The Chiropractic Adjustment

When you think of a chiropractic adjustment, you likely think back pain relief. But did you know that the benefits of chiropractic adjustments extend far beyond relieving back pain? Adjustments are a fantastic component of a holistic approach to well-being.

Stay tuned as I share some of the many ways adjustments help you live your best life!

Improves Range of Motion

 Regular chiropractic adjustments improve joint mobility, which means your range of motion can be improved. Creating more space for the joint surfaces to move and to move more thoroughly will help with relieve discomfort and decrease stiffness and soreness.  Better motion means: the joint surfaces stay hydrated and nutrient-rich (all of the nutrition for the joints comes from the joint fluid called synovium, not from the blood because cartilage doesn’t have a good blood supply); your spinal joints can maintain your healthy upright posture with less strain; you can breathe more easily because the rib cage is free to go about its business; and your tension or postural-related headaches will decrease (spinal joints moving and grooving!).

Book your chiropractic appointment here!

When used in conjunction to other therapies, chiropractic care can enhance your results while managing health conditions. If you want to develop a holistic approach to your health and well-being, consider incorporating regular chiropractic adjustments.  And remember, manual chiropractic adjustments (the “popping” or “cracking” style of adjustments) aren’t the only way to receive chiropractic care.  Many chiropractors (this one included) know many different ways to adjust, so you, your body, and your nervous system can be the best version of your self.

Chiropractic and Degenerative Disc Disease

Chiropractic research on disc degeneration has gained attention in recent years. Several studies have explored the effectiveness of chiropractic care in managing disc degeneration and related symptoms. Here are some key findings from relevant research: A systematic review published in The Spine Journal in 2018 assessed the outcomes of chiropractic treatment for degenerative disc disease. The study concluded that chiropractic care can provide significant improvements in pain reduction and functional outcomes for patients with disc degeneration. Another study published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics in 2014 evaluated the long-term effects of chiropractic care for chronic low back pain, including disc degeneration. The findings suggested that chiropractic treatment can lead to sustained improvements in pain and disability over a one-year period. In a randomized controlled trial published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics in 2009, researchers compared the effectiveness of chiropractic care and exercise therapy for chronic low back pain with disc degeneration. The study concluded that both treatments can provide significant pain relief, but chiropractic care showed additional benefits in terms of disability reduction. 

While these studies suggest that chiropractic care can be beneficial for individuals with disc degeneration, it is important to note that individual outcomes may vary. It is advisable to consult with a qualified chiropractor or healthcare professional to determine the most appropriate treatment approach for your specific condition.

Why is Posture Important?

From the American Chiropractic Association, click here for more.

Why is posture important?

We do not consciously maintain our posture; instead, certain muscles *normally* do it for us. (*Unless they are weak, imbalances, overstretched, hypertonic… but we’ll get to working on these issues!)

Several muscle groups, including the hamstrings and large back muscles, are critically important in maintaining our posture. These postural muscles, along with others, when functioning properly, prevent the forces of gravity from pushing us over forward. Postural muscles also help maintain our balance while we move.

Yoga is a great way to strengthen your postural muscles and improve your balance

A healthy posture helps us stand, walk, sit, and lie in positions that place the least strain on supporting muscles and ligaments during movement and weight-bearing activities.

Correct posture also:

• Helps us keep bones and joints in correct alignment so that our muscles are used correctly, decreasing the abnormal wearing of joint surfaces that could result in degenerative arthritis and joint pain.
• Reduces the stress on the ligaments holding the spinal joints together, minimizing the likelihood of injury.
• Allows muscles to work more efficiently, allowing the body to use less energy and, therefore, preventing muscle fatigue.
• Helps prevent muscle strain, overuse disorders, and even back and muscular pain.

Visit the Spinal Wellness Tab to see some ideas of how to think about your posture through the day and a downloadable home exercises to help you find your optimal posture.

