Chiropractic
What Is It?
How Does It Work?
What Happens During Treatment?
What Is It Used For?
Side Effects/Cautions
Recommended Books
What Is It?
Chiropractic is a therapy involving the manipulation of the spine and
other joints to relieve health problems associated with the spinal
column and nervous system. Chiropractors use their hands to make "adjustments" to
specific vertebrae of the spine or other joints, which stretch muscles,
unlock joints and correct problems in other parts of the body that
have originated from the spine. This manipulation can relieve pain,
help correct postural problems, and can improve the functioning of
nerves, joints, and muscles.
The practice of spinal manipulation originated more than 2000 years
ago, but it has only developed into a major system of healing in the
last 100 years. The founder of modern chiropractic was Canadian-born
Daniel David Palmer, who opened the first chiropractic school in Iowa
in 1898, after proving to himself and others that manipulation of misaligned
bones within the spine could correct a variety of ailments.
How Does It
Work?
The spinal cord is a major part of the nervous system, being the central
line of communication between the brain and other parts of the body.
It is protected by the spinal column, which consists of individual
vertebrae separated by cushioning discs. Stress to the spinal column,
caused by an accident, years of poor posture, or long-term tension,
can cause damage or misalignment of vertebrae which then “pinch” surrounding
nerves. The term for this condition is “subluxation”, and
it causes interference with nerve impulses between the brain and the
body. This can result in symptoms such as backache, tingling in the
arms and legs, headaches, fatigue, improper digestion and other system
dysfunction.
Chiropractic aims to locate subluxations, and through gentle manipulations
and adjustments of the vertebrae and surrounding muscle, tendons and
ligaments, can restore the normal functioning of the nervous system
and the rest of the body.
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What Happens During
Treatment?
During your first visit your practitioner will take a complete medical
history and perform a physical examination. Your blood pressure, pulse
and respiration will be measured and a blood sample may be taken to
rule out infections. The practitioner will closely examine the spine,
study your posture and search for any damaged or misaligned joints.
X-rays may be taken to locate these damaged areas.
For treatment, you may be asked to lie on a padded table or sit on
a stool or chair. The chiropractor applies pressure to the spine, making
specific adjustments to the vertebrae with the hands. You may feel
tingling sensations or hear popping sounds as the adjustments are made,
but the treatment is not normally painful and some find it relaxing.
Some chiropractors (known as "straight" chiropractors) use
only spinal manipulations to treat problems. Others (known as "mixers")
supplement spinal adjustments with other therapies such as nutritional
counselling, physiotherapy, massage, heat or ice treatments and rehabilitative
exercises.
Your initial visit will last about an hour, with further treatments
lasting between 10 and 30 minutes. A course of treatment usually involves
three to five sessions each week for two weeks.
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What Is It Used
For?
Chiropractic is considered particularly useful for relieving acute
lower back pain, and is often used before surgery is considered. It
is also used to treat neck and joint pain, headaches, migraines, hip
and knee problems and arthritis.
Side Effects/Cautions
Chiropractic should be avoided by people who have osteoporosis, rheumatoid
arthritis, bone or joint infections, bone cancer and diseases of
the spinal chord or bone marrow. It should not be performed on the
area around a fracture or dislocation, or where surgery has been
performed on the spine.
References
Find
a Chiropractor
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Recommended Books
Prices are in US Dollars
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The Chiropractic Way : How Chiropractic
Care Can Stop Your Pain and Help You Regain Your Health Without
Drugs or Surgery
Michael Lenarz
Chiropractic has become America’s most popular form
of alternative health care, offering lasting relief from
pain--and many other health benefits--to more than 25 million
patients annually. Yet many people still wonder exactly how
chiropractic heals, and even experienced patients may be
able to get more from their treatments. In this accessible
and fascinating book, Dr. Michael Lenarz illuminates the
basic principles of spinal health, showing how the body naturally
lets go of stored pain and disease once the flow of vital
energy has been restored. He also explains:
• Why adjustments keep the communication flowing clearly,
quickly, and cleanly
• Why the billion-plus nerve pathways carried by the
spine can be the key to a wide range of health problems--from
arthritis, headaches, and back and neck pain to chronic fatigue
and digestive ailments
• Why many of the health complaints we associate with
aging may in fact be the result of old injuries and therefore
treatable
• The different techniques of chiropractic, and how
to choose the best chiropractor for you.
PLUS--complete chapters on the diet, exercise, and stress-relief
programs that will help you achieve a healthy, vibrant, energized,
and pain-free lifestyle--the chiropractic way.
Learn
more...
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The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook: Your Self-Treatment
Guide for Pain Relief, Second Edition
Clair Davies
Trigger point therapy is one of the most intriguing and
fastest-growing bodywork styles in the world. Medical doctors,
chiropractors, and alternative health practitioners are all
beginning to use this technique to relieve the pain of individuals
suffering from undiagnosable soft tissue pain - a condition
that studies have shown to be the cause of nearly 25 percent
of all doctor visits.
The technique involves applying short, repeated massage strokes
to trigger points, places in the muscle tissue where lack
of oxygen causes referred pain. These points are easily located
by general readers and create pain throughout the body in
predictable patterns characteristic to each muscle, producing
discomfort ranging from mild to severe. The stimulation of
the point causes an increase in the oxygen level in the area
and produces often instant relief. The first edition of The
Trigger Point Therapy Workbook has made a huge impact in
the use of this dynamic technique. This is the first major
revision of the overnight classic - a complete update that
includes new information specifically for massage professionals
as well as a detailed discussion of systematic muscle relaxation
techniques that can reinforce the therapeutic power of trigger
point work.
Learn
more...
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Rehabilitation of the Spine: A Practitioner's Manual
Craig Liebenson
Practical how-to manual for chiropractors integrates fields
of chiropractic, myofascial therapy, and exercise into a
cost-effective approach for treating spinal disorders. Thoroughly
covers functional assessment, manual resistance techniques,
stabilization exercises, and patient education. Identifies
and discusses psychosocial factors that might predispose
patients to a disability, chronic pain, and treatment dependency.
Contributors are practitioners from various disciplines.
Learn
more...
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More
Chiropractic Books
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