A very common thought for many individuals when they are in pain is considering what type of provider or treatment should I seek for my condition. This is especially true considering there are so many options now for people to seek care from, their primary doctor, an orthopedist, a physical therapist, a chiropractor, and many more. A quote paraphrased from Dr. Donald Murphy’s book, Clinical Reasoning in Spine Pain, sympathizes with this situation stating “trying to choose what type of health care option is best suited for your condition is like shopping at the grocery store.”
For example, you go to the grocery store looking to buy pasta, and you get to the aisle and see penne, rigatoni, linguini, spaghetti, and more. You end up comparing the different types of pasta, but then you also notice a whole-wheat option, or a chickpea option, and now all of a sudden, this becomes such a complex decision. If we relate this scenario to an individual suffering from low back pain, and they start searching on the internet for answers, they will likely come across a multitude of different options. These options include taking over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications, using ice/hot packs, trying a stretching routine found on Youtube, buying a portable transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) unit, to just name a few. This exact situation is probably very relatable for many people. So how is someone supposed to know what is going to help them get out of pain?
In an effort to try and provide some clarity over how to choose a health care provider to evaluate your painful condition, I’ll attempt to elaborate more on chiropractic care and how this service can potentially benefit you. Firstly, the World Federation of Chiropractic defines chiropractic as “A health profession concerned with the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mechanical disorders of the musculoskeletal system, and the effects of these disorders on the function of the nervous system and general health. There is an emphasis on manual treatments including spinal adjustment and other joint and soft-tissue manipulation.” Now I know that this may sound like a mouthful, but to summarize this definition, chiropractors are well-trained to help with injuries to muscles, joints, nerves, discs, and other general health concerns.
Chiropractors are able to provide safe, non-pharmaceutical, and cost-effective treatments for many musculoskeletal and neurological conditions. This is the cornerstone of chiropractic, as many patients who seek care from a chiropractor initially are less likely to need further invasive, more-expensive therapies like injections or surgery. The majority of cases presenting to an outpatient health care clinic are not overly serious or life-threatening, so many conditions can benefit from a trial of conservative care. In terms of conservative care, chiropractors typically use a natural, whole-body approach when evaluating and treating a variety of conditions. However, if an individual does present with a condition that is not suitable for chiropractic care, then a chiropractor has the training and capability to readily refer patients for advanced diagnostic imaging such as X-Ray, MRI, CT Scan, or blood laboratory work-up. The ability to direct patients down the right path can be extremely beneficial as this can speed up the chances for receiving the right type of treatment.
The benefits of receiving chiropractic care include not only pain relief, but also increased range of motion, improved joint function and mobility, and reduced self-reported disability. These benefits can provide drastic changes to one’s lifestyle and allow them to continue performing the activities that they love doing the most. Chiropractors will mainly utilize a variety of manual therapy techniques such as spinal manipulation or mobilization, soft-tissue massage,and/or rehabilitative exercise to achieve these proclaimed benefits.
At Active Chiro, our main purpose is to return patients back to their optimal health and fitness as quickly as possible. This is accomplished by maximizing the therapeutic services performed while the patient is in the clinic and teaching every patient how they can best self-manage their pain. It is absolutely imperative that each patient acknowledges the importance of taking an active approach to their recovery so that they can be less reliant on passive therapies and accept the challenge of overcoming their pain.
Lastly, this article is not meant to provide you with an answer to which pasta you should choose at the grocery store (although, my favorite is rigatoni), but to give you some more insight on why seeking chiropractic care might be a good first option.
References:
1. Murphy, Donald R. Clinical Reasoning in Spine Pain. Vol. 1, CRISP Education and Research, LLC, 2013.
2. https://handsdownbetter.org/about-chiropractic/
3. https://www.wfc.org/website/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=90&Itemid=110
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