In pain? Maybe you need a body mechanic.

In pain?  Maybe you need a body mechanic.

Pain that does not go away is why patients call their doctor.  The doctor someone visits can vary from primary care to their chiropractor.

An improper step, a fall  or a traumatic injury can cause pain. Playing sports can cause pain  Other times, you may have been woken up with acute back pain, only to find out later that you passed a stone.  The possibilities for why we hurt seem endless.

Chronic problems that become acute is why most people visit their doctor.  What we are used to feeling is what we consider normal, even if it is not. When the pain does not self resolve, patients are motivated to visit a healthcare professional. Often, doctor Google helps stroke many of these fears that something is seriously wrong.

We inherit our body mechanics, our good looks and even the way we walk from our parents and pass it to our children. When we are very young and begin to walk, we are all flat footed. By the age of 5 or 6, we walk more like adults. We get taller, a women’s hips will widen during puberty and we mature into adulthood.   We are always adapting to our inherited body styles and this adaptation is often why we hurt years later.   Our “normal” lack of flexibility is what is normal for us. We assume we have pulled muscles for the wrong reasons.

We are more flexible when we are young. By the age of 40, physical changes have occurred in the spine and our joints, as the discs in our back dry out and permanent changes occur with age.

In our 40’s we  experience more pain and stiffness. As we age, the game changes and we must also play the aging game differently.

Is the traditional approach to where we hurt broken?

Pain motivates us to visit a doctor. If that person is a medical physician, they will refer us to someone who specializes in the part. That provider will look at the painful part and either treat the part or refer the patient for therapy to the part, and may recommend medication for the pain or swelling. The therapist will perform treatment protocols based on a script from the doctor.  Rarely to patients improve with this type of management resulting in additional visits to the specialists, and then more interventions such as injections or surgeries.

Is that costly MRI really necessary?

Patients visit us with numerous  painful complaints and numerous MRI tests which they believe validate their painful problem.  If the true cause of the problem is not addressed, years later the knee can be irreparably damaged joints and require replacement.  Most knee and hip replacements are avoidable if you see the right type of healthcare provider first years earlier.

The body is a contiguous system that requires an evaluation that is holistic, meaning a thorough history and exam that looks at you, not just your symptoms.   This non holistic approach to evaluation is inefficient and most MRI exams on aging joints fail to help patients feel better, or know anything they didn’t know before having the test.   The test may have told them that a joint is not bad enough yet for surgery.  Wouldn’t these resources better used treating the problem after the healthcare practitioner did a thorough history and evaluation on them, rather than on just the painful part?

We have been conditioned to believe we need a joint specialist, which may include the podiatrist for the foot, the orthopedic for the knee and then the therapist who will take the script and do what they were told from that doctors point of view.    Most people never question why they  hurt, and often never question the idea of therapy to the painful part?   Ironically, looking at the point of impact with plantar fasciitis will never help any healthcare provider accurately understand why the foot hurts. They will however, be visited again when the treatment fails to offer relief resulting in more procedures, and costs for the patient.

Knee pain is similar in that it is a result of how we walk, and how our body is built. The knee is pulley that is subject to forces from the ground up.  Looking at the knee, and imaging the joint cannot usually tell us why you hurt, however, a thorough examination can.

Evaluating the way the patient walks, moves, squats and reaches shows a different clinical picture.  A foot problem may be causing hip pain, the hip problem may cause a shoulder problem and the back problem can be responsible for headaches and neck pain.    The physician most likely to holistically do this type of evaluation and then treat holistically is a chiropractor.

The book, Cheating Mother Nature, what you need to know to beat chronic pain can help you understand why you hurt.  These problems often start in the feet, but because of the way we adapt over the years, we may not be aware that our asymmetrical body style is now causing us to have knee, hip, back, shoulder and foot problems.

Painful problems our bodies are most often mechanical in nature.  Wouldn’t it be logical to see a body mechanic?

Chiropractic physicians are primary spine providers who serve the role of a body mechanic.

If you go to any athletic event, and chiropractors are present, there is usually a line to see them.   What do athletes know that the average person does not?   Athletes want the most natural and effective treatment method to help them get out of pain fast.   They instinctively know to visit a chiropractor first for many of their painful complaints.

Why a chiropractor vs. a specialist, a therapist and your primary care doctor?   Chiropractors approach painful problems from movement with treatment that enhances movement, reducing your pain naturally.   The Annals of Internal Medicine in 2017 recommended that for back pain, you should avoid drugs and surgery and try a number of other things first that include manipulation, exercises, muscle work and other movement based methods, many of which are performed by chiropractors.   They were saying that treatments that involved movement help people with back pain.   Chiropractors understand the relationship to the way we walk and the way we function.  They understand that manipulation of the spine and extremities improves movement and reduces pain.   The studies are just catching up to chiropractic.

When movement and patterns of movement are broken, you need a body mechanic, you need a chiropractic physician.

Seeing a chiropractor first will reduce the need for surgeries, medical tests and reduce costs for care.   The chiropractic approach to care will also reduce the need for medication since you will be feeling better in most cases as well as moving better.  If necessary, a chiropractor will refer you to a medical specialist or your primary care doctor when needed.

For joints that hurt, see a body mechanic, all roads lead to the chiropractor. See a chiropractor first when you hurt.