Jocelyn, your latest post mentioning that the traction helped Paul, leads me to suggest the helpful people at
Egoscue.com Pete Egoscue was a Vietnam vet that out of desperation learned the musculoskeletal system that our bodies have and figured out exercises that helped give him his life back.
The Egoscue clinics have helped many even with the trama from car wrecks, so they really know what they are doing. It's not free, but you get the help you pay for that's for sure.
I personally have gotten much help from them,
they can help fast working via Skype video, to set Paul up with appropriate stretching and strengthening exercises (done at home) to help reverse the slew of misalignment that is cause of his discs blowing/pinching his nerves.
There was a time I thought I would never walk again and with their help and perseverance doing menus every day for years, with God's help, I can now walk and run if needed and have been mostly pain-free for a couple years now.
The first time I actually went to one of their clinics in Austin,TX in person, in 2 hours of working with me, I was a different person with half the pain I came in with and a real hope for a nearly normal life again if I was willing to put the work in to help myself get there.
The Egoscue method aims at dealing with the causes and respects the symptoms (the pain) as just that, the symptoms. Something that often is overlooked by many doctors.
Best wishes for Paul and you as I know it's really tough. Pete Egoscue has written many books for those who are not in severe pain, and want to help themselves but can't or aren't willing to spend what is needed for personal one on one help, be it knee, shoulder, back, neck, or hip pain.
AJ
