Chiropractor advise

[Popeye]

I have a friend that I got a reference from, got an AM appt. She says the guy isn't a quack, he takes x-rays and is more than willing to refer you off to regular doctors if he can't help. Can't see my regular doc till Monday so I figure it's worth a shot. Thanks for all the input. Pat

[MilDoc]

Just FYI: several years ago they sent back x-rays to a large number of chiropractors, including professors at c. schools. They asked for a reading.

They got so many opinions that differed it was amazing.

And the "patients" that the x-rays were done on had no symptoms - no back pain, no problems.

[Slik Geek]

As MilDoc says, avoid the chiropractors that claim to cure all kinds of illness. Every medical profession has its limitations - and you want your physician to know what he or she cannot do well.

There seems to be two kinds of chiropractors: those who want you to get better and have the judgment and skill to help you, and those who want to you to never really get better so they get to treat you forever and ever.

I have to admit that chiropractic medicine helps a lot more for some back problems than standard medical techniques.

Well said. Some years ago, I had crippling spasms in my back muscles, near my shoulder blade. I went to an MD. The MD's solution was muscle relaxant and pain killer to treat the muscle spasms. I suffered for nearly a week, virtually paralyzed. Further inquiries with the doctor were not very fruitful - it was suggested that I see an orthopedic surgeon. Knowing how anxious those types are to take a scalpel to one's back, I wasn't keen on going down that route so soon.

The pain had increased in intensity, and my right arm had started twitching and I had tingling sensations in a couple fingers. My wife suggested that my pain might be caused by a problem in my neck - so I should go to a chiropractor. So I did. Within minutes, the chiropractor confirmed that the problem was in my neck.

After the first (scary) "adjustment" of my neck, the pain was significantly decreased. It took a number of visits and icing of my neck to stop the pain. (My nerve had been pinched severely for an entire week and was quite inflammed, so it took a few weeks to calm down). I also had to learn to stop sleeping on my stomach as that severely aggravated the problem.

I was still susceptible to having spasms again. My chiropractor encouraged me to do some neck and back exercises. I couldn't believe the difference the exercise made. I'm completely normal and pain free with no surgery.

Here is my advice, from my inquiries with others and some personal experience. Much of it has already been suggested in this thread:

1) Try to get a personal recommendation from someone. It may help you avoid the chiropractor that isn't skilled or ethical enough to help you fully recover (if that is possible in your situation).

2) If you don't see substantial improvement within the first or second visit to a chiropractor, the chiropractor probably isn't going to help you very much. Try someone else.

3) Ice works wonders, both on the muscle that is spasming and on the spine where a nerve is pinched.

The chiropractor I've gone had excellent success with was educated at National University in Illinois and really knows what is going on in the spine. I have gone in with a different problem from that described above and for the fun of it asked the chiropractor to tell me what is wrong just by examining my back. She said, "you have a spasm right here" and sure enough, she found the exact spot where the pain was and knew exactly what to do to stop it.

[Popeye]

All I can say is I hope this works. I wasn't sure if I could get to my feet this morning to get to the bathroom. Been up almost an hour and an 800mg motrin hasn't started kicking in enough to make a difference. This was agravating before, now I'm really starting to worry. Pat

[Handy Al]

I suffer with back problem for about 12 years. It got worse and a MRI showed a bulging L5 disc. Went through physical therapy, cortisone shorts, and lots of meds. I was ready for surgery. A friend recommended a Chiropratic who practiced "Network Care." It's a gentle form that "retrains" the body to heal itself. It looks a little weird watching it being performed, but it worked for me. When I first went in, I was hunched over and could barely get off the exam table. It took a while but, I've been relatively pain-free for 3 year.

Check it out here: http://www.associationfornetworkcare.com/

[RAFlorida]

Back pain for years.

As most of you have posted, back pain is hard to heal or live with. I have been on pain medication for the past 2 and half years; just to have a decent day around the house and to be able to sleep at night. It's a bummer when you're asleep and you start to turn over and all of a sudden the knife in the back awakens you! As some of you, I also was scheduled for surgery, but a heart attacked ended that, so living with the pain most of the time is all I can see for the immediate future. Thought about going to a chiro, but a friends wife suffered worse after a chiro "tried" to adjust her back, and that convinced me to stay with my doctor.
Anyway, Popeye, I hope you can get something for relief of the pain. Just be carefull when bending or twisting, (yeah, that means you can not do the Chubby Checker dance! lol). One thing that seems to help me is my office chair...it leans back about 5 to 8 degrees and takes some of the weight off the discs. Hope you well soon...

[Popeye]

Got up at 4:30 almost couldn't make it to the bathroom. By the appt. time I was walking mostly normal with a weight lifters belt.
Doc didn't give me a line of mumbo jumbo. Said for the most part my spine looked as good a pups. Problem is in my "tailbone". Gave me 15 minutes of the best machine (like a pad) massage and then gave me what he called and adjustment. Got one side to pop and the other side didn't. Sent me home with an excercise regime an ice pack and instructions to do the excercise, walk a brisk mile a day and come back on Monday for a check up.
I didn't get the impression that he's a cure all. I did get the impression that he's in it to fix it with the least number of visits. Overall I was happy with the visit. Time will tell about the therapy. Thanks again for all your inputs. If I can work tomorrow and get back in the shop by next weekend I'll be a happy camper. Pat

[MilDoc]

Sounds like a good, honest one. Hope it works well.