Another diagnosis: SI joint issues

This afternoon I saw the orthopedic doctor. He says my back looks really healthy. Says the disk is bulging on the right side, so it’s not causing my left side pain. If I felt right side pain down the leg that was tingling, numbness or weakness, then the disk would be the cause of that pain. But I don’t feel pain like that down the right side. I've never felt pain down the right side.

He thinks my right side pain is the muscle recovering from the injury in January—esp since that pain is not so frequent now.

He thinks my left side pain is from the SI joint. This was something Janet hypothesized a few visits ago. He thinks the trauma (his words) of my fall on Dec 24 could be the reason.

He thinks I should see a chiropractor next for a month to do joint manipulation, then see him again in a month. If it’s still not better, he’ll inject the SI joint with cortisone.

Now that area is all inflamed from the test he did, I think it’s the FABER one talked about here:
http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/hipsurgery/a/sacroiliacjoint.htm

I also enjoyed the SI info found here:
http://www.umm.edu/spinecenter/education/sacroiliac_joint_syndrome.htm

He says I should walk, take Aleeve when I need to, and keep doing the daily exercises Janet gave me to do. But otherwise keep on taking it easy.

Now I just have to find a chiropractor. I asked how frequently I should see the chiropractor and he said that is something I can work out with the chiropractor.

I asked him if he thinks I will be pain free someday and he said yes.

I asked what I can do to keep the bulging disk from becoming herniated or to keep it from happening to my other disks. He said I do not need to worry about my spine or back, that it looks very healthy from the MRI images. He says the bulging disk is quite small.

Tonight was my last appointment with Janet. She seemed frustrated that she was not able to "fix" me and she voiced her concerns about what a chiropractor might do to me. I don't know. I'm skeptical myself. But I also know a few people who really believe in chiropractors.

Oh, and I wasn't all that impressed with this doc. At one point he told me he was running behind on his appointments. He seemed kind of distant and eager to move on. I'm not sure he really cared. But he did the exam and he tested me in ways other docs and the therapist had not.