If you’ve never visited a chiropractor before, you might be wondering what to expect on your first visit. How will I feel? Will it hurt? Do I have to go back? In this post, we’ll go over what to expect with a typical patient visit.
Many of the new patients we see have been dealing with pain for a while and hoping that it would get better on its own. The truth is the sooner we can look at an injury the better but if your pain has not improved after 2 weeks it should be looked at. Let’s take a look at what you’ll see on your first visit to Rising Sun Chiropractic.
What to Expect at Your First Chiropractic Appointment
Whether you find us through Google, Facebook, Youtube, or the yellow pages you will find it’s easy to make an appointment and we accept most insurance plans in our area. When you schedule your first appointment we will email you brief forms you can fill out online. If you prefer to fill out forms in person, please arrive 15mn early for your visit. Click here to see if we accept your insurance.
When you arrive at Rising Sun Chiropractic you’ll be greeted by our friendly and professional team and be directed to find a comfortable spot.
Getting Started With The Doctor
Your doctor will discuss your symptoms with you and ask questions. We do this because every part of your chiropractic appointment is tailored specifically to what you’re experiencing and what you need. You will go through a physical exam to determine exactly what is going on and what is causing pain.
The physical exam focuses on the spine or joints with special attention given to your areas of complaint. Based on our consult we will know where to use special testing, range of motion testing, and muscle strength testing. During our exam many times we will uncover issues that are contributing to the injury that you may not have known you were dealing with.
It can be a bit of a surprise to see big differences in strength or movement during an exam. Finding all the sore spots, knots, and trigger points that are a big part of your injury.
Once the exam is complete your doctor will create a treatment plan that will consider:
- The extent of your injury or irritation
- Your overall health
- The overall condition of your spine or joint of injury (taking age and previous injury into consideration)
- and most importantly, what your health goals are.
Goals can be new for a lot of patients but at Rising Sun Chiropractic your goals are a key part of the puzzle. What’s the difference? Some patients are coming in for pain relief, others look to drastically improve their function and health after an injury, and some are working to return to being a high-performance athletes. Most patients have a treatment plan that focuses on pain relief and improving their range of motion during their first chiropractic appointment.
Your First Chiropractic Treatment
There are a variety of treatment procedures we offer at Rising Sun Chiropractic. The goal during your care is to use the tools that will help you the most and get you back to your life faster and stronger. During your first visit, we may use Graston Therapy(IASTM) or Cupping to improve range of motion and pain relief. In more chronic or severe pain we may start with Class 4 Deep tissue laser therapy to reduce pain and inflammation. We strive with every injury to give lifestyle advice and home exercises so you have more control of your pain and recovery.
Once we have treated the area we move on to the adjustment. At Rising Sun Chiropractic, we treat the most restricted joints to provide maximum relief in your adjustment. When people try to self-crack they usually get the joint that’s easiest to crack not the one that is most in need of adjustment.
If you check out any of our adjustment videos you’ll see that they are quick and painless. Most people feel relief and improvement in their range of motion. After treatment patients will often feel stronger and notice how much easier it is to move. A chiropractic adjustment is not scary and should never really be painful.
After the adjustment, the doctor discusses the future treatment plan with each patient. Each treatment plan is different because they are based on your specific problem and your goals for care in our office. Finally, we will ask if you have any questions about your care or recommendations going forward. We then will walk you back to the front desk where you can plan your next visits.
What to Expect at Your First Chiropractic Appointment
When you visit Rising Sun Chiropractic for your first appointment you’ll be greeted by our friendly staff while you fill out your quick & easy paperwork. You’ll be seen right away and as you can see, the treatment on your first visit is effective and provides immediate relief with visible results.
So now that you know what to expect during your first time at the chiropractor, what are you waiting for?