What do you think about Chiropractic Care?

[ChristineG]

By this question, I am not asking about symptom-based treatment, such as, "I had a sore back, went to the Chiro and it was great after that.", but I am wondering what everyone thinks of going on a regular basis, like you go to the dentist. I am working through this concept. We used to all go all the time and have not been for 5 years. My ds, who had no probs when we were going to the chiro, has had all kinds of ear problems over the years and I finally realized that he probably would have benefitted from the chiro all this time. So, I have taken all 4 kids back for wellness care. They are fairly inexpensive, so I am not too concerned with that, but dh and I are struggling through whether or not we want to go back. It is a lot more costly for us. Do you think it is worth it?

[Soliloquy]

Well, this is just my opinion, and I must start by saying that I'm not very well educated on chiropractic care and have never been to one . . .

I don't think our bodies need regular "adjusting." I think if you've been injured or have chronic health issues and a chiropractor helps you feel better, great. But, if you're in good health and treat your body well (good food, sleep, water, exercise, etc) you don't need anyone to manipulate your skeleton.

JMO, for what it's worth :shrug

[ArmsOfLove]

I think it's wise to tune up your body at least as much as you tune up your car :) I miss seeing our chiro regularly.

[gamomof2]

A friend of mine takes her kids to the chiro regularly. I'd love to learn more about it.

[cobluegirl]

we haven't been yet either but would like to. I think it can be beneficial. But that all depends upon your care provider too.

[Irene]

I agree with Crystal, dh and I always talk about how we take better care of our cars than our bodies :/ I have never been to a chiro though....

[puddleduck]

It depends on what kind of problems you are going in for and what kind of chiro you have.
If your being trated for an acute problem like whiplash-short-term treatment is usually enough. If your being treated for a 'lifestyle' problem or degenerative process-it makes sense to treat it over a lifetime. There are lots of health problems that are able to be treated with spinal manipulation, not just back and neck pain-things like carpal tunnel for one (&I know of at least 8 babies off the top of my head that have been successfully treated for 'colic' by a chiropractor). I think it's a bit scary that allopathic medicine ignores problems like these until they disapear or require surgery (or workers comp).
I think our backs weren't designed to cope with the strains that often expected of them. How many Western adults do you know that prefer to squat on the floor, rather than sit on a chair? Yet every health professional will tell you that squatting is a much more natural position for your back. Most office equipment and seats in cars are not designed with spinal health in mind and people that use them a lot are much more likely to have problems.

Sorry about the novella-it sounds like I'm in advertising doesn't it. :smile

[Thia]

Well, two visits later I must say I think they are a good idea a few times a year at least. How much of this pain could have been prevented if I was going once in a while? Plus, after my first visit, I realized that much of my jaw clenching had let up. I didn't even go there for that. I can't believe how much better my jaw feels and I didn't even let her go near my neck!

[TillSuper6]

I started going for a pinched nerve and know I cant wait to Friday to get here. I was having digestive problems and it releaved those. I had the clenched jaw tension and I am slowly after every adjustment relieving that aswell. Eventhough I have just started seeing one for about a month, DH and I agree it will become a lifestyle change. IT is so amazing how much the care of your spinal column affects your other system. Eventhough I have no scientific knowledge or profound wisdom, I think visiting a chiropractor could up your level of health and wellbeing. We are trying to figure out how to manage to send our 4 kids because they are not covered under insurance and I have bedwetting issues with my oldest and I want to explore how that would help him.

[purstrength]

I'll admit upfront that I'm biased...I've been raised in chiropractic care. I have three in different branches of my immediate family. :lol

Different things can cause trauma to our spine. Chairs, were mentioned before, the beds we sleep in - look at all the commercials we have for mattresses. Falling, sitting, sleeping or walking(limping) for whatever reason. All cause some stress on the spine. I do recommend seeing a chiropractor...as often as you feel you need to go. If you've been in an accident/whiplash/specific condition, I recommend following your chiro's advice a little closer. Personally though, even though its free and we can go whenever we want, we sometimes only go once every two months, or every three. We just listen to our bodies cues and go when we're sore.

Sorry, I've had a long weekend and I'm rambling. :blush

[allisonintx]

I would agree that we don't need regular chiropractic care..IF

There was no such thing as a bucket seats messing up our backs to no end, or computer chairs, or carpal tunnel syndrome, or shoes that offer incorrect foot/body support causing all kinds of problems in children and adults alike, stress, muscles not used to 'tote that barge and lift that bale' that no longer work as God intended to hold our bodies in alignment, 30lb babies to carry on one hip causing scoliosis in most mothers.....

...did I mention my brother is a chiropractor? did I mention my babies get adjusted withing moments of their births? did I mention that I really love my chiropractor and am thankful for the relief he provides my body?

[cobluegirl]

Allison...I wish we had someone like that here....waaa..the one guy we have will be moving in a couple of months because he will be done with school..... :(

[ChristineG]

Okay, here's another question. And, it is not a confrontive type of question because mostly I really do believe in Chiropractic care for most of the reasons others have confirmed for me. While it is easy to understand how chiropractic can be helpful in the case of back care, I also do understand how alignment of the spine can affect all systems. In studying physiology in College, before I had any exposure to Chiropractic, I was amazed at how every nerve in the body came out of the spinal cord. Anyway...

Chiropractors say that the body is amazing and capable of healing itself. Obviously, we all agree with this. God made us with immune systems and platelets and a host of things that help us heal 'ourselves'. The chiropractors say that what they do is remove interference (subluxations) in the nervous system so that the body can do its job. My question is then, Why are subluxations the one thing that the body cannot heal on its own? I'll have to get my Chiropractor's take on this, too. What do you think?

[allisonintx]

Christine, I think that is a good question. If your chiro is honest, they will tell you that subluxation is actually a theory and no one really knows exactly why chiropractic care works so well. My brother has been trying to wrap his considerable brain around this for ages, and still struggles with it even though he is a chiro, himself. I think it's like Carpal Tunnel. It's not so much the subluxation that is the problem, as it is the repetitive motions and behaviors that cause them that are the problem. Ex: If I could quit carrying a child around on my hip, the curvature in my spine that has developed to compensate for it would go away, as would all the pains caused by the curvature itself.

[lmgeenw]

I went to the chiropractor all through my pregnancy with my son and had both my children regularly adjusted for about a year. There were times when I was totally convinced that it helped and other times when I was convinced we were wasting time and money. It seemed to help my daughter relax and sleep and it seemed to help my son not cry as much as a baby. As far as our general health, it didnt' seem to help our immunity at all, which is what I really hoped for. It also didn't help me avoid back labor when I had my son, which is the second thing I had really hoped for. We stopped going when our chiro retired. Sometimes I wonder if we should start going again though.

[LoveToReadMommy]

Whenever dd has an earache and we get her an adjustment, it gets better within hours.

I've been getting adjusted every month this pregnancy, and my back hasn't bothered me at all.

Our chiro is also our naturalpathic physician, so we get nutritional info and supplements through him. He helps treat our seasonal allergies naturally. (doesn't always work though :banghead)