What is chiropractic? Chiropractic is the largest drug free heath care profession in the world. Doctors of Chiropractic work directly and indirectly with the "Master System" of the body, the nerve system, by removing interference caused by vertebral subluxations. Once the vertrebral subluxation is corrected, the body's own inborn healing power, known as "innate intelligence," is able to restore and maintain health.
A vertebral subluxation is a misaligned-vertebra causing interference with nerve messages between your brain and your body.
A vertebral subluxation includes the following:
What is a vertebral subluxation? Spinal Kinesiopathology
Your vertebrae are jammed and either less mobile than they should be or, conversely, too mobile ("noisy joints"). You are unable to comfortably turn, bend or twist your neck, hips or back in every direction.
Your nerves are impinged and you may feel pain, tingling, numbness and/or pins-and needles. The impulses traveling through your nerves are altered and important chemicals that flow over your nerves may be blocked.
Your muscles are chronically tight, in spasm, weak, overly sensitive and/or sore.
You have swelling, tenderness, "trigger points," painful spots and other soft tissue changes. Ligaments, cartilage, discs, tendons and internal organs may be affected.
Your muscles, joints, ligaments and organs show signs of wear and tear and premature aging, fatigue, less resistance to disease and lack of physical and mental vitality.
Causes Of Subluxations
Subluxations are caused by stress:
macro-stress (accidents, falls, sports injuries and other trauma) or micro-stress (repeated movements that gradually wear down your body parts, bad posture, dental work and emotional stress which can cause chronic tension). Subluxations can occur from a difficult birth and from childhood falls. It is for that reason that infants and children need spinal care; many neurological and other health problems have been traced to spinal damage at birth.
Although vertebral subluxations are the most common forms of interference with nerve messages, they are by no means the only ones. Drugs, trauma, direct pressure (when your legs or arms "go to sleep"), a stroke, broken bones, arthritis, tumors and neurological diseases such as muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, polio and cerebral palsy can also damage nerves. The most widespread and common cause of nerve irritation and interference, however, is the vertebral subluxation complex.
Dwell as near as possible to the channel in which your life flows.
Henry David Thoreau
Subluxations are so common that they can be considered an epidemic-nearly everyone has them. It is sometimes said that if you suffer from neck and back pain you're lucky-you are aware of a spinal problem and will (hopefully) go to a doctor of chiropractic for a spinal checkup. The chiropractor will not only check the areas in pain, but will throw in a "bonus" and check your entire spinal column for nerve pressure, even the areas that don't hurt. Where you feel pain may not even be where the subluxation is-the pain may be referred.
Subluxations can undermine your health just as termites can undermine the foundation of your home. By the time the kitchen floor collapses, it's too late to call the exterminator; and in the same way, by the time symptoms appear a certain amount of the damage caused by long-standing subluxations may be irreversible.
For that reason periodic spinal examinations to locate and correct vertebral subluxations should be a part of every family's health routine. Correcting silent subluxations today might save you and your family from diseases that, later in life, could not possibly be ignored.
Does Chiropractic hurt?
Under normal circumstances, adjustments don't hurt. The patient may experience a minor amount of discomfort during the adjustment which lasts only seconds.
What can I expect on my first visit?
First and foremost, we are here to help you. We want you to experience health and vitality exceeding your expectations. Everything we do at our clinic is geared toward helping you achieve maximum results. With this in mind there are a couple of things that you should expect when you have a first visit at our clinic.
The examination we perform consists of a thorough spinal and nervous system exam which includes "Palpation". Palpation essentially is checking your spine by hand. With this exam the doctor can feel areas of your spine that may be involved with subluxations problems. Spinal position, curvatures and muscle tone can also be examined as it relates to possible spinal subluxations.
Our examinations procedures are geared toward detection and correction of the "Vertebral Subluxation". The procedures we use are therefore specifically selected for your spine and nervous system health. Your examination may also include some specialized equipment designed to better access your spine and nervous system. From this we can see how subluxation may be affecting the functions of your nervous system.
It is important to note that this examination gives us a baseline for future tests so we can accurately measure your progress to see how your spine is correcting and your nervous system is functioning.
X-rays may be taken depending on your age, and situation. There are many reasons why we would not take x-rays on certain patients including pregnancy, most children, recent usable spinal x-rays and some other various situations. Aside from these situations, x-rays are a common part of the examination process when looking for vertebral subluxations. X-rays give us important information including the position of the spinal bones, and the quality of the spine and safety of adjusting it. X-rays also tell us the relative length of time subluxations may have been involved in your spine. Commonly, most patients receive three spinal x-rays at the beginning of care.
With this important information we can make a more accurate determination of the type of adjustments your spine needs as well as the initial frequency of your care. Your x-rays will be explained to you and covered in detail at your Report of Findings.
Principled Report of Findings
You will be scheduled for your Principled Report of Findings within a few days of your initial visit. This visit is your most important visit and may take up to one hour. It is at your Principled Report of Findings that we will give you a care plan and go over any special instructions you will need to obtain the best and fastest possible results. We have set aside specific times for these visits so as not to interfere with regular patient care hours. Our staff will schedule your Principled Report of Findings with you after your first visit.
At Thiede Chiropractic we utilize the most modern chiropractic analytical, and adjustive procedures available. We deliver specific chiropractic adjustments designed to correct the individual subluxations we have found in your spine. We consider subluxations to be a serious threat to the quality and quantity of your health and that of your family. We feel your worth it!