-Ever-

So my girlfriend works at a Chiropractic office that her cousin runs. I just got a free hour long consultation that consisted of watching a movie, muscle/nerve scans, and x-rays. I went because my left shoulder visibly rests three inches higher than my right, and is killing me every day due to surfing.

I have no previous experience with Chiropractics. Assuming that you go with a specific problem to have treated, are they pretty legit in general? One of the reasons I ask is because the doctor was a little quick to say "oh dear, both of your shoulders and elbows are blown" and I'm wondering if it's just to draw me into more $$ examinations. However, I am in pain and the muscle scan results show that the entire left side of my back is three times as tense as the right side...

The practice that I'm going to seems plenty legit, but I just wanted to get a few opinions before I pay cash for my adjustments (my insurance won't be covering them...)

Thanks for any info guys.
-T

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lurkette

Chiropractic is definitely legit for treating back/shoulder/neck pain and headaches. A number of years ago, after ignoring the consequences of a stupid and fairly serious back injury, I woke up unable to sit up, let alone walk. Someone literally carried me to a chiropractor and I walked out of the office. I still had pain, but after a few visits it was markedly better, and a few months later my back was totally normal. I still occasionally go for adjustments when I've strained something or when I can tell something's obviously out of whack (my rib heads sometimes rotate out of place and boy does THAT hurt!).

Where you want to pay close attention is when chiropractors claim to be able to cure any number of other ailments through chiropractic alone. I don't necessarily think it's all quackery, just that the scientific jury is definitely out on chiropractic treating, say, gall bladder disease or cancer or diabetes. There's some evidence that they actually can treat sinus ailments, and maybe ear infections, but for the most part stick to a chiropractor for skeletomuscular stuff, and go to a GP for anything internal.

You might also want to combine chiropractic treatments with massage therapy and yoga, which will help speed healing and make relapses less likely. If your spine's out of whack, the muscles distort and get out of whack to compensate, and moving the spine back where it belongs can actually cause muscle pain as the muscles struggle to readjust or to pull your bones back where the muscles are used to. Massage can calm the muscles down, and yoga will develop strength and flexibility to prevent injury in the first place.

Good luck!

Oh, one more thing - chiropractors are a lot less likely to jump to surgery as a primary treatment for back and neck pain, which I think is definitely a positive. I can't tell you how many friends I have who were told by traditional doctors that they NEEDED back/neck surgery, and that even the surgery wouldn't get them back to 100%, and who went instead to chiropractors and regained full functionality. Without getting cut open.

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Redlemon

You might also consider physical therapy. At the core, chiropractic is about bone manipulation, while PT is about muscle manipulation. I would think that repositioning and strenghening the muscles to get the bones where they should be is a better response. (My SIL is a PT).

absorbentishe

I used to go for years. Yes I think they are valid, but I also think they do only enough to get you to come back several time. They helped my back pain, but after a week or so, it came back, and had to go back. I finally stopped going all together, and haven't had that pain since.

To me they are snake oil salesman, they tell you just enough, but keep you coming back for more.

ARTelevision

Well, I know of many folks who were helped after regular medical treatment failed. It's anecdotal, but personal. They're trustworthy skeptical folks who had to admit it worked for them.

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maleficent

I'd agree with that- -when I screwed up my back a few years ago -- I went to a chiropractor -- BIG HUGE MISTAKE- ended up making my problems worse-- the physical therapist, worked on strengthening the muscles - not just tweaking the bones- they fixed the problem and it doesn't require me going back every two weeks for another adjustment.

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Dane Bramage

Chiropractor worked well for me. I had lower back strain, and after a few visits he fixed me right up.

Message therapy is also good for muscle issues. Not to mention the fact that is just plain feels good.

DB.

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-Ever-

Thanks for the info guys. So it sounds important to go with a specific ailment in mind and not get easily talked into further treatment for something else they recomend, like a sore tongue....

-T

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Embracing the goddess energy within yourselves will bring all of you to a new understanding and valuing of life. A vision that inspires you to live and love on planet Earth. Like a priceless jewel buried in dark layers of soil and stone, Earth radiates her brilliant beauty into the caverns of space and time. Perhaps you are aware of those who watch over your home And experience of this place to visit and play with reality. You are becoming aware of yourself as a gamemaster...
--Acknowledge your weaknesses--

Paq

i'd say completely legit, but go to soeone whom is 'recommended" or fairly well known. it is definitely a position where you can be skeptical and say, "Well, this persno only did so much so i'll have to go back again and again" as a lot of back/neck/shoulder/just troubles in general come back with a vengeance depending on circumstances.