Click here to schedule your spinal alignment

Forward Head Posture

Prolonged forward head posture can play a role in numerous symptoms that stem from the cervical spine, including:

Neck pain and/or upper back pain that can range anywhere from general soreness to intense, sharp pain. This pain may also spread into the shoulder(s), arms, middle back…

Cervicogenic headache, (Headache related to the cervical spine) which involves the upper cervical spine referring pain up into the head.

Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

Cervical radiculopathy (aka damage to the cervical nerves) or spinal degeneration (aka arthritis, osteoarthritis): symptoms of pain, pins-and-needles tingling, numbness, and/or weakness radiating into the shoulder, arm, hand, and/or fingers.

It is possible for these symptoms to be present with or without forward head posture. Even in cases when forward head posture is not the primary cause of neck pain and related symptoms, it can, and often does, worsen these symptoms.

You know what is a BIG cause of forward head posture?
Yep. Hand held tech.
(Photo: Surgical Technology International)

What can you do?

Exercise regularly. Exercises that are focused on strengthening the weak muscles and stretching the tight muscles of the neck, chest, and core can train the body to better hold healthy posture. In the beginning, it may help to have a physiatrist, physical therapist, chiropractor, or other trained health professional who can design an exercise program that is specific to the patient’s needs.

Maintain good posture. Whether it is while eating a meal, commuting, performing at work, or watching a show, remembering to practice good posture throughout the day can help reduce stress on the cervical spine over time.

Click here to link to my Spinal Wellness Page and downloadable spinal exercise ideas.

Improvements in forward head posture typically do not happen overnight. We are creatures of habit and habits are hard to break. But, by ADDING a few better habits (instead of just trying to stop other habits) it can be an easier way to change.

It takes long-term commitment to exercises, stretches, and consistently using good posture over the course of several weeks or months before significant benefits may be observed. I like to think that each time you do a posture exercise, you create a spider’s thread connection from your postural muscles to your brain – one or two of these threads are easy to break. The more you perform and practice the retraining, the thicker the connection gets (think steel rod versus spider’s web). Add a nudge, like – when you walk through a doorway, when you brush your teeth, when you wake up, before you lie down at night do a few postural exercises. These little “nudges” add up!

Adapted from Spinal Health, click here for full article and postural exercise videos.

Chiropractic Can Improve Body Awareness

Proprioception, our ability to recognize our body’s position in space is critically important; how we walk, our ability to transition from sitting to standing, even bringing a fork to our mouths to feed ourselves are all dependent on us knowing where our bodies and joints are positioned in space.

Reference: Haavik and Murphy (2011) Subclinical Neck Pain and the Effects of Cervical Manipulation on Elbow Joint Position Sense. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics Vol 34, No 2; 89-96.

In a recent study, the clinicians noted when joints do not move properly due to injury or lack of mobility from disuse, the receptors in the associated joints, tendons, ligaments, and muscles do not fire properly and do not send sufficient sensory information to the brain that is required for proper body awareness and coordination/motor control.

Further, “spinal manipulation (adjustments) delivered to dysfunctional cervical segments in people with subclinical neck pain improved upper limb joint position sense (aka proprioception at the elbow) accuracy in this group.”

Chiropractic adjustments restore mobility and sensory input to the brain.
That can help restore neuromuscular function/coordination.

“These findings support the concept that neck joint dysfunction can impair the way proprioceptive input from the upper limb is processed and provides evidence that this can be improved by cervical spine manipulation.”

Take home point:

Chiropractic adjustments don’t just alleviate pain, they alleviate the underlying dysfunction leading to pain and thus restore not just comfort, but function and quality of life.

Chiropractic and Degenerative Disc Disease

Hand pain and Osteoarthritis

Aching, stiff fingers and wrists can be a sign of osteoarthritis in the hands. Large, arthritic knuckle joints can make it more difficult to get rings on and off.  An x-ray image may show a decrease in joint space, a sign that the cartilage between the two bones in degenerating, or bone spurs – outgrowths around the ends of the bones, another sign of past (and possibly present) inflammation. These are the body’s natural and normal response to damaged joints.

Hand osteoarthritis can affect just one joint, such as the joint at the base of the thumb, or several joints in the fingers, wrist, and thumb.

