How is chiropractic different than traditional medical care?
Chiropractic Pseudoscience
I'm sure you have heard, "a chiropractor isn't a real doctor." And that isn't totally wrong. A chiropractor does not prescribe medications, potions, lotions and pills for ailments. We use the body's own ability to heal itself to treat patients. "Wait...I thought...
Chiropractic Fixes the Problem
The main difference between chiropractic care and traditional medicine is the methodology behind treatment. Chiropractic is focused on identifying the cause of the symptom, while traditional medicine is focused on alleviating the symptom. We will use neck pain with...
Chiropractic Founder’s Day
September 18th is Chiropractic Founder's Day! It's pretty much like Christmas for us chiropractors. Well, ok, that is a huge exaggeration. But it is the day that we recognize as the first chiropractic adjustment and celebrate DD Palmer's birthday. The first...
How Many Adjustments?
I was reviewing our yearly statistics last week and the average person was adjusted 7 times. A lot of people think that once you get adjusted you always have to go back to the chiropractor. Of course regular wellness care is a great idea to prevent injuries and allow...
Why is Chiropractic so Contentious?
I was watching Dr. Riekeman, Dr. Sigafoose, Dr. Barge and BJ Palmer videos the other day. It was a great way to get spizzed up again about chiropractic care. Rekindle the fire I have had about how awesome chiropractic care is and that passion has been in me since I...
What causes a subluxation?
A subluxation can be caused by quite a few mechanisms. We classify them all into three basic categories. Thoughts, Traumas and Toxins. Thoughts: A fun way to say stress. The old saying of a day of worry is more tiring than a week of work is very true. That stress...
Orthotics, Biofreeze and Pillows…Oh My
Did you know at Elements Chiropractic we also carry products that cater to your health needs? Recently we started stocking: Custom made orthotics by Footlevelers ($200). These are custom made in house and can be made for any shoe type and activity level. Biofreeze...
Pain Control vs Correction
Have you ever had a crack in your wall? Patched it and painted over it and it looked great. Then to find out a year later it came back again. Apparently there was some underlying problem with the structure to the wall or foundation making that crack come back...
Chiropractic Treatment Plan
A treatment plan will vary for each patient. I will try to lay out some typical parameters and guidelines here to explain how long some common injuries and symptoms I see in my office take to see/feel results. Of course all of these are just general guidelines and...
Holiday Stress and Chiropractic
This time of year we all start to experience more stress. From the joys of cooking and hanging out with family to the excitement of racing around to find that perfect gift. And of course don't forget about all that lovely Michigan snow that we get to shovel and snow...
What Does Your Spine Do?
I'm often amazed at how many people I meet that don't know how chiropractic works. I figured a good way to start the lesson would be teaching what the spine actually does in our bodies. The spine serves basically two purposes, protection for your central nervous...
What is a Typical Chiropractic Treatment Schedule
Most patients that present to my office have back pain, neck pain, headaches, sciatica, arm pain or tingling, and hip pain. We will discuss some of the options of a "typical" treatment plan. How many treatments it takes for the "average" patient to feel better. And...
What Causes A Subluxation?
A subluxation is a misalignment of the spine that causes pressure on the exiting nerve root and causes pain, inflammation and muscle spasm. A chiropractor is a doctor that specializes in correcting subluxations. This correction, either by hand or instrument,...
How Does Chiropractic Work?
Chiropractic is a medical profession that focuses on correction of the spine to decrease subluxations. A subluxation is a rotation of your vertebrae (the bones of your spine) that causes compression on a nerve root. There are three ways a nerve can become pinched in...
Chiropractic is Drug Free
I'm sure you have seen in the news or read on Facebook or Twitter how many people are effected by opioid addiction. It is an incredibly difficult addiction to overcome and unfortunately can lead to a heroin addiction, which is all too available in our area. A lot of...
Do You Need More than One Adjustment to Feel Better?
As chiropractic becomes more mainstream medical care more and more patients that have never been to a chiropractor are discovering the benefits of chiropractic care for the first time. Along with this new experience are of course a few points of confusion for...
Chiropractic for Chronic Pain
Using opioid pain killers may actually prolong chronic pain for patients. The University of Colorado in Boulder released a study showing that following a traumatic nerve injury using morphine can actually prolong the recovery. The opioid drug causes an irritation to...
What’s Wrong with Me?
When a patient first presents with pain they often have three questions. What is wrong with me? Can you help me? How much will it cost? So let's cover some of these basics the best I can in a blog article. Of course every patient and case is different and have their...
It Takes Time to Heal
One of the most common questions I answer is, "how long will it take for me to feel better?" I totally understand this concern, when patients are in pain that is their main focus. And really mine too for initial care. Most patients present due to a pain symptom....
Chiropractic Prevents Pain and Illness
This is going to be a completely different way of thinking of your health care for a lot of people. I'm sure you have heard about wellness and preventative care over the past few years with the new ACA changes. You most likely get one well visit examination per year...
What does Subluxation Feel Like?
A subluxation is a misalignment of a bone that causes pressure on the joint and nerve root that exits from your spine at that level. A subluxation can also occur in an extremity joint like an ankle, wrist, or elbow. A chiropractor uses a gentle adjustment to correct...