Saturday, June 8, 2013

Chiropractic For the Body, Not Just the Back


When most people think of chiropractic they think strictly of back and spine problems, but the truth is most problems with pain are associated with the alignment of your entire skeletal system. A pain in your foot can be caused by misalignment in the spine, and a pain in your neck can be caused by a problem in your lower back. An injury involving a muscle anywhere in your body will display itself with pain in the entire surrounding region. A bone injury will have similar consequences, but you may feel the pain in a completely different area of the body. Injury can also happen slowly over the course of time, instead of all at once like most people are used to.

Chiropractic has been around for a very long time in one form or another, but the chiropractic profession as we know it hasn't been around for very long. We have always known that the back and spine is the core of our ability to move and bend, but we are only now learning that pain all over the body can be affected by every other muscle and bone in the body. Chiropractic is not a quick fix though, it can take several sessions and many weeks to fix a problem that's been brewing for a long time. Hunching over a computer all day for years or driving a truck while spending the majority of your time in the cab will slowly change your body to fit that form. You may not even realize it's happening until one day you notice that your range of motion has become limited.

Depending on the doctor you see, a different treatment will be recommended. A physician will prescribe drugs, a surgeon will cut you open and a therapist will want you talk about your mother, all for the same problem. If you know that your injury is a muscle or bone problem, then a chiropractor is just what you need. For a problem you can't identify see your doctor first, and then go to a chiropractor if the problem is related. Your chiropractic professional will want to see you more than once, depending on your problem it may be many visits. You may find that a chiropractor can fix problems you didn't know you had and will make you feel better than you have in years.

Alternative medicine is treatment that isn't completely accepted by the medical community and chiropractic falls under that heading. It has become much more main-stream over the last decade, but if you ask ten doctors their opinion of chiropractic you will get ten different answers. Everyone agrees that there are benefits to using a chiropractor, but the extent of the benefit is what is debatable. Because this type of treatment is still in limbo, regular health insurance is reluctant to allow people to use it at their discretion. Ameriplan chiropractic or a payment arrangement with your chiropractor will allow you to get your treatment after health insurance has stopped paying for it.

As time moves on, chiropractic will become more part of everyone's life and less a part of alternative medicine. If you have never seen a chiropractor before, you may find that seeing one is far less intimidating than going to a doctor or hospital. Chiropractors are friendly individuals that can help fix you up and you will enjoy your appointments with them. A very good friend of mine is a Denver chiropractor and I have always appreciated his views on healthcare. Now that I am familiar with chiropractic care, I can't see a healthcare system without it!

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