Regular chiropractic care can improve your health
Millions of Canadians see a chiropractor for spinal problems and injuries each year. Early chiropractic treatment reduces the need for prescription drugs and can help you avoid surgery. It can also help prevent problems before they begin. Below are some common questions and answers to help you better understand how chiropractic treatment affects you and your health.
How does chiropractic care work?
The customized care you receive from your chiropractor may help to improve your posture, muscle balance and mobility. Over time, our spines change and develop problems just like our teeth, eyes and heart. Left unchecked for a long time, these changes may lead to pain, stiffness or other more serious problems.
The spine is home to our nervous system – which is the communication system between your brain and all of your body’s muscles, organs and tissues. Think of your brain as a central command post sending and receiving information through telephone wires (your nerves), which branch out to connect all areas of a city (your body). A short circuit in a wire cuts off communication just like misalignments in your spine can put pressure on the nerves. This pressure interferes with your nervous system, affects your ability to self-heal and may prolong injury or illness.
Chiropractic can restore the integrity of your nervous system and get rid of pain, so you can get back to feeling good… today!
What can I expect from my visit?
When you go into a chiropractors office for the first time, they will do an in-depth review of your condition and medical history.
The chiropractor will perform tests. They may include:
- A check of your reflexes
- A test of your muscle strength
- A specific assessment on the movement of individual vertebrae of the spine and/or other joints of the body
- A check of flexibility and coordination
- An analysis of your posture
- Advanced nerve and muscle testing including E.M.G. and Thermography
This gives the chiropractor a better picture of your complete health. If your chiropractor diagnoses a problem better treated by another health care professional, they will make an appropriate referral.
Treatment may include:
- Chiropractic adjustment in which the chiropractor uses his or her hands or an instrument to apply a specialized gentle, controlled and safe pressure directly on the problem area of your spine.
- Exercise programs and/or soft tissue therapy
- Advice on how you can improve your health through nutrition and ergonomics
- Recommendations for other therapies such as massage and orthotic assessments.
Who pays for my visit?
Before visiting your Chiropractor, check into your private health insurance coverage. You may have coverage on chiropractic treatments up to a certain limit for every calendar year. Chiropractic services are covered by most private health care plans, by all provincial Workers’ Compensation Boards, and by Veterans Affairs Canada, the RCMP and other federal programs. Many people who value their health pay for their own Chiropractic care
Why should I see a Doctor of Chiropractic?
From professional athletes to homemakers, engineers to electricians, young people to seniors, chiropractic care is part of the answer to optimum health. Many people see a Doctor of Chiropractic for back, neck or joint problems. Still others find that regular visits to their chiropractor contributes to thier overall health.
It’s important to understand that you do not need to be experiencing symptoms or pain to benefit from chiropractic care. Your Doctor of Chirpractic can find subluxations before they start causing symptoms.
Regularly a dentist checks our teeth, and optometrist checks our eyes and a doctor checks our blood pressure and heart. Yet, we take the spine – a crucial component of our body – for granted. Call your Doctor of Chiropractic today because regular checkups of your spine can help you maintain better health.