What is Chiropractic?
Many people are familiar with the term. But what does it really mean? What does a Chiropractor actually do? Is Chiropractic for you?
The term comes from Latin literally meaning “done by hand”.
A Chiropractor specializes in the nervous system. The nervous system is comprised of the brain, spinal cord, and the spinal nerves that branch out from the spinal cord. Think of a tree for a moment, a favorite analogy of mine that I will often use. The roots and trunk of a tree would be analogous to our spinal cord. The branches of a tree would be our spinal nerves, literally branching out from the center.
The nervous system is encased in protective bone. Like a tree’s tough protective exterior on the trunk and branches, our brain has our skull for protection, and the spinal cord has the spinal column for protection. The spinal column is made up of bones called vertebrae. These vertebrae have spaces allowing for our movement called joints. These joints also allow room for our spinal nerves to pass through.
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There are 31 pairs of spinal nerves that emit from the joint spaces in between the vertebrae. These nerve pairings start from the top of the neck at the base of your skull and go all the way down towards the base of your spine by the pelvis. All 31 pairs of spinal nerves connect to a variety of different muscles, tissues, glands, and vital organs of the body. Think of an apple tree with 31 pairs of branches, all bearing apples. The apples would be our respective muscles, tissues, organs, glands, etc.
For a moment, please think carefully about the following: If an apple tree bears poor or rotting apples, would it make sense to attempt to clean the apples in the hopes of rejuvenating the fruit, perhaps injecting the fruit with a ripening agent, or cutting the bruises off of different apples? Or should one look to the TREE from which the apples came from? A healthy tree bears healthy fruit, and an unhealthy tree does not. The same goes for a healthy spine and a healthy person! This is what Chiropractic does: it keeps your spine and nervous system healthy, allowing your body to perform at its maximum. Like the apple tree, we look to the cause of the problem (issues at the spine) rather than attempting to provide just symptom relief, like taking body numbing medications.
What if I am scared of getting "cracked"?
The Chiropractic adjustment is scientifically proven to be safe and effective for all age groups. I specialize in a wide range of adjustment techniques, each with a different amount of force that is unique for every patient. My dedicated training and expertise has allowed me to practice safe and effective Chiropractic.
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We understand that you may have reservations. If you're hesitant about traditional, hands-on Chiropractic adjustments or are worried about your neck getting "cracked", that's okay! I also offer a gentle, instrument-based technique called the Arthrostim that is just as effective, without the pops and cracks.
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The ArthroStim is a handheld instrument that delivers gentle, low-force impulses to the spine and other joints. It works by using a specialized tip that creates rapid, precise vibrations or taps when pressed against the body. These impulses are much more gentle and controlled compared to the high-velocity thrusts used in traditional chiropractic adjustments.
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The adjusting force from the ArthroStim is very light, often described as a gentle tapping sensation. There is no forceful twisting, popping, or cracking of the joints involved. This makes the experience much more comfortable for those who may be nervous about the noise or force associated with manual adjustments.
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Many patients appreciate the ArthroStim as a low-force alternative, especially those with acute pain, arthritis, osteoporosis, or other conditions that may make them apprehensive about traditional chiropractic manipulation. If you are at all nervous, this gentler approach could be a great choice for you!
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What separates Chiropractic from other fields?
Remember back to the rotting apple tree unable to bear healthy fruit. In that analogy, the symptom was the rotten apples. Attempting to provide symptom relief to the apples rather than addressing the branches and roots would not have done anything. Again, the cause was the bad tree. Think now to a different field like massage therapy for example, which stresses muscle release. Muscles do not and cannot function without nerve messages. In other words, the nervous system is in charge.
Muscle issues are often just symptomatic, and not the true cause of the problem. Massage a muscle for an hour. It feels great, but re-tightens shortly thereafter. Why? It does not address the true cause of one’s problem. This is not a knock against massage therapy, but merely attempting to emphasize a distinction. Chiropractors look to the spine for nervous system irritation. The Chiropractic philosophy is to find the cause of one’s symptoms, rather than attempting to provide only symptom relief.
