Anyone have experience w/ a Chiropractor?

[HEMI®Dart]

I am having lower back pain that started 2 weeks ago after I was doing fairly heavy paralell squatting on the Smith machine at the Gym. Bad idea. It's a fixed plane bar.



Went to the Chiropractor today. Took some x-rays and the Vertabrea are out of alignment. Mostly lower some upper. Kinda scary seeing them. Looked way out of wack. Front to back and side to side.



He says it's gonna to take 4-6 weeks of manipulation to snap them back into place.



He says I should be in some pain. None at all doing normal stuff.



You guys had good luck with Chiropractor's?

 

[illflem]

It depends entirely on the individual chiropractor. I had a work related injury in the same spot as you on a Friday of course. It felt ok most of the time till I bent a certain way then it literarily threw me to the floor. First thing Mon morning I was in chiropractor's office, twice a week for the next six weeks. Pain was gone after the first visit and has never returned in 20 years. While he was at the Dr also corrected old posture related problems that I didn't even know I had, came out two inches taller at the end of my treatment just like he said I would!



Chiropractic goes well with massage. What happens in this type of injury is your muscles pull on the injured area to keep the pain down. In time if the offending muscles aren't relaxed they pull your spine out of alignment, then it's much harder problem to correct.



Now for the flip side. A very good friend went to Chiropractic school and had almost graduated when he took a required class whose main focus was how to get people's bodies "addicted" to chiropractic manipulations. His goal was to become a healer and he wanted no part of this, quit school immediately and went on to become a highly successful Naturopath.



Bottom line, pick the chiropractor carefully. Find one who also practices other types of medicine such as acupuncture and includes a massage therapist in his practice. That way you can feel confident that the guy really wants to heal you, not string you out for your money.

 

[Whitmore]

I agree with Bill totaly, I have over worked my back many times till it was unbearable with pain, never to the point of effecting the vertabrates like you but when my back gets in a bad way and giving me heck I just pop a couple of premenstral mucshel relaxers, laugh but they do wonders for me in just an hour.

From others I have learned that pick a good Dr. and just go long enough till you feal better then lay off.



cheers, kevin

 

[LSMITH]

Get some references for the chiro, hopefully from someone you know and trust. They can put you back on two feet when nothing else will but it pays to be a little careful. You might also consult an Osteopathic MD and see what he/she has to say. Some of them will even put you up on the table and crunch everything into line right there in the office.

 

[dpuckett]

I rode bulls in high school and college, and so got banged around from time to time. I found a chiropractor who did the massage and accupressure (kind of like accupuncture, but without the needles- still focuses on pressure points. ) She has an activator. It's a little gun that works like the toy rifles at Wal Mart- spring loaded, very quick. And since work= Force x acceleration, it uses less force. Very efffective and painless. I'd be leery of someone who told you 6 weeks- I had a bad whiplash the last bull I came off of, and only took 3 visits to fix. THat guy may have passed that "addiction" course mentioned above. I would never go back to getting my back and neck (especially) cracked. Like everything else, things evolve.



Daniel

 

[bmoeller]

I go accasionally. He does a great job, been going to the same one for 5yrs. I don't go as often as I need to. What I do for a living isn't really great for my back, but I like doing it.



I did have to go to a different one when he was out of town for his sons ball game (college). She wasn't strong enough to get half of them.



Can always tell if I need to go even if there is no/little pain becuse I start to limp.

 

[illflem]

The addictive part of chiropractic is the popping. The sound is caused by gas rushing in to fill the partial vacuum created when the joints are slightly separated not by bone on bone movement of a joint going back into it's place. It has been clinically proven that the gas released has a similar neurological effect on your body as some antidepressants.



Ever notice that people who like to crack their knuckles tend to do it quite often? They're addicted, not to the physical act of the popping but to the neurological effect which is often not recognized by them. The more you pop the easier it is to pop.



Many modern chiropractors ignore the popping part and don't push it nor feel it's that important for proper alignment while some old school chiropractors will throw their whole weight onto you to get a pop. The later are the ones to avoid. The ones who incorporate massage and acupressure in their treatments to use your body's own muscles to realign out of place joints are the ones you want.

 

[merryman]

Sort of on point

Starting the first week in Jan. , my wife started experiencing sever low back pain----just as we left for two months in Az and Nevada.

