FAQ
What is a "subluxation"?
A subluxation is a misalignment of the bones that house and protect the spinal cord. Any misalignment puts unnecessary pressure on the nerve system and cuts off the nerve supply to different parts of the body. Vertebral subluxations that are left undetected and unadjusted for many years can lead to symptoms of pain, diseases, and an unhealthy expression of life.
How do I know when I am subluxated?
It is not easy knowing when you are subluxated, although a pain of some kind can be a clue. Often, the nerves that are negatively affected because of the misalignment in the spine do not carry pain signals. This means that you can suffer from subluxations for years without any painful warning signs. However, allowing subluxations to exist in your body can negatively impact the functions of the organs in your body, which leads to a deterioration of your health. A chiropractor can detect the subluxations with their trained hands, and can correct them properly.
How did I get "subluxated"?
A person can become subluxated in a wide variety of ways. Simple things like sleeping, sitting, and standing can contribute to subluxations. Often, people develop their first subluxation during birth when the doctors use force of up to 60 to 100 pounds to aid the delivery. Normal childhood activities such as spills from the bike, sledding, playing ball, and any other activity that results in a jarring fall, all result in subluxations in children. Because subluxations don't often cause pain, people do not know they are there and thus do not get them fixed until after major damage has been done, at which point the pain usually begins to be felt.
Why do I need to go to a chiropractor so often?
Because most subluxations have existed in people's bodies for so long, the muscles around the misaligned bones have conformed to the misaligned position, and now believe that position to be correct. Thus, the muscles resist chiropractic adjustments at first. As with an exercise and workout routine, the muscles need to be trained to go back to their original and proper position, and this whole process takes time. Careful and patient adjustments coax the muscles back into their original position, and allow the adjustments to "hold" for longer and longer periods. While it may seem that you are practically living at your chiropractors office during the first weeks of your treatment, eventually the visits will taper off until you only need minor fixes every once in a while.
Will this cure my back/neck pain?
While correcting subluxations might bring you relief from pain, the general aim of the chiropractor is not to merely fix painful backs and necks, but to enable the body to express itself to the fullest, without any interference from subluxations. Correcting subluxations opens up a whole new world of wellness and health care because the body is able to function as it was designed to. Without any nerve blockages due to subluxations, the body can boost its immune system and much more effectively fight disease and illness. Relief from back and neck pain, which are the most common symptoms that bring people into a chiropractor's office, might come about from the adjustments, but there are no guarantees. However, living with subluxations is like trying to ride a bike with one hand, you are only half as effective as you would be if you had the full use of both hands. Allowing subluxations to exist in your body, even if they are not causing you pain, means you have a reduced immune system and a lower level of wellness and health.
