Hi Lisa.. Thanks for giving us an opportunity to help you... Since you know that you have a discogenic back pain and you know how worse is it... so you can be prepared for the management as well.. You can definitely get your foot back even if you had a foot drop..so dont worry.. If I were you I won t wait till anything to happen.... I would fund a good neurosurgeon to get my disc workup... Untill then.do Lot of icing frequently to reduce pain and spasm.. send lit if time in lying in my stomach with pillows placed under my chest...atleast 4-5 times in a day for 20 mins... Do start my core strengthening exercises... Do start my gkyte recruitment exercises.. These exercises help to cope up with current situation and also to aid in early recovery post surgery... Hope this is helpful for you... Kindly revert back in case you need any further help in this regard