Also, a lot of the doctors see a lot of patients who may have similar troubles, so it is easy to see someone and within 30 seconds say, "oh, you have a blown shoulder, bad spinal alignment, etc." it's disconcerting to walk in and have somenoe barely touch you and just calling out stuff that is probably wrong with you, but in most cases, it's a fairly accurate assessment. I would tend to trust someone who takes their time to make sure everything is right over someone who just looks and diagnoses in an instant. Both are probably right, but doublechecking, etc, just makes it a bit easier to swallow.

I also feel that chiropractors are best used in conjunction with a general practitioner and a physical therapist/massage therapist. People rarely look at health from a wholistic approach and always search the easiest/fastest route, which, unfortunately, leads to "you need surgery" when really, you just need to determine what is causing the problem and correct.

For instance, a friend was in a car wreck and tweaked her back. Her doctor sent her to a chiropractor who "cracked"/adjusted her back. the pain was gone for a week and she returned for the same treatment again and again. she switched chiropractors to one with a massage therapist and a physical therapist and found out that she had certain nodules in her back htat were forcing her muscles to pull her back out of alignment. The first chiropractor did not address that issue which lead to rehab that lasted about 3 months too long...

ask questions when you're there, make sure you're getting everythign you should be. if something sounds odd, ask them to explain it. When all else fails, go to springfield and ask for Homer's miracle back cure garbage can treatment...

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adam

I'm pretty skeptical about most things at the edge of science, but I've known too many people helped by chiropractors to think it's all bunk. I still suspect the "theory" of being bunk, but perhaps many chiropractors are effective physical therapists, at least for standard aches and pains. (My brother had a serious back injury in his youth, and he swears by his chiropractor.)

It's like acupuncture; the theory is, um, bizarre, but in practice it obviously works well for some people.

It may also depend on whom you get. My wife tried it and thought the guy was a quack... so I'd advise looking for recommendations.

Rodney

Chiropractors do help, but they are limited. As somebody said, they do bone, not muscle. But if your spine is out of line and causing muscle spasms, putting the veterbrae back in alignment quickly will speed healing.

That said...

Many chiropractors are limited in their knowledge. I went to chiropractors for many years for chronic pain. None of them asked, "What are you sleeping on?" "What kind of shoes do you wear? Are the sole is good repair?" Things like a good mattress and good shoes can make a world of difference, yet chiropractors never get into that.

Stretching is another issue. When I've had spasms, a few chiropractors will usually tell me to do a couple of rudimentary stretching exercises to speed healing. I only met one who ever told me I should do it on a daily basis, and his stretching exercises were lame. Later, when I started practicing yoga on my own, I saw what a huge difference it made.

So, based largely on discoveries I made on my own or through my own research (yoga, good mattresses and shoes), my back, while still somewhat unstable, almost never gives me problems anymore. And these are things that no chiropractor ever taught me. A physical therapist might, and there's also a breed of doctor called a physiatrist that deals with chronic back pain in a constructive manner. You might be better off with one of these guys or a sports physician or therapist who can teach you how to surf without stressing out your body.

So if your back is bothering you and you're already in spasm, I would go to a chiropractor to get a quick fix. They can do it. But I would not stay for a long treatment program. Because chiropractors don't deal with environmental issues (repetitive stress, shoes, sitting posture, mattresses), they're of limited use for a lot of chronic problems. They may make things better for a while, but if the underlying cause is something that you're doing or not doing, the pain'll always come back.

I do have one chiropractor I see occasionally on the rare time that I think my back might spasm, for a preventative backcrack. But that's maybe once every couple of years.

And last....