We would have returned earlier for treatment, but her brother was in a coma from a really bad accident, so she did not want to come home or try to find a DR. there.



Went to Chiropractor when we got home in early march and his diagnosis was inflamation from a sprain, but thought we ought to have an X-ray just in case.

Radiologist who "read" the X-ray, said compresion fracture of a disc.

Went to another MD for treatment

He wanted MRI

From MRI, he said NO fracture, either discitis (sp) or osteomylitis

went to Nuerologist for follow up.

This Dr. looked at X-ray and MRI and said no fracture, no discitis, no osteomylitis, --- nothing but arthritis

Went to family internist, he looked at X-ray and MRI and said no fracture, no arthritis, no osteomylitis, but maybe discitis, but he wanted neuclear bone scan (inject isotobes, wait three hours then lay in a neuclear reader for 30 minutes.

With that he said, by golly there is a disc fracture, with attendant inflamation.



The above only took from early March till last week!!!!!!

Its enough to test ones patients and confidence in experts.

Judges often say, if you want to know all about something, ask an expert, but for gods sake don't ask two!

Any trial where there are technical questions, you can bet there will be equally qualified experts on each side saying oposite things.



Vaughn

 

[HEMI®Dart]

I was kind of intimadated at first when I saw the table with hand cranks, hydraulic pistons & foot pedals.

 

[bmoeller]

Originally posted by illflem

Many modern chiropractors ignore the popping part and don't push it nor feel it's that important for proper alignment while some old school chiropractors will throw their whole weight onto you to get a pop.

Mine is from the "old school" and puts his weight into it. He's the first one I have been to. The first time I went, I had so many that were out it sounds like a zipper. Now it's only ever a few.



He will do the massage therapy when needed, but I don't have him do it.

 

[smartineau]

I had a lack of trust in chiropractors, fearing that once I go I will be stuck going for the next 40-50 years. I asked my cousin who was in chiropractor school and he said that after the problem is 'fixed' that may take a week or several months that there should be no need to keep going back. He said that the chiropractor should give you exercises and stretching to do, this will help to heal you.



I did my research and found a good chiropractor, after pinching a nerve in my neck (diagnosed by an MD who recommended a chiropractor), I believe in chiropractors. My guy knew when I did not do my exercises/stretching. I have been trouble free for awhile now, when my back starts to hurt I do the exercises/stretching and problem solved.



steve

 

[Hammer]

Chiro care & your health..

Bill. .

I also use chiropractic care weekly to help ease discomfort and joint pain. Been doing it for years as waayyy to many miles in a truck weekly(4900-6500 depending on dispatch),a few flips years ago in dirt racing and one trip imitating Superman over the hood of a Camaro when he pulled thru a intersection and I hit him with my scoot way back then. As they have said,select your care giver carefully many out there just want the payola and have not a care in how your feeling after the treatment.



I have been thru 3 in my life,first 2 were dangerous and had no care if they hurt you with their machines and the one I use now is the best I have ever used. He is a graduate of the Palmer Chiropractic Institute and has done the most for me. he does not believe in the old school machines and uses drop leave tables and hand manipulations/tools to make his adjustments. He does not want to hurt you or cause any other discomforts and if I dont feel ok after leaving and need a second tune-up he does not charge for the second trip that day.



He is a FIRM believer in massage therapy before any adjustments as it will allow the problem areas to move into place easier and allow them to hold longer. If ya got any questions let me know and I'll drop you a number you can reach me at... ... Andy

 

[lschultz]

