Chiropractic Care
Chiropractic care is at the heart of what we do. There is an inseparable relationship between the spine and the nervous system. In order for the nervous system to do its job of keeping our bodies healthy and running strong, the spine must be in excellent condition. If the nervous system is under stress because the spinal column around your spinal cord & nerves isn't moving properly, there can be a breakdown in brain-body communication, interfering with balance and resulting in less than 100% health. It's as simple as this: good communication means the brain can run the show glitch-free, and the natural healing capacity can be fully expressed.
The practice of chiropractic is based upon the location & adjustment of vertebral subluxations. Chiropractors are remarkably unique in the health care field as they are the only health care professionals trained to detect and treat subluxations, also known as the "Vertebral Subluxation Complex". Vertebral subluxations are spinal problems involving at least two adjacent vertebrae and associated tissues. They can be thought of as insults to your nervous system caused by any stress to which your body cannot adapt. These stresses may be physical, chemical, and/or emotional in nature and can even begin at or before birth (in utero).
If allowed to progress, they cause degeneration of associated joints (accelerated wear and tear on not only the bones but also the surrounding spinal muscles, ligaments, discs, and other spinal tissues) and will eventually result in pain and other symptoms of poor health. Additionally, because of the direct mechanical and physiological relationship between the spinal column and the spinal nerve roots, vertebral subluxations as well as other spinal abnormalities have the potential to impair proper nerve functioning. Once nerve functioning is compromised, communication within the body is less effective jeopardizing the overall health & wellness of the individual.
Why Chiropractic?
We are dedicated to improving our world one person at a time...
because when you're healthy & happy,
you make a bigger difference in the world.
Chiropractic is an essential part of
the foundation of good health
because it works to balance your nervous system
(the main communication pathway)
so your brain can talk to your body.
It's as simple as this: good communication means
the brain can run the show glitch-free,
and you experience optimum health.
Like drinking water...you might be drinking enough water
and still feel sick, but consider this:
if you're not drinking enough water,
you cannot possibly be 100% healthy.
If your nervous system is under stress because
the spinal column around your spinal cord & nerves isn't moving properly,
there can be a breakdown in brain-body communication,
interfering with balance
and resulting in less than 100% health.
For optimum health, eat well, sleep well, be happy,
and get checked for subluxation by your chiropractor.
Find balance, friends!
Vertebral subluxations can be explained as having five components:
Each component of the subluxation must be resolved for proper healing to occur and for the rehabilitation process to be successful. While full understanding of all components is not necessary, you should be aware of the complexity involved. You should also be aware that pain is but a small element of most diseases & disorders. Pain is a very poor indicator of your need for further treatment as pain generally subsides well before tissue healing & mechanical normalization has completed.
Chiropractors use their hands to move bones, loosen joints, stretch muscles and ligaments, and restore neurological function. The technique & amount of force used to make adjustments, however, will differ from chiropractor to chiropractor and should depend on what your body needs and responds to on any given day. Even when two doctors use the same technique, the amount of force applied and the way your body responds will be different. This is a normal part of chiropractic that stems from the fact that it is a hands-on type of health care delivery system. One specialty branch of chiropractic includes the specific adjusting of other than spinal joints (feet, knees, wrists, shoulders etc). If you have concerns with these regions, please let us know.
We draw on a diverse background to create customized care plans for each patient, especially from Dr. Satya's knowledge of neuro-sensory integration, psychoneuroimmunology, herbal medicine, applied kinesiology, yoga, massage, and being the oldest of six kids raised with the principles of natural health, and Dr. Scott's knowledge of yoga, meditation, engineering, psychology, applied kinesiology, medicinal plants and having raised six thriving children without the need for medical care. We have developed our skills in a variety of chiropractic techniques (through chiropractic education, postgraduate training with the International Chiropractic Pediatrics Association and also as through chiropractic mentorship) so that we can tailor the adjustive approach to each individual on each visit as needed. We believe that a chiropractor should possess the ability for specificity and finesse, using the least amount of force necessary to re-balance the system. All of the techniques we use are safe, gentle and effective.
Massage is often very useful in soothing the neuro-muscular system. We may use massage during your treatment to reduce localized muscle tension around joints that need to be adjusted. This also stimulates circulation in areas of vascular congestion, such as recent strains or sprains. When more extensive massage work is needed it will be prescribed.