Yeah, a lot of chiropractors are '_way eager to sign you up for a long series of treatments. That's how they make their money. The guy I go to, occasionally, is one of the few guys who doesn't take insurance and doesn't overtreat. Even if I was going there regularly, he'd probably only want to see me four or five times for any particular attack. He thinks some chiropractors treat too much because they want the money, and end up doing harm.

waltert

I got out of form doing squats with 365 pounds on my back. originally it was my upper back that was hurt, I went to see a chitopracter. now I have neck problems on a regular basis. I might look into some of you guys sugestions though. I went to a massage person and she told me that my neck/shoulder area was extremely tense, and that there were several muscle knots. I only went once so it didnt help much. lol, every time I move my neck, it pops...I really need to get this fixed. by the way, im only 18 years old, so if I dont find a way to fix it, ive got a long life of pain ahead

shortynickel

some of my family members swear by chiropractors....since they seem to be the only ones to be able to help there backs and stuff

OFKU0

Never had a personal experience myself but I always chuckle when my cousin ( who has sold, pawned, begged, borrowed and stole in all of the 3 jobs he has had in his life) introduces himself as a doctor everywhere since after all, he is a chiropracter.

Funny how someone can go blindly (drunkardly) through university taking no more than the necessary requirements, barely graduating with still no major declared and attend a 6 month course studying the art of chiropractics and poof,...he's a doctor.

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Untitled

Chiropractics is just a scary field, in my opinion. There are tons of people who swear by it, but if you actually study it, there is no 'scientific proof' of its validity. So whichever is more important to you....

That said, I'd like to echo the people who mentioned Physical Therapy, especially for your shoulder. There are only two (3 if you count the arm) bones in your shoulder to work with and tons of muscles/ligaments/etc. Maybe at least look into it?

good luck.

Mephisto2

My wife is a physiotherapist. I believe you call them physical therapists in America.

She has a BSc in Physiotherapy, a Master's degree in Sports physiotherapy and a Master's degree in Manipulative physiotherapy. This puts her in the top 3% of qualified physiotherapists in Australia. I'm also told that Australia produces some of the best physiotherapists in the world.

She believes that chiropractors are over-rated, do not understand the underlying mechanics and dynamics of human anatomy as well as they should and often do more harm than good. Having said that, what they do (manipulating joints) is what she has one of her Master's degrees in. She accepts that they often do some good, but that an injured person is best recommended going to see a qualified physio who is better trained in treating them; not only their particular joints, but other related topics such as referred pain, the human nervous systems, muscular injuries etc.

Make of this as you will.


Mr Mephisto

divagrrrl

I don't need scientific proof that chiropractic works. I am WALKING proof.

<<< is a licensed Massage Therapist in practice with a chiropractor for the last 6 years

hannukah harry

my good friends brother is gonna be chiropracter. his gf's mom always introduces him to her friends by saying he's going to be a doctor. but, and i could be wrong, chiropracters are not doctors, and to call themselves that could incure legal penalties. from my understanding, they're like orthotists and prothetists, they get a masters degree or a masters certificate. they're "practitioners." from my time doing observations at an O&P facility, they won't correct you if you call them dr., but they shouldn't be calling themselves that. maybe chiro's do get a phd in the field, but they are not medical doctors.

that said, i went to one for about a month, getting adjusted 4-5x week, and after about 2 weeks, my back felt better than i could ever remember. but then school started up again, and i couldn't get there because of the commute and schedule. after about a month, it went back to feeling it's normal crappy self.

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ShaniFaye

(find Eddie Izzards monologue about chiropracters running thru her head...quoted in part "..gotta make the noise..I live for the noise" "we're gonna crack your bones"

I have to be honest and say I've always thought it was a sham...if it was any good why would need to have to keep going back to be adjusted...I liken it to a drug addict needing a fix...

A really bad car accident cured my back problem (be careful what you wish for when wishing for a healing lol)

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Swirlie

I have a chiropractor who I trust... finally. After years of hearing "you have to come back every 2 - 3 weeks for an adjustment" I finally have one who tells me that I know my body best, and that when I feel the need to a re-alignment, to come in. I was active in gymnastics growing up, and am still quite flexible... so it's also been kinda tough finding one that can actually effectively manipluate me... (man.. that sounds bad...)

That being said, I also personally know a guy who had a hairline fracture in his neck (prior to going to a chiropractor) that went for a treatment and had his neck broken. I always worry about that since x-rays, bone and muscle scans aren't a normal part of the chiropractic experience...

but they work for me, so hey - to each their own.

