FAQ

Can you tell when you need a chiropractic adjustment?

In most cases, no. When you have a misalignment in your spine, it may or may not hurt. It usually doesn't. Often a misalignment will lie just under the surface much like a dental cavity creating a problem but going unnoticed until it causes pain. This explains why people will be showering their hair or picking something off the floor and 'all of a sudden' their back goes 'out' or they experience sudden neck ache.

How do I know if I need to see a chiropractor?

Receiving chiropractic care is a necessary part of being healthy, which in turn means preventing disease. Just like a balanced diet and being active, chiropractic care allows you to reach your full health potential. Everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, should eat well, remain active and have a healthy spine. Whether you have a specific problem or not, your spine needs to be checked to remain healthy. As Hippocrates said, "You are only as healthy as your spine." You have regular dental check-ups, so why not your spine. Remember, your teeth can be replaced, your spine cannot!

What does a chiropractor do?

A chiropractor checks your spine to see if you have any misalignments. Your spine is meant to be in line. When you have a misalignment, your spinal bones create havoc with your nervous system. This havoc and interference disturbs the mental impulses flowing from your brain to your body and body back to your brain. Your brain then can no longer keep the body healthy due to this interference. As a result this can cause lack of vitality, weakened immune system, arthritis and other diseases.

If I have misalignments what then?

If you have any misalignments, it is very important that you have them corrected. Your chiropractor will gently adjust your vertebrae back into alignment, allowing your body to start healing itself.

What is an adjustment?

The doctor uses a carefully directed and controlled pressure in a precise direction to a joint that is not moving properly, to allow the body to begin the healing process.

How is an adjustment given?

Many different ways. It may be a quick movement or slow constant pressure, sometimes only one area may be adjusted and sometimes the entire spine will receive attention.

How long does a chiropractic adjustment take?

It takes just a few minutes.

Does it hurt?

Adjustments are usually painless.

Will I need xrays?

Only if necessary. It depends on what the doctor finds after your consultation and examination. Xrays are an important diagnostic tool. It means doctors don't have to guess or take chances. Like asking a car mechanic to work on the car without lifting the bonnet !

I've heard that chiropractors 'crack' your bones?

The adjustment may cause a noise such as you hear when your knuckles pop. This is not the bones cracking. The noise is the pressure being released between the misaligned vertebrae- much like the built up pressure being released from inside a canned drink when it's opened.

What causes the bones in my spine to misalign?

Stress causes your spine to become misaligned. Stress can be physical (e.g. traumatic, repetitive), emotional ( e.g. from work, lifestyle or relationships) or chemical (e.g. toxic surroundings, poor diet). Everyone suffers from different degrees of each of these stresses.

Are all patients adjusted the same way?

Each adjustment is tailored individually to suit each patient based on their age and misalignment. Young patients are adjusted differently to adults and elderly patients are adjusted differently again.

How soon will I feel better?

This will depend on the individual problem, how long you've had it, how bad it is and how many areas and tissues are affected. Whilst every patient reacts differently, your chiropractor will be able to advise you on your likely recovery time. In most cases you will feel a definite change for the better early on in your treatment plan. Most patients do express feeling 'better' or 'lighter' after just one or two treatments, but in general, the longer you've had it, the longer it will take to get it sorted. Your commitment to the recommended treatment plan, home exercises and any diet or lifestyle adjustments will also determine your treatment outcome and your long term benefits from chiropractic care.

Once I go to a chiropractor do I have to keep going?

Absolutely not! Once is better than never, though most people choose to continue to receive the benefits of chiropractic care. Your chiropractor adjusts only those vertebrae that are misaligned, restoring your body back to the way it was designed to be in its natural state. Just like exercise or eating properly, when you feel what it's like to be healthy with a healthy spine, you also notice when something's not quite right. To keep this amazing body of ours running, it requires the correct kind of upkeep and just like anything else, if you don't put energy into health you'll eventually put energy into fighting sickness. You don't have to keep going but most people choose to.

How long will I need chiropractic care?

How long you decide to benefit from chiropractic care is always up to you.

Can I adjust myself?

No, it's impossible to adjust yourself. It is possible to make your spine pop and feel better, but it's not possible to find the misalignment that's causing the problem and specifically move it. If you rely on adjusting yourself or having someone who is not a chiropractor adjust you, the parts of your spine that pop will become too loose and unstable, while the real problem, the locked misalignment, will become stuck and decay. Chiropractors would never attempt to adjust themselves. They go to another chiropractor to receive their adjustments.

Is chiropractic safe?

Chiropractic is one of the safest health professions in the world. Your chiropractor will do a complete examination and take x-rays to determine if there is any reason why you can't be helped through chiropractic care.

Can a person who has had back surgery or fracture still see a chiropractor?

Definitely! Conditions such as these often place extra stress and tensions on the spine and tissues. To leave this extra stress unchecked leads to further problems in other areas. The chiropractor takes all of these factors into account to insure your spine is kept in peak condition.

What kind of education does a chiropractor have?

A chiropractor has 5 years of chiropractic schooling. Courses taken are the same as a medical doctor with the addition of studying spinal care, nutrition, exercise and advanced neuroanatomy in place of emergency procedures, surgery and pharmacology.

What's the difference between osteopathy and chiropractic?

Chiropractic maximises your health and healing by removing interference from your nervous system and allowing your innate healing ability to flow through you. A chiropractor is able to read and diagnose x-rays, thus allowing us to form a thorough examination. X-rays also show us the condition of a patient's spine and allow us to be very specific in our adjustments. Osteopaths cannot utilise and diagnose from x-rays, and therefore their adjustments are far more general.

Is it OK to see a chiropractor if I'm pregnant?

Anytime is a good time for a better functioning nervous system. Pregnant mothers find that chiropractic adjustments improve their pregnancy and make delivery easier for themselves and their baby. Adjusting methods are always adapted to a patient’s size, weight, age, and condition of health.