From Arthritis-Health, click here for full article

Pinching and gripping objects may become more difficult, making tasks such as picking up a quarter, putting toothpaste on a toothbrush, and using a mobile phone challenging.

Exactly what causes cartilage to deteriorate is not clear to researchers, and may vary from person to person. The hands do not bear weight but its joints undergo stress on a daily basis, such as when carrying objects or gripping items, or a smaller, but long term repetitive stress like typing or mousing. Aging and genetics also play roles.

As cartilage deteriorates, other changes in the hand also occur:

• Friction between bones can lead to the development of bone spurs (these spurs are typically what make arthritic knuckles look bigger).
• The bone underneath damaged or missing cartilage may develop cysts and areas of abnormal swelling called bone marrow lesions.
• The delicate membrane that encapsulates each small finger joint can become inflamed.
• The area where tendons insert into bone, called entheses, can also undergo inflammatory changes.

While bone spurs tend to be permanent, the other changes may get better or worse.

Here is where chiropractic, nutritional therapy and physical therapy can help.

Joint mobilization and chiropractic adjustments may help improve circulation and soothe arthritis and muscle pain.  It may even help to decrease inflammation, and that can decrease pain and the progression of the degeneration.

Making sure your diet has plenty of omega-3’s and vitamin D will support our natural inflammatory pathways (making them more like a gentle trickling creek versus a raging waterfall of inflammatory products). If your diet is not sufficient, or you are trying to make changes, consider supplementing with high quality, food-based supplements (it’s always prudent to talk to your health care practitioner for guidance).

Deep heating, alone or in combination with joint manipulations, also may improve circulation – moving helpful nutrients in and damaging waste products out – to help soothe arthritic aches and pains.

Cozy-Up!

Are you looking for guidance or help with arthritic pain, especially in the hands and feet? Consider signing up for a 5- or 10-session package of a signature Wellness Hour, “Cozy-Up”. 30 minutes or resting on the far-infrared heated jade stone therapy mat, with Eco-Fin masks (an eco-friendly alternative to paraffin) on hands and feet, while wearing heated and weighted mitts and booties.  Then, hand and foot joint mobilization and adjustments to end your visit. 

Schedule Your Cozy-Up session(s) Here

October 16 – World Spine day!

What Can Affect Posture?

From the American Chiropractic Association, click here for more information.

To maintain healthy posture, you need to have adequate and balanced muscle flexibility and strength, normal joint motion in the spine and other body regions, as well as efficient postural muscles that are balanced on both sides of the spine. In addition, you must recognize your postural and movement habits at home and in the workplace and work to improve them, if necessary.

Oh, screens! Such a technological wonder and can be such a pain in the neck!

Poor posture and poor movement patterns can lead to excessive strain on our postural muscles and may even cause them to relax when held in certain positions for long periods of time. You can typically see this in people who bend forward at the waist for a prolonged time in the workplace. Their postural muscles are more prone to injury and back pain.

Several contributing factors can put a strain on posture. The most common are stress, obesity, pregnancy, weak postural muscles, abnormally tight muscles, and high-heeled shoes. In addition, decreased flexibility, a poor work environment, incorrect working posture, and unhealthy sitting and standing habits can also contribute to poor body positioning, leading to pain or overuse injuries in some cases.

Looking for some ways to improve your postural balance? Visit my Spinal Wellness Tab to explore ways you can help yourself.

Needing professional spinal alignment and guidance? Click here to schedule

Why is Posture Important?

From the American Chiropractic Association, click here for more.

Why is posture important?

We do not consciously maintain our posture; instead, certain muscles *normally* do it for us. (*Unless they are weak, imbalances, overstretched, hypertonic… but we’ll get to working on these issues!)

Several muscle groups, including the hamstrings and large back muscles, are critically important in maintaining our posture. These postural muscles, along with others, when functioning properly, prevent the forces of gravity from pushing us over forward. Postural muscles also help maintain our balance while we move.

Yoga is a great way to