Jackebear

Swirlie...you are right on...find one you can trust. I have had a regular chiropractor for 20 years and I will find it difficult to find another like him. After I had a car accident I called him right away and he said to come in that afternoon. I had whiplash of course. He then said come back in 48 hours because the next day everything was going to be stiff and it was. I went back 2 days later and 5 days after that and everything was alright.

He has always told me to come when I feel the need to come. Sometimes I haven't seen him in 2 or 3 years. And his visits were always a minimum of 30 min. up to 45 min. He would use massage, stretches to relax the back muscles and then do his adjustment. I have never been hurt by him.

When I was living in another city, I tried a number of other chiropractors and it was a terrible experience....5-10 min. crack, crack and come back in 2 days. Everyone wanted to get as many customers they could per hour or day and as many times a week. And people would fall for it. If I didn't know any better, I probably would come back all the time and spend a fortune at the same time.

Find one who takes his time and is not so worried about driving a Mercedes. And remember...your back or neck will tell you when to go for an adjustment.

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Speed_Gibson

It most definitely is legit. I should add that my dad has had his own practice for almost 30 years now, but for what is worth I only missed four-five sick days of school from kindergarten through 12 grade and my dad gave me many adjustments over the years.
His practice is mainly Contact Reflex Analysis (I saw the negative hits on google and have to heartily disagree with most of them from my own observations and experiences) and nutrional supplements now though, as he very rarely uses his x-ray machine and has moved away from traditional Chiropractic quite a bit.

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Y2KDREAD

It works, i played tuba in highschool marching band, and that thing fucks up your back. And they made it so i was not hurting all the time

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Rubyee

It depends on the chiropractor. When I started seeing mine, he set up a plan that had me out in a year, with more frequent visits in the first part, and only one visit a month for the final nine months. I figured, what the hell, I can't expect to be "cured" after one visit.

I had horrible pain in my neck and shoulder, which started years ago as a once or twice a month thing, which started to move up to an every day occurance. Now, four months into my chiropractic therapy, I feel the pain closer to my once a month visit, but between my visits I am pain free. He says that when I am done, I should very seldom see it.

I think that it is a very legitimate practice. It isn't an exact science, like internal medicine, so of course there will be times when it does not help, but I think that overall chiropractors are good people with bad reps.

Mephisto2

It's not that isn't legit, it's that they're simply not trained to the same standard as a maniupulative physiotherapist, who effectively does the same thing.

Go to a physio, specifically a musculoskeletal physio, for the treatment.

Mr Mephisto

Shizukana

My grandmother had a slipped disc in her back, which literally left her in bed on her back for most of the summer around fifteen years ago. She began to visit a chiropractor, and was able to walk with little to no pain at all within a few months. She went from multiple times a week to once a week, to once a month. Now she only goes if she's been doing a lot of housework and throws something out of whack.

I was in grade school at the time and lived with them for most of the summer. Seeing her in the state she was in over the summer and watching her improve markedly over the course of the summer and fall leads me to believe that as long as you find a good chiropractor that's been around for a while and knows what he or she is doing, you will definately not regret the decision to go.

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dy156

Sorry if I'm stepping on alot of toes, here, but it's not legit, and dangerous. Not only did a chiropracter screw up my grandfather's back -severely- I've seen way too many that are crooked in my work, and talked to too many doctors (MD's) that have absolutely no respect for chiropracty as a field. If you want to know/read more, try:

http://www.chirobase.org

Diamond

I'm a firm beleiver in chiropractic, but it really depends on your condition. Some things like tears or ruptures or infirmities of aging won't be helped. My back was a mess when I started, I now go only when I need a tweak. I messed my knee up, luckily nothing was torn, but the chiropractor put it back in place.

sadatx

Aw yes the whole stick out your arm and let me push down on it while poking you with my other hand.

Sorry to sound skeptical, but in my experience I've had problems with chiropractors who rely too heavily on this method. I just don't buy into it. On the whole it just seems a ridiculous way to diagnose a patient.


On the whole I think chiropractors are good for a few things, but a physical therapist is probably better in most cases.

eyejae

Just something from the newbie of the hour:

I have never seen a chiropractor who really was legit. As was mentioned above, they do enough to get you to come back.

