I hope that wasn't your surgeon that told you that, if so don't let that dude touch your back. Herniated means to protrude abnormally from cavity. Disc degeneration is gradual weakening or breakdown of the disc. When "squishy stuff" from the disc is pushed out that is technically a ruptured disc. A bulged disc is when the disc is herniated which does squish the nerves.Herniated means the disc is degenerating, bulging means the squishy stuff from the middle pushed through the fiberous walls of the disc and in my case the shit is squishing the nerves.