Tag: back pain

Common factors that affect the speed of your recovery

This article has the goal of explaining what are the common factors that will influence the process of getting a patient better with chiropractic care. When we sit with our patient after their New Patient Exam and explain our findings, we expect to answer many questions. Here are the 4 most common  ones we hear: 1) How did this happen? 2) Can you help me? 3) How much will it cost? 4) How long will it take?

The amount of time to recover is based on several objective factors, and on the clinical judgment and experience of the chiropractor. Here are several factors:
  • The diagnosis: the root cause of the issue will determine the recovery length. The cause of the injury is one of the most important factors, as it indicates what structure of the body is injured, and how. For example, a disc herniation will generally take longer to heal than a rib subluxation.
  • Which structure is affected: different parts of the body (nerve, muscle, disc, ligament, tendon, etc) have different healing rates. Some tissues heal very fast, while some take longer (some tissues have less blood vessels and nerves feeding them, thus don’t recover as quickly).
  • The chronicity of the complaint: if a problem has been there for more than 3 months, it is deemed chronic. Chronic issues may take longer to heal, as they have taken longer to appear and have been around for a while.
  • The gravity of the issue: some injuries are worse than other, thus take longer to heal. For example, ankle pain caused by a fracture will take longer to heal than ankle pain caused by a sprained ligament.
  • The patient’s age: often, the recovery may be more lengthy for someone older. The cell turnover rate diminishes over time, which means tissues take longer to regenerate.
  • The patient’s overall health: the healthier the person, the better the body can adapt to new demand and recover quicker. If the patient has many co-morbidities, there is already lots of demand on their body, so the injury healing may take longer.
  • The patient’s lifestyle: some activities take away from the body’s healing process (ex: smoking, drinking, poor nutrition, poor hydration, poor exercise habits), while some activities promote the healing process (good nutrition, proper exercise, good sleep, meditation, social interactions, positive outlooks, etc).
  • The nervous system health of the patient: the nervous system (brain + spinal cord + peripheral nerves) is the system by which information travels throughout the body. An optimal nervous system is one which has very little interference, allowing the information to travel adequately between the brain and the injured structure. Chiropractic adjustments help to reduce the interference caused by spinal subluxations (mis-alignments of the spinal vertebrae, that may irritate the spinal cord).

To conclude, there are many different elements that go into determining the prognosis for every patient. Everybody is different, which means that no two people respond identically to their condition. Your chiropractor will explain your condition thoroughly, for you to have a realistic expectation of your care!

 

Are all patients adjusted the same way?

Do you ever find  yourself looking at online videos of chiropractic adjustments, and wonder, “Is it the same adjustment for everyone”? From an observer’s standpoint, it might look that way. In reality, all patients are NOT adjusted the same way, and here is the explanation!

Different diagnosis, different treatment

First off, all patients go through the initial New Patient examination (history, physical exam, possible imaging), which leads to a specific diagnosis of their condition. Depending on the diagnosis, the chiropractor will choose which technique is best suited to treat the issue. There is such a wide variety of treatment techniques, such as manual adjustments, drop table assisted adjustments, decompression techniques, soft tissue release, instrumentation adjusting, trigger point therapy, and the list goes on! For example, the treatment technique used for a herniated disc won’t likely be the same treatment used for a posterior costo-vertebral joint irritation (rib pain).

Different adjustments within the same technique

When watching a chiropractor adjust several people using the same technique, it may look like they are doing the same thing on everyone. However, even when using the same technique (i.e. manual adjusting), there is a vast difference from one person to the next. The chiropractor must identify which joint is subluxated (restricted, fixed joint), and assess in which direction it must be adjusted. When performing the adjustment, the chiropractor chooses the appropriate point of contact on the joint, and thrusts in a specific vector, with a certain force and speed. These parameters of the adjustment vary depending on the joint restriction, and on the patient’s body type and skeletal maturity. Every adjustment is based on the findings of the assessment, and is meticulously planned and executed for the needs of that specific spine and diagnosis.

Does the patient have a say in it?

Absolutely! Chiropractic is a patient centered care, and the patient’s preference is a valuable part of the treatment strategy. Of course, the chiropractor will be the one determining WHAT needs to be adjusted, but will happily take into account the patient’s preference on HOW it is adjusted. For example, some patients prefer the low-impact instrument adjustments, whereas others favor the audible release from a manual adjustment. Patients are encouraged to voice their opinions. After all, the treatments we provide are easily tailored to fit with our patient’s needs and deliver the best outcomes possible!

 

 

Postpartum Chiropractic Care: Supporting the 4th Trimester

The arrival of a baby brings a woman to an exciting chapter of her life. Some new wonderful emotions surface, and different priorities are setting in. After giving birth, a mother’s lifestyle changes and may bring new challenges. Holding a baby for hours on end, diminished sleep quality (and quantity!), frequent feedings, and so much more! Post-partum moms often need assistance to cope with these new emotional and physical changes, which is where family, friends and health care practitioners come into play. After all, it does take a village! Here is how chiropractic care can bring tremendous value to a new mom’s life. 

Physical impacts of pregnancy

There are many changes to the female body during pregnancy : loosening of the lumbo-pelvic ligaments (by the relaxin hormone); shifting of the pelvic bones to accommodate the baby; forward displacement of the center of gravity; tautening of the uterine ligaments; larger breasts rounding the upper back (and pushing the neck forward), etc.

Many pregnant women consult chiropractors during their pregnancy to help them adapt to these progressive changes. However, the post-partum period is just as important to help them jump start the recovery period and get their pelvis, spine and nervous system back to their optimal state.

Physical impacts of the birthing process

Every birth story is different, but one thing applies to every one: the tremendous amount of strain on the mom’s body (and the baby’s!), and the dire need to rest and recover. The initial contractions bring on hormonal surges (by pumping of the pituitary gland), which tells the baby to prepare for its exit, and also signals the mom’s body to prepare for opening and pushing. There is some major movement in the pelvic bones (ilium and sacrum), some enormous stress on the soft tissue, and possibly some compression of the lumbar and sacral nerve plexus (bundle of nerves exiting the spine of the low back and pelvis).

Common complaints for the post-partum mom

Many of the pregnant women and new moms we see have similar issues. These include low back pain, sciatica, lower abdomen tenderness, hip pain, mid-back pain while breastfeeding, headaches, wrist tendonitis, etc.

The need for post-partum chiropractic care

After delivering her baby, a new mom may find herself with residual low back pain (and perhaps sciatica), pelvic girdle pain (in the front or the back), upper back tension, headaches, etc. Most of these things start during the pregnancy, but can linger on and be worsened by the strenuous birth process, and by the new habits developed while caring for a baby. Chiropractic care offers gentle and effective adjustments to the pelvic bones, the low back, mid back and neck. These adjustments help recover the structural biomechanics of the body, but also ease the nervous system (through the spine’s connection to the spinal cord and brain). The chiropractor will also assess for any soft tissue issues (such as diastasis recti, pelvic floor issues, ligament tension, etc) and treat accordingly.

Women can rest assured that their chiropractor understands the fragile state of the post-partum body, and will provide treatment in the most gentle and comfortable way. Chiropractic care is a great place to start a holistic approach to health for new mothers and their families!