How does chiropractic work?
I hear from a lot of patients that they don’t understand how chiropractic works. They just know that it works. So I’ve decided I should write for those that want to learn how it works.
Overall understand my job as a Chiropractor is to decrease the interference on the nervous system by correcting the vertebral subluxation (the bones that are not in alignment). This maneuver is called an Adjustment. An Adjustment allows the body to regain physical mobility in that joint and restoring function to the body.
Why is movement so important? Well movement is life and when the body is not moving it is losing blood flow and nerve flow. When you lose blood flow you lose oxygen, nutrition, and start to build up waste, because if nothing is moving things start to get backed up such as lactic acid from improper movement of the muscles and that would cause them to get fatigued. The brain response on simple instructions pain, pressure, and temperature. When the body does not move and pressure is building on that joint then it sends a signal to the brain. That signal tends to be pain. We don’t like pain so what happens, is it forces you to see your doctor. If you know how chiropractic. Its very simple, by moving that joint it will then decrease the interference on that joint, which will then send a signal up to the brain that the joint is moving. If you don’t know how it works then your path is to go to the doctor to decrease the pain. Remember my job is to allow the body to heal itself. Its causing pain for a reason so what is the reason? If you eliminate the reason you can eliminate the symptom.
An example I give to my patients on what I do and how Chiropractic works is that you have a garden you like to care for with proper food, sunlight, and water. One day your plants start to droop and you don’t think anything of it. A few days later the leaves start to turn yellow and you get a little concerned, as the plants are getting the right food, the right amount of sunlight, and the water is on but you still can figure out what is going on? A few days after that the leaves start to turn brown now you are really concerned your garden is hurting, so you call out your local landscaper to see how they can help. They find out that you have had a blockage in your water line. So you were watering your plants but not at its full potential. He made and “adjustment” and now your plants are coming back. That is my job in a nutshell. I find the blockage and I remove the interference off your nervous system so your body can heal itself.
Have you been putting off getting care because you simply did not know how chiropractic worked before now, or how it can help you specifically? Simply have more questions? Well then come on in and schedule a consult with Dr. Heather to see how she can help you and your condition specifically.