What Does a Chiropractor Do?
By Dr. Seth Nelson
So your doctor said you should give it a try, maybe it was your friend from work or your neighbor said that it helped with headaches or back pain but you have never been to a chiropractor before and have heard all sorts of things. You say “Sure” but your not sure. What does a chiropractor do? Don’t worry you are not alone, every month we get to take people through their first chiropractic visit and we strive to make it an excellent experience. We’re going to cover the basics of what we do at Rising Sun Chiropractic and how we help St. Peter, Mankato and the surrounding communities. Get ready, your about to find out “What does a Chiropractor do?”
A Chiropractic Definition
Simply put, chiropractors are healthcare professionals who specialize in the treatment and diagnosis of neuromuscular and musculoskeletal disorders. Think joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves and discs. We go through extensive training in how the joints, muscles, tendons and nerves all work together in the body and what happens when we injure those tissues. At Rising Sun Chiropractic we spend a great deal of our time continuing that education. We provide a variety of different adjusting techniques, both hands on and instrument based so we can provide the level of care with the level of comfort each patient needs. When you are injured we use adjustments as one of the tools to treat your injury by improving movement in those restricted and inflamed joints.
The Objective of chiropractic care at Rising Sun Chiropractic
The goal of chiropractic treatment is to reduce pain, improve your strength and the range of motion you have. We treat the whole body and we will talk with you about how different injuries can effect many different aspects of your life. If you are like most of the patients we serve, you want to know how to help yourself. We will work with you to teach you the tools to heal, learn how your injury happened and how to avoid it happening again. At Rising Sun Chiropractic we don’t think you have to come for the rest of your life just because you were injured once. We want to be your partner in health. By educating you about maintaining your health, giving you exercises to strengthen your spine and injured joints , ergonomics and the tools to learn about how your injury happened we can help you to improve your quality of life and get you on the road to wellness.
The Spine and Nervous System Connection
Did you know there is a a relationship between your spine and your nervous system? Structural and bio-mechanical issues affecting your spine will also have an impact on the function of your nervous system. This can lead to pain both at your spine and away from it. Many of the cases of carpal tunnel syndrome, sciatica, muscle weakness like cases of IT band syndrome and even hip and shoulder injuries come from the spine and create problems away from it. Did you know that 76% of hip pain comes from the lower back and 67% of shoulder pain starts in the neck?
At Rising Sun Chiropractic we use a variety of methods to help treat your body as a whole, helping you recovery quickly and in many cases stronger than before. We pride ourselves in taking a big picture view of your health, learning about you, knowing your goals and what steps you want to take to recover help guide us in creating a plan to get you back to the activity and life you love.
What Can Chiropractors Treat?
Most people think chiropractors simply treat back pain, but it goes way beyond that! At Rising Sun Chiropractic we treat over 90 different injuries and conditions including:
- Repetitive Injuries-Tendon injuries(think golfer/tennis elbow/plantar fasciitis)
- Headaches
- Migraines
- Sciatica
- Disc Bulges and Herniations
- Lower back pain
- Sport injuries
- Auto accident injuries
- Pain from arthritis
- Neck pain
Most of the work we do at Rising Sun Chiropractic involves treatment of disorders of the joints of the spine, arms and legs, tendons, muscles and ligaments (neuromuscularskeletal system), but our chiropractors are also trained to diagnose and treat other issues related to your health. At Rising Sun Chiropractic we have extensive training in Functional Medicine and Lifestyle medicine as well. This means that we can give you advice on getting healthy from the inside out using dietary changes, nutritional support and laboratory testing to help you get back on track with your health goals. Rising Sun Chiropractic is not your average chiropractor, when you ask “what does a chiropractor do?” we go above and beyond to make sure you achieve the health goals you want.
What kinds of methods do we use?
We use a variety of methods and therapies to help support our chiropractic care. Treatments include graston/instrument assisted soft tissue therapy, deep tissue laser therapy, percussive therapy, cupping therapy, in office and at home rehabilitation exercise and ergonomic therapy. We know some of these terms are new and you’ve never see them before? Don’t worry, at Rising Sun Chiropractic we always walk you through exactly what we are recommending so that you know what and why about your care!
Hopefully this clears a few things up about what we do at Rising Sun Chiropractic! Remember we are here to chat, if you are unsure if chiropractic care is what you need, ASK we offer free consultations to make sure your in the right place!
Ready to find out what Rising Sun Chiropractic can do for you?