question: Hi doctor, I am going to mention all of my issues together since I think they may be related to each other. I have been suffering from lower back, glute, hip pain that radiates down my legs sometimes into my heels even, for around five years. This began after a hard fall onto my right buttock, although weirdly now most of the pain is on the left side. I have also had some foot issues metatarsal pain and now pain on the outer edge of the front of my feet (I have not been diagnosed with a bunion but it is on its way there). I have been prescribed insoles that help with the metatarsal pain but not the bunion pain. When I initially presented with metatarsal pain, the podiatrist also diagnosed me with tight hamstrings which I definitely notice also. Since then, I have done all sorts of physiotherapies aimed at lessening the pain in my lower back/hip. As far as I can tell, it is the SI joint causing me issues. The pain gets worse if I am static in any position for too long (sitting, standing, laying down). I recently decided to investigate further and had an MRI scan which revealed no issues in my SI joint, but showed that my back is fairly straight (as in, not a very pronounced curve) which is probably contributing to the pain in my lower back. The orthopedic surgeon also mentioned that my lower three discs are somewhat degenerated, and bulging a little too. Something that could eventually become a hernia, but is not necessarily the cause of my pain right now. So I don't have any straight answers so far. My plan for the moment is to focus on strengthening my back (my core is quite strong but I will continue to work on that too) and working compression exercises for my lower back into my routine. I think this may help to stop or reverse my bulging disc issue. I have been doing more forward folds than backbends (I practice yoga regularly, and am incorporating more strength training into that routine), so I am reversing that trend now, after learning about my bulging discs. I will also try to strengthen my glutes as I heard this can help with the pain. Having read all of this, what can you recommend? Does my regime sound good? I also have an appointment with a physiotherapist who specializes in backs near where I live, but in the meantime, I would like to hear as much as possible from outside sources about what their assessment and advice would be.