The same goes for medications and pain killers. For the record, there is a time and place for medications. The advancements in medicine have saved many lives. However, medications are often over prescribed or improperly used. Pain killers for example are only symptom relievers. The medication does not know that your neck hurts. It causes a systemic chemical reaction, numbing your entire body. Often, these powerful drugs can be very dangerous due to their addictive qualities.
How does the spine work?
When the nervous system is functioning and firing properly, a persons body is functioning at their utmost potential. Think back to a healthy tree bearing healthy fruit. However, life has a way, and whether by injury, faulty movement, or genetic predisposition, the vertebrate of the spine can move out of place, aka misalignment. The misalignment of the spine causes the spinal nerves to become irritated and undergo pressure. When under pressure, the nerves do not function properly. Spinal nerve irritation due to vertebral misalignment is called a subluxation.
What’s so fascinating is that subluxations do not always cause pain. Many people can experience subluxations without even realizing it. There’s a very good chance that you may have a subluxation as you are reading this. One may argue, “if it doesn’t hurt then who cares”?
Well, perhaps you’ve had this unfortunate experience: One day your back is stiff or your neck is bothering you due to a “tweak”, but in a day or two, it seems to have gone away. A week goes by, and at this point you have all but forgotten about the pain. You go to brush your teeth one morning, bend to turn on the faucet and your back goes into a violent spasm. “I was just brushing my teeth!”, you say. This is why the presence or absence of pain cannot always trusted, and is often NOT a good barometer for measuring one’s health. Pain comes and goes. When dealing with pain, the body releases chemicals in order for you to keep going. It is wonderful that the body can reduce pain, but without addressing the issue, the problem remains. What can happen next? Easy and mundane tasks can become excruciating, like brushing ones teeth, going for a walk, picking up your child, etc. In our example, the initial “tweak” of the back was ignored, the symptom of pain reduced, but the true cause of the problem remained, which resulted in a violent spasm in the back. Ignoring our body’s natural warning signs (pain) is dangerous and can lead to serious injury.
In addition, many subluxations do not cause any pain at all. But that doesn’t mean they can’t cause other issues. Remember that all of the spinal nerves connect to all different areas of the body. If a subluxation is affecting nerve flow, it could potentially be affecting any system of the body, including digestion, respiratory function, kidney function, or even sexual performance.
What is the Chiropractic adjustment?
The Chiropractic adjustment is a highly specific, safe, and effective push of the back or neck performed solely by the Chiropractor. Many times, the push leads to an audible "pop". This is not bones cracking or popping. The pop sound is simply air being released from the joint space. The adjustment aligns the spine, and removes the subluxation (spinal misalignment affecting nerve supply). Adjustments are scientifically proven to be extremely effective, they feel fantastic, and most importantly they work! Once an area that is out of alignment is located by the Chiropractor, they will then adjust. The adjustment removes the subluxations, allowing the spinal nerves to be free of pressure and irritation. Remember that the spinal nerves connect to all different areas of the body. Once the nerves are free of irritation and have a chance to heal, the nerves will then heal the regions that they supply. This is why an individual with digestive issues for example can get great results from Chiropractic; by treating the nerves that connect to the gut, this will allow the gut to heal.
If you have a spine, then Chiropractic is for you! If a Chiropractor analyzes your spine and finds a subluxation that is associated with your symptoms, then regardless of the name of your ailment, Chiropractic can be of service. Here is the important distinction: Chiropractic works for all issues and ailments. However, it does not work in every individual case. Some people have issues or complaints that are not associated with nerve pressure/subluxation. These individuals would be referred out to another specialist.
Your first appointment will consist of a consultation and exam to determine if we can help you. If we believe we can, we will then discuss what is wrong, why is it happening, and discuss a course of treatment. Throughout your course of treatment, we aim to restore function to the body and to the spinal nerves which could result in changes to the body (warmth, increased sensation, increased energy, etc). Improvements will occur, but true healing takes time. Health returns in stages.