Who do you talk to when your back or neck are hurting? The Chiropractor of course! It's what we as chiropractors do! BUT did you know that chiropractors treat and manage so much more than back pain cases?! Chiropractors can also manage conditions of your arms and legs from carpal tunnel syndrome, to ankle sprains. We look at the whole body to find the cause of your problems whether it be poor diet causing the inflammation that's causing the gout you're fighting or a vitamin D deficiency in the winter causing depressed mood and body aches. Whatever is ailing you, we recommend giving chiropractic a try FIRST rather than waiting years and only turning to chiropractic as a last resort. We too frequently treat patients who have been having the same recurring pain for 10 or more years! These patients are so desperate for relief and are so fed up with MDs and everyone else trying to cover up the symptoms they will try literally ANYTHING. And all too often, after only a few treatments and a few small to not so small lifestyle changes, their chronic over the past 10 plus years problem is gone! I've personally been lucky enough to have seen this happen several times in my life and I'm looking forward to seeing more of it!
I've seen a man with chronic sinus inflammation and mucus drainage problems that had been surgically corrected TWICE with no results, seek the help of a chiropractor and he was instructed to remove wheat, dairy, and processed foods (particularly partially hydrogenated vegetable oils ie: TRANS FATS) from his diet. He followed this advice to the letter and shortly after changing his diet, his sinuses cleared up, and haven't given him a problem since. That same man was also dealing with chronic acid reflux and taking TUMs by the handful and getting no relief. This time, after his success with the chiropractor, he went back to the chiropractor and found that the real issue wasn't that he had too much acid in his stomach, it was not having enough acid!! (This is a more common problem than we realize) He stopped taking TUMs and was warned that the next two weeks would be miserable as his stomach was allowed to reset and begin producing acid again. This man was not a patient of mine, he is my father and the reason I decided to become a chiropractor. I've seen a woman with a 20 year...read that again, TWENTY YEARS, history of chronic shoulder and arm pain who had had multiple treatments with many different providers; she'd had MRIs, and injections, massages, adjustments and no one could figure this pain of hers out. The problem was everyone was looking at her neck thinking that was the pain generator despite the negative MRI. She found a chiropractor willing to step back, start over and completely reassess her condition. Her chiropractor found that she had a shoulder problem afterall and with a few treatments or soft tissue manipulation and adjustments for her shoulder, she felt 90% better after 20 years of pain.
I've told these stories to drive home my point that chiropractors can and do treat so much more than back pain. It is a much safer option than using over the counter or prescription drugs that typically just mask the symptoms without getting to the underlying cause of the problem or, as in the case of the acid reflux above, the TUMs were actually making the problem WORSE! Chiropractic is certainly much safer than expensive and highly dangerous surgeries that often don't work either, and then we get into the long painful recovery periods and secondary problems that come from having your body cut open, but that's another blog entirely! What I'm saying is give chiropractic a chance FIRST. A good chiropractor will be open and honest with you about whether s/he thinks they can help you and will refer you to a specialist who can better serve you if necessary.
Dr. Kohn is a chiropractor with Active Life Chiropractic and Rehab, LLC. She graduated from the University of Western States in 2013 with a and is working everyday to improve the health of her community. Questions for Dr. Kohn?