My experience

For years some of my friends have been talking about how they go to chiropractors to get alignment,etc and how much good they do. I have been bothered with back problems since the late 60s when I lifted something at work the wrong way. About a year ago I lifted a steam valve 10" I think up so we could get fork truck under it to move it. Wrong thing to do. For about over a week I limped around at work. It was hard to get in my truck. So I decided to try one of them chiros. I found one in Bastrop that was one our insurance and on the way home. After he does his ex-rays and gives me his recommendations I start out going twice a week for who knows how long then its once a week. That $14 co-pay adds up I remember one morning I had to wait on him about 15 mins. he had bout 6 others waiting on him. They called him and he was on his way. Another time my wife had some problems at work and that made me about 15 mins late for my appointment. There was nobody in the office but him and his wife. He took me in but cut the time and the things he usually did to me short. Did not think to much of it thought maybe I don't need all of that other stuff. So I pay my co-pay and get the bill and go home. Look at the bill when I get home(my fault for not looking at it in his office)and see a 6. 00 late charge he had billed the insurance. Next week I ask him how he thought insurance was going to pay that and he said sometimes they do. After I get my statement from insurance I see that he was denied payment on that. I stopped going to him because I was having problems with my neck. Back in 98 I was in a wreck and one of the problems was my neck 7th disk was on the boder line of having surgery. One neurosurgeon wanted to operate but the one that treated my after wreck said if it did not give me any problems to let it go but if I was ever in another wreck that would do it I would have to have surgery. When that chiro was popping my neck I told him I don't think that is wise thing to do considering what neck had been through. He did it several times and then neck started getting stiffer,etc. I went back to neurologist that saw me when I had wreck and he said popping neck was a wise thing to do. So I had more MRIs,cat scans,Doppler radars,etc,etc,etc can't remember the names of the other tests so I had to go back to another neurosurgeon for more tests. He said it was a fairly simple surgery(for him but what about me)to correct this. Then from one of the cat scans of the brain he saw something so he sent me back for another one where they put dye in your blood so they get a better picture. He wanted to get a better look at this to make sure the problems I was having were not coming from the spot on my brain. He said the size of it had gone down from what he had seen on one of my tests so I have to go back to him in several months for more tests and see if anything can be done or if I just have to live with it. So the neck surgery was put on hold for a while. But since chiro is not popping neck anymore cause I quit going to him it is better as long as it stays like this I can live with it. I think this chiro was out to get all he could out of the insurance company cause he told me several times he was very familiar with the ins.company. I stopped there one day and wanted to talk to him about the 6 bill I was getting him his wife acted like she did not know anything about it(I think she the one that seems the bills out,I would have to talk to him. Was going to file a complaining against him but One day I ask the wife why we were not getting bill from him anymore and she said she payed it . I tired of typing I'm going to wash my truck Thats my story.

 

[The patriot]

Palmer method?

Isnt that scary when you first get on the table. First time there I jumped up off the table. Almost threw a punch at the guy.

I've been going for years. Multiple back problems. Slipped/shifted discs mostly.

I learned that I needed someone with strength to make a proper adjustment.

Since my last change in employment I havent gone. That was over 6 years now.

Eric

 

[Skydiver]

I did not read all the posts.

illflem is correct.

Pick your Dr. carefully.

I have one that can fix lower back pain in 3 visits.

Long walks do me more good than anything.

Tim

 

[Mike Ellis]

My experience was the exact opposite of most of you guys - to wit, chiropractors did doodly for me, and I went to several. Had 2 ruptured disks at age 18 that put me in the hospital in traction for a full week, and kept me in essentially constant pain for 3 or 4 years straight.



The chiropractors would bend, click, squeeze, and fold, and after the pops I felt like SOMETHING must have improved after all that... but after leaving the office the throbbing ache soon returned with full gusto. Saw multiple chiros, going to each for multiple treatment cycles. In my opinion would have done about as much good to go to the zoo and let a monkey jump up and down randomly on my back, in those days I was hurting so bad I would have tried the monkey if somebody told me it would work.



Things that did work for me: walking, swimming, sleeping on a STIFF mattress, weaning myself off the muscle relaxers and pain killers. Out of all of the crapola I tried, the stiff mattress probably did more to ease my pain than all the rest put together.

 

[paccool]

Mike, sorry to hear about the back problems you had. There are some things a Chiropractor can not fix and a ruptured disc is one of them. They should never have worked on you. Guess I've been lucky and found good ones. I've gone off and on for most of my life. If I feel a headache coming on, I go and all is well. I never get into the trap of going twice or three times a week for months, I feel that is BS. Either they can help in just a few visits or they can't do anygood for me.



My wife suffered from Migrain's all her life. Kept trying to get her to go. She finaly tried it a few years ago and she had the same result as I do. She can walk in with a bad headache and walk out with it gone. Thats better than being in bed for 2-3 days and being sick.



What works for some people may not work for others.



Just my feelings here, don't mean to get anyone riled up.



Stan