What Is Chiropractic?

Chiropractic doctors specialize in the correction of biomechanical disorders of the spinal column through manual therapy. This manual therapy is a drugless, non-invasive, natural form of health care that utilizes the body’s innate or natural ability to heal itself. So how does this therapy work?
We look at the whole body from above down and from the inside out. Like other health care providers, we gather important information about the patient through a standard routine. This routine includes a review of the patient’s case history, a consultation, a physical examination, and in many cases we might request laboratory tests and/or x-rays. Most health care providers focus on the results of these diagnostic tests. Chiropractic physicians also conduct a thorough examination of the patient’s structure and in particular the spine. Lifestyle questions are also important to us—What are your eating habits? Do you exercise? What are your life stressors? Do you have children? What is your occupation? And  much more.

As chiropractors we focus on trying to determine the cause of your health problems. In utilizing all the information we gather from the patient, we are able to determine a diagnosis. It is important to understand that as chiropractors we seek to determine the cause of disease in order to eliminate it at the source. We are not symptom chasers. If your tire on your car keeps going flat do you simply keep pumping it up or do you take the tire off and repair the hole that keeps causing the tire to go flat? Similarly, if the pain in your back you’ve had for weeks on end is being caused by a misaligned vertebrae of the spine, which is in turn pinching a nerve, do you continue to take pain killers, or do you realign the vertebrae to prevent pain?

We treat the cause of your health problem. Chiropractors have developed a term to describe these misaligned vertebrae of the spine: subluxations. A subluxation of the spine is a misalignment of the bones that protect the spinal column causing pathologic changes in the nerves, muscle, ligamentous, vascular, and connective tissues related to the level of the misalignment. It is a leak in the tire or a shortage in the electrical system of your body.  The severity of the subluxation can vary, and there are a number of contributing factors or interferences including structural, emotional and chemical issues. A subluxation can be caused by any number of incidents, including acute trauma to the body, poor diet and nutritional practices, and even stress.