Chiropractic care is one of the fastest growing forms of health care, in the United States. In fact, more than 15 million Americans choose chiropractic for safe, conservative, and effective relief from back pain, neck pain, headaches, extremity pain, poor overall health, low energy levels, and much more.
- What is Chiropractic?
- The Goal of Chiropractic
- How Chiropractic Works
- What Chiropractors Do
- How Chiropractic Differs
- The Benefits of Chiropractic
What is Chiropractic?
Chiropractic is a health care discipline that focuses on disorders of the musculoskeletal system and the nervous system, and the effects of these disorders on general health. Chiropractic care is used most often to treat neuromusculoskeletal complaints; including, but not limited to, back and neck pain, pain in the joints of the arms or legs, and headaches.
The Goal of Chiropractic
The Drs. Antico, and all doctors of Chiropractic, practice a drug-free, hands-on approach to health care that includes patient examination, diagnosis, and treatment. Chiropractors have broad diagnostic skills and are also trained to recommend therapeutic and rehabilitative exercises, as well as to provide nutritional, dietary, and lifestyle counseling. Here at Howard County Chiropractic, we do all of that and more because our focus is on the entire person, not just a specific symptom he or she may be having. By considering all aspects of a person’s life, we can assist patients in overcoming injury and taking an active role in their health and well-being going forward.
How Chiropractic Works
“Chiropractic seeks to identify underlying dysfunction, correct that dysfunction and maintain it…”
The most important aspect of Chiropractic is the relationship between the spine and the nervous system. As you may already know, the nervous system is the body’s main controller of all living cells, tissues and organs. The spinal column encases the nervous system (spinal cord and nerve roots) and is responsible for its protection.
Because of this intimate relationship, biomechanical and/or structural problems in the spinal column can irritate parts of the enclosed nervous system. This irritation can result from noxious inflammatory biochemicals released during tissue injury or may result from direct mechanical pressure. In either case, the functioning of the nervous system is negatively influenced as is the functioning of the cells, tissues, and organs which are supplied by the affected nerve(s). The resulting ailment(s) depends on the cells, tissues, and organs affected, as well as the extent of nervous system compromise.
In short, because the body’s innate recuperative powers are affected by and integrated through the nervous system, correcting spinal abnormalities which irritate the nervous system can lead to a number of favorable results in patients suffering from various, seemingly non-spinal health conditions.
Non spine related conditions are similar in that dysfunction in the region (shoulder, hip, foot, etc.) inhibits the body from functioning properly and efficiently. Eventually this will result in compensatory changes and ultimately pain.
What Chiropractors Do
Practically speaking, chiropractors are primarily concerned with locating and treating biomechanical dysfunction throughout the body. Whether speaking about the spine, the shoulder or the hip, biomechanical dysfunction typically includes a combination of abnormal joint mobility and muscular imbalance.
Using a number of unique and highly refined skills, chiropractors evaluate the region in question and usually surrounding regions as well. This evaluation seeks to identify restrictions in joint mobility, abnormal muscle balance as well as faulty movement patterns and disruptions in soft tissue. Once these abnormalities are identified, the chiropractor will utilize a variety of treatment techniques to correct them. These techniques include chiropractic manipulation/mobilization and a vast variety of physical therapy and soft tissue techniques. In addition to spinal adjustments, soft tissue techniques such as massage, Graston, Active Release Technique and dietary and nutritional counseling, exercise prescription, physical therapies, and lifestyle modification programs are commonly utilized.
How Chiropractic Differs
“Chiropractors believe that correcting the cause of the problem provides significant long-term benefits over only treating the symptoms.”
There is a significant and very important difference in approaches between a chiropractor and a medical doctor when treating various health ailments; especially conditions of the musculoskeletal system. When evaluating and treating patients chiropractors take a comprehensive, holistic and conservative approach, versus one that focuses only on symptoms and looks to utilize medicine to reduce them. This includes identifying and correcting the cause(s) of the patient’s health ailment as described above. In contrast, a medical doctor tends to focus more on the treating the symptoms of a condition rather than focusing on the primary cause(s).
The Benefits of Chiropractic
Short-term and regular chiropractic care has a number of benefits, including:
- spinal and extremity pain relief
- headache relief
- increased mobility and range of motion
- decreased stiffness and muscular spasms
- arthritic joint pain relief
- increased joint health
- increased performance and energy
- increased sense of well-being and relaxation
- increased balance and coordination
- reduced degeneration and risk of injury
- enhanced tissue healing
- decreased tissue inflammation
We understand that well-informed patients make better health care decisions. Suffering from back pain or sciatica – or some other debilitating condition? It’s never too early or too late to learn the fundamentals of good health. We teach our patients how lost health can be restored, how it can be maintained, and most importantly, how it can be enhanced throughout a lifetime.
