bring him back in the short term is Cortizone injection directly into the disc. But that is banned now by ASADA. Some clowns try paw paw enzyme too but that is snake oil.
The problem is that the toothpastey like material inside the disc, squeezes through the crack in the cartlidge like disc wall & forms an expansion around or near the spinal cord. If he has done L3 L4 disc then it it is also the exit points for the nerves that run to the legs(this causes shooting pain in the legs too. Unbearable pain.)
However, all the pain is more of a fake pain , from what I understand. The brain, concerned about the protection of the spinal chord, sends messages(pain) to the back muscles, tricking them into not moving in a way that way be dangerous for the spinal chord(spasms) In my case, when i go into spasm my hips shoot out to the right about 200mm & I lean forward about 300mm. IF I try straightening, Immense pain! So basically I have to rehabilitate myself with stretches, rest, pills, & extensions. Slowly, improving daily. I can get over an "episode" in 2-3 weeks now.
For Gal to have any chance, he needs to be at home, in front of the TV, solid floor, rolled towel in his arch & on a drip. Probably something like valium in it along with anti inflams.
The other thing is that "pain" creates "pain" it works on itself. You get uptight. You get angry, dark, desperate & impatient. So, he needs to work on his mind, as much as as he is working on his back. Tramadol can help that & will prob work ok along with anti inflams.
