Laying the foundation for total health

In some ways, one could say that chiropractic care is a bit like building a house - certain things have to happen in a particular order in order for everything to stand strong and work together correctly. When building a house, if you tried to build your walls before you had a solid foundation, your walls would be weak and eventually may even collapse. If you tried to build your roof before the walls were ready, you would run into the same problem. These concepts apply to your body as well, and chiropractic care addresses many common reasons why people experience pain and other health issues. If something is not right with your body's foundation, than that needs to be addressed before true health can be achieved. With chiropractic care, your body has to go through a particular plan of care in order to repair itself correctly and fully. There are three general phases of chiropractic care . . .

Phase 1: Relief Care

Many people go to a chiropractor because they are in pain.  During phase 1 of care, the main goal will be to reduce your systems and get you out of pain.  This will require visits, two to three times per week for a period of time.

Most people are under the assumption that if they don’t feel pain, there is nothing wrong with them and they are completely healthy.  Unfortunately pain is a very poor indicator of health.  In fact, pain and other symptoms frequently only appear after a disease or other condition has become advanced.

Here is an example of what we mean by this, consider a cavity in your tooth.  Does it hurt when it first develops or only after it has become serious?  How about heart disease?  Regardless of whether you are talking about cancer, heart disease, diabetes, stress or problems with the spine, pain is usually the last thing to appear.  When you begin chiropractic care, pain is also the first symptom to disappear, even though much of the underlying condition remains.

Phase 2: Corrective/Restorative Care

Most Chiropractors regard the elimination of symptoms as the easiest part of a patient’s care.  However, if all that the chiropractor does is to reduce the pain and stop there, then the chances of those same symptoms recurring are much greater.  In order to prevent a frequent recurrence of symptoms, it is necessary to continue with your recommended care even though the symptoms are gone. 

During the correction/restorative phase of your care, you will not have to come in as frequently for your adjustments as you did during your first phase of care as by now your body should be holding on to these adjustments longer and you may also be doing exercises and stretches at home to help accelerate your healing.

Please do not be discouraged if you have mild flare-ups of your symptoms on occasion during this phase of care.  This is normal.  Flare-ups are likely to occur because your body has not fully healed yet and depending on the severity of your specific injury or condition and how long you have been suffering from it, this phase of your care may last anywhere from a few months to a couple of years.

Phase 3: Wellness Care

Once your body has fully healed, routine or maintenance chiropractic care will help to ensure that your physical problems do not return.  Routine visits will also keep your body functioning at an optimal level.  Just as important as continuing an exercise program and eating well in order to sustain the benefits of exercise and a proper diet, it is necessary to continue chiropractic care to ensure the health of your musculoskeletal system. 

When you make the choice to make routine chiropractic care a part of your lifestyle, you avoid many of the aches and pains that so many people suffer through.  Your joints will last longer and you will be able to engage in more of those activities that you love.  Routine chiropractic adjustments also help to keep your immune system functioning at a high level helping you avoid many common illnesses.