A normal part of aging process involves the deterioration of tissues, especially those of the spine. This deterioration occurs with all individuals over time. The degree of the deterioration varies from individual to individual. The reasons for this are not fully clear, however, it seems that a history of spinal stress and abuse (such as years of hard labor or years of prolonged sitting) as well as inadequate spinal hygiene (lack of periodic spinal checkups) accelerates this deterioration process.
The intervertebral disc (the cartilaginous pad situated between the spinal vertebrae) is one of the spinal structures most affected by the deterioration process. Normally, movements of the torso draw water into the disc which results in the influx of nutrients essential to maintaining a healthy disc. Similarly, torsal movements assist in flushing out waste products from the disc. This constant movement of water into and out of the disc is what keeps it strong & healthy.
As we age, the tissues of the disc fibrose and become stiff. This fibrosis and stiffening reduces the ability of the disc to accept and eliminate water, and thus, obtain vital nutrients and eliminate noxious wastes. Individuals who subject their spines to prolonged stress, have had at least one back/neck/spinal injury, and who do not practice proper spinal hygiene significantly accelerate this process. This "dehydration" of the disc is often visible on x-ray as a loss of disc height, which is identified by a reduction in the distance between adjacent vertebrae. As the disc becomes dehydrated it also tends to bulge outwards, like a tire without adequate air. If severe enough, the bulging disc can compress or irritate nearby spinal nerve roots.
As the discs of the spine undergo these arthritic changes, the biomechanics of the spine are also changed. If the failing spinal biomechanics are left untreated, further degenerative changes occur. Other structures affected by the degenerative processes as well as the alteration in spinal biomechanics include the body of the vertebrae as well as the facet joints.
How Are Subluxations Corrected?
Doctors of Chiropractic learn a number of different chiropractic techniques and procedures to correct vertebral subluxations. Most of the procedures involve
the application of a chiropractic spinal adjustment to the affected vertebrae.
Chiropractic adjustments involve the application of a quick but gentle corrective force into the "subluxated" spinal vertebrae. The adjustment can be delivered manually through the hands or can be applied through the use of a specialized tool. We generally prefer to adjust by hand, as it allows us to dynamically modify the adjustive force and vector based on individual response. Subluxations generally require multiple adjustments for complete normalization to occur. Similar to straightening teeth, correcting malfunctioning and malaligned vertebrae requires time for the tissues to integrate changes back to normal. The longer a subluxation has been present, the longer it can take to re-educate the biomechanics of the system. This is why we recommend getting regular checkups starting at birth, because correcting a 2 day old subluxation is much quicker and easier than a 20, 30 or 40 year old subluxation! :)
There are three main types of care: Relief, Corrective, and Maintenance. You are encouraged to select the type of care appropriate for you after your Report of Findings.
Relief Care is for those who only want their current symptoms addressed. When the symptoms (numbness, hyperactivity, pain, discoordination, etc) are gone, chiropractic treatment ends. This is “fix-it” oriented care that usually takes several weeks, depending on the severity of the symptoms and the frequency of treatments. You will get a more tailored estimate as to how many visits this will require in your Report of Findings.
Corrective Care is designed to correct (as much as possible) biomechanical faults in your spine in order to help you achieve optimum health and increase your ability to adapt to the stresses of life. Corrective Care can take months or years, depending on the age of the patient and the length of time the imbalance has been in place. Again, you will get a better idea of how long this will take in your individual case in your Report of Findings.
The initial phase of treatment for both Relief and Corrective care are the same. Adjustments will be made to your spine in order to reduce nerve irritation and alleviate the symptoms that brought you into the office. Corrective Care takes your treatments into the next phase—correction of underlying subluxation complexes that caused the imbalance, and restoration of proper spinal functioning.
Maintenance Care is designed as an adjunct to Corrective Care. AFTER Corrective Care is complete, you will be the proud owner of a healthy spine (too rare in our society!). We strongly recommend that you take care of your spine with daily exercise, an excellent diet, and routine checkups and adjustments to make sure that your spine stays healthy against the cumulative effects of life’s stresses.
How much you choose to participate in chiropractic care is always up to you. When people ask us if they have to keep coming forever, we ask “Once you start exercising do you have to keep doing it forever?” The answer is of course not - but we would be ethically remiss if we told you anything other than that everything we’ve learned tells us we need to keep our spines healthy (there’s no such thing as dentures for your spine - you only get one!) and regular chiropractic care, much like getting your teeth cleaned instead of waiting until you have a cavity, is an essential part of aging gracefully & healthily.
