Your symptoms sound exactly like what happened to me. Back pain, ended up shooting down the left leg, all of a sudden I couldn't get up off the floor and was rushed to the ER. One MRI later I was having a microdisectomy at L5/S1. I will have a numb left leg and foot the rest of my life, but after some PT and watching my workouts closely (not to mention flossing my nerve on a daily basis) I'm stronger than ever.
After my first surgery they didn't have me do PT. When I reherniated 18 months later, and needed a second surgery, then they had me do PT. PT taught me all about my transverse abdominals, how to find them and strengthen them. They also taught me to avoid things that hyperextended my back, brought my legs behind me, crossed my legs to one side.
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