What is Chiropractic?
Chiropractic is the healthcare profession focusing, but not limited to, locating and correcting musculoskeletal (your muscles and skeleton) nervous system disorders through gentle, specific Chiropractic adjustments thus allowing your body to function at its optimum potential.
Is Chiropractic care safe?
Yes. Chiropractic treatments are extremely safe for individuals of all ages – from infants to senior – and is widely recognized as one of the safest drug-free, non-invasive therapies available for the treatment of neuromusculoskeletal complaints. Although Chiropractic has an excellent safety record, no health treatment is completely free of potential adverse effects. Our treatments are safe because we only use natural, gentle and noninvasive methods of care.
Treatment lengths vary, from patient to patient, however, there are a few rules of thumb you can follow. Newer injuries, if treated appropriately and immediately, tend to respond to fewer visits. Many of these first-time injuries (assuming no major tissue injuries) can be effectively managed in as little as 3 to 4 visits. Conditions that have been present for greater than 3 months and recurring conditions are generally more stubborn and may require 12 visits or more. The only sure way to determine how long your treatment will take is to schedule a consultation and/or examination.
A misalignment of one or more of your spinal bones (vertebrae), which causes interference to your nervous system. If your nervous system is interfered with, your body’s natural ability to heal itself and function at its optimum potential becomes impaired.
A Chiropractic adjustment, also known as Chiropractic Spinal Manipulation, is a procedure in which a Chiropractic physician uses their hands, or an instrument, to manipulate the joints of the body, particularly the spine, in order to restore or enhance joint function. The purpose of the adjustment is to correct your spinal subluxation(s), thus removing the nerve interference in your body.
No. Chiropractic manipulation is a highly controlled procedure that rarely causes discomfort. The chiropractor adapts the procedure to meet the specific needs of each patient. Patients often note positive changes in their symptoms immediately following treatment. Many patients feel immediate relief following Chiropractic treatment, but some may experience mild soreness, stiffness or aching, similar to the feeling following most exercises. Minor discomfort or soreness following spinal manipulation typically fades within 24 hours.
Yes. The birth process is often the cause of a child’s first subluxation. Children are very physically active and experience many types of falls and blows. The repeated falls as children learn to walk, as well as the running, jumping, twisting, bumping and falling while they play in the yard or on an athletic field, often cause children to become subluxated. However, children frequently do not show any signs or symptoms of being subluxated until later on in life. Chiropractic care is always adapted to the individual patient and in the case of children, very gentle.
The “cracking” or “popping” sound is the release of a gas (nitrogen) bubble between the joints. The noise is caused by the change of pressure within the joint, which results in the gas bubbles being released. Not all Chiropractic adjusting (or manipulation) techniques produce a noise, some adjusting techniques use little force and thus produce no noise at all. There is usually minimal, if any, discomfort involved.
No. The extent to which you choose to benefit from your Chiropractic care is ultimately up to you. We do urge patients to consider lifetime-wellness Chiropractic care where the long-term, lasting benefits of care are enjoyed. Regular exercise and healthy eating habits are a lifestyle decision and so is lifetime-wellness Chiropractic care. The goal is to remain subluxation free for life.
Yes. Just because your symptoms disappear does not mean your subluxations are corrected. Most of the patients seen in our office have spinal degeneration (decay) which has taken years to develop. However, how you choose to use Chiropractic care is ultimately up to you. It has been our experience that those who stop care when they are “feeling fine” return with the same health challenge(s) which brought them to the office in the first place. On the other hand, those patients who commit to long-term Chiropractic care will find their health challenge(s) rarely return.
Doctors of Chiropractic (DCs) are educated in nationally accredited, four-year doctoral graduate school programs. The average DC program is equivalent in classroom hours to allopathic (MD) and osteopathic (DO) medical schools and includes a minimum of 4,200 hours of classroom, laboratory, and clinical internship. DCs also receive over 300 hours of X-ray training and are fully trained to take radiographs. DCs are designated as physician-level providers in the vast majority of states and federal Medicare program.
Most pregnant women seek chiropractic care for lower back pain, pelvic pain, sciatica, groin pain, headaches and leg or thigh pain. Many expectant mothers seek Chiropractic care at SOS for a safe, effective and drug-free approach to manage pain and symptoms during their pregnancy.
Yes! Our doctors are knowledgeable on how to work with pregnant women, using techniques that avoid unnecessary pressure on the abdomen. Our team is familiar with the challenges of a pregnant woman’s body, including loosening ligaments and increased weight.
Chiropractic adjustments to pregnant woman are typically gentler than adjustments on other adults.
Treatment recommendations will be individually tailored for your specific condition and range from 2-3 times per week to once a month, depending on your week of pregnancy and symptoms.