In some cases, correction of the underlying subluxation complex is not possible (fused vertebrae, advanced degenerative arthritis, congenital or acquired physical defects, etc). In such cases, we will estimate the time needed for maximum improvement, and also recommend Supportive Care for life. Those requiring lifetime Supportive Care can expect a higher frequency of treatments than required by someone receiving Maintenance Care of a healthy spine.
What Causes Subluxations?
Vertebral subluxations have a great number of different causes all of which the average individual is exposed to daily. These causes can be described in terms of physical, chemical, and emotional causes. Physical causes include acute trauma to the body, repetitive motions affecting the spine, bad postural habits, improper workstation habits and design, and weak or imbalanced spinal musculature. Chemical causes include poor dietary and nutritional practices, drug and alcohol use and abuse, and the ingestion of chemical toxins in the foods we eat, air we breath, and water we drink. Chemicals which are harmful to the body decrease the body's ability to function optimally and reduce the ability to successfully adapt to and withstand internal and external stresses - making us more susceptible to spinal subluxations and the consequences of these subluxations. Emotional causes refer to stress. Excessive stress or inadequate stress management skills can deplete the body of the ability to sustain normal functions. The impact of emotional stress on physical health is well documented in the medical research and can have devastating effects on the immune system, making the body susceptible to injury and disease.
How Can I Tell If I Have A Vertebral Subluxation?
The only accurate way to determine if you suffer from subluxations is to receive a chiropractic evaluation. However, a number of signs and symptoms are commonly associated with the vertebral subluxation and include:
Individuals who are not currently experiencing pain or other discomforts are not necessarily "subluxation free". As previously described, pain is a very poor indicator of disease processes, including the presence of subluxations. Subluxations are similar to cavities in that many times a significant amount of damage is present before symptoms such as pain are felt. This is why we recommend, like your dentist, that individuals seek periodic spinal evaluations to check for the presence of subluxations and other spinal abnormalities, even in the absence of pain.
The term chiropractic comes from the root words chiro, which means “hand”, and practico, which means “done by”. Literally, it is a health care system done by the hands.
Chiropractic is a profession that requires four years of post graduate study in order to receive a doctorate degree. We are trained to be primary health care providers, competent to see people with any kind of health concern, and to know what to do – whether it be to administer care ourselves, or to refer to another provider for specialized procedures.
The intensive, four year curriculum includes in-depth studies of human anatomy, physiology, neurology, histology, kinesiology and nutrition. In fact, students of chiropractic spend more hours in the study of anatomy and physiology than do medical students. Pharmacology (the science of drugs, their composition, uses and effects), on the other hand, receives less emphasis. The differences in approach to health care can be found in the philosophy behind chiropractic.
Chiropractic starts with a very strong belief in the innate intelligence of the body - a belief that when we’re all conceived, we are imbued with life. Part of the life that imbues the developing human has the intelligence to manifest an awesome human body with a complex interplay of biological systems. It is a power that not only changes an embryo into a viable human being, but also heals bones when they break and skin when it gets cut. It gives us a fever to burn away germs that cannot thrive in elevated body temperatures. It causes us to vomit when we have ingested high quantities of chemical or biological toxins. And, it gives us ulcers or hives when we worry too much.
That intelligence, in our physical bodies, manifests over the Central Nervous System. (The brain & spinal cord control and coordinate the functions of all other bodily systems.) Homeostasis is a term in biology that means the tendency for this intelligence to produce balance all body systems. The innate (inborn) intelligence coordinates not only physical health, but also our relevant life experiences (the people we meet, the environments in which we find ourselves, the families we're in, etc) to facilitate the development of our potential as human beings.
Most importantly, this innate intelligence learns from past experience. It is the power in each of us that allows us to adapt to the stresses of our environment. As an example, so that when we contract measles, mumps and chicken pox as children, we will be immune to their effects for the rest of our lives.
Chiropractic research, as well as case history after case history, indicates that this inner intelligence, this life force, utilizes the brain & nervous system to communicate with all parts of the body. This communication is facilitated by means of an extremely sensitive interface between the spinal cord and the rest of the body - namely, the pairs of spinal nerves that exit the spinal column between every pair of adjacent vertebrae. When these spinal nerves are pinched, blocked, irritated or interfered with in any way, communication between the Central Nervous System and the rest of the body is impaired.
When the spine is not working properly and the nervous system is blocked, the body's innate intelligence is interrupted. It has been found that people who seek chiropractic care for specific ailments not only get localized relief of their particular problem, but also immune systems that work better, a greater ability to concentrate and focus at work or school, and a higher degree of overall emotional & physical strength. The whole body, the entire being, simply works better.