In high school, I injured my back playing football (yes I am a girl, and yes I said played football in high school). I went to an osteopath. I would highly recommend an osteopath rather than a chriopracter.

dy156

"Osteopaths" are real doctors. They have "D.O." after their name instead of "M.D." Their school of thought branched off from "regular" medicine about the time chiropracty did, but they still study real medicine, not quackery in medical schools. Nowadays, D.O.'s are pretty much just like MD's. You'll find them in hospitals and emergency rooms with the same privileges (and same salaries). Pretty much, DO schools are just a place for aspiring doctors who might not have scored as well as the students in traditional med schools. they still have to take the same boards to become a doctor and pass. A D.O. who works hard in med school can get into almost all of the same residency programs as MD's and a stands a better chance of getting into a prestigious residency program than an MD student who did not do as well in school. If any med school students or doctors are reading this, please back me up.
None of this is the case with Doctors of Chiropracty. I'm not trying to bash any chiropractors or sons or daughters of chiropractors, but real doctors largely have a very low opinion of chiropractors, and there are good reasons behind this.

Mondak

I agree with this and will add some more.

Getting a Chiropractic License is a far different ball of wax than something like an MD or being a PT (Physical Therapist). This means that as far as accreidation goes, there is a lot of leeway. You can be a licensed chiropractor and do things like healing hands where the body's own life force heals without direct physical contact or you can be one who bends your body in all kinds of directions for "adjustments". It runs the gambit and so you don't know if your malady will respond to the person's chosen method of treatment.

To go a step further - I think a lot of them are quacks. While some are good - if you go to 10 chiropractors with the same ailment, I bet you get 10 different treatment plans with few similarities. To me there are a few ways to fix things and a lot of ways to make it worse. Personally, I think most of them are in the business of getting lifetime patients. People who feel better when they leave but are not fixed (maybe ever).

I think the following would be reasonable questions to expect answers to.

1 - How many sessions will this take? The scientific ones who are more responsible will answer this with at least a specific range. The others will give at best nebulous answers and not give anything at all specific saying it is too hard to tell / too many variables. Asking about what the same injury on someone else has taken to fix is not unreasonable. Asking the longest or shortest treatments for the same injury is not unreasonable. If they cannot answer, they do not have enough experience with your problem to fix you or they have no intension to do so and instead are looking for someone who they can bill for sessions as long as they can.

2 - What milestones in between treatment 1 and treatment X (x= answer 1 above) are you looking for to know that we can move on to the next phase or that the injury is responding. I would look for 3-4 clear and measurable milestons. Again, you will get a lot of "impossible to tell" here from people who just want to bill you instead of fix you. These can be answered to at least SOME degree.

3 - What guarentee are they willing to put on the treatment's sucess. I doubt anyone would answer this, but it is the way they answer I think is most important. Maybe instead find out at what point in answer 2 would they STOP treating you since you are not responding to a long term fix. Put their focus on the fix and not the treatment of pain.

Like Redlemon, my SIL is a PT as well (no relation that I know of) and she is in San Diego. She can recomend someone to you. There is a reason most health insurers don't take chiropractors bills since there is almost no end to the bills once they start. On the flip side, your MD even if you are in an HMO will most likely happily write you a perscription to get Physical Therapy. They are used to people coming in with pain looking for a perscription for meds and so most are very happy to oblidge with something like that (especially since they are not on the hook for follow-up). PT is something that insurance usually covers and they teach you a bunch in the process you can use the rest of your life if there is ever any problems or if you ever have a similar injury.

PM me if you would like me to talk to her for you or give you a call.

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Holo

I injured my back about 7.5 years ago and I went to two chiros. The first was the "back breaker" type. He would bear down on you until he heard a "release" (a crack). Plus he was very snappy with his movements, which was kinda scary as he "released" my neck. I stopped going to him once my back got better (prolly on it's own) but had a flare up some time later and went to another chiro. This guy was the shit. He had several machines for muscle manipulation and had better tables that were designed for chiropractic work. He did releases much more gently and and didn't worry if no crack was heard. He told me if it didn't crack it was OK as it didn't have to. Alignment was more important to him than popping. So I do think there are good ones, and pure quacks. Maybe take a tour of the facilities and see what equipment he's invested in first

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analog

Ditto on that one. I have a dislike for chiropractics in general, all adds up to bullshit for me.