Disc Degeneration

Between your vertebrae lie discs of cartilage and gel — soft cushions that absorb every shock, allow every rotation, buffer every movement. Without them your spine would be a rigid tower of bone. With them it is an elastic marvel that lets you bend, twist, stretch, carry, dance. When these cushions wear down — when they dry out, become cracked, lose height — medicine speaks of disc degeneration. Orthopedically a gradual process: overload, aging, insufficient movement, one-sided strain. The disc grows thinner, loses its elasticity, can irritate nerves and produce pain.

But the question that is seldom asked is a different one: Why does this particular person lose their inner cushioning? Why does what keeps them supple, resilient, and springy dry out? What is it that is being ground down here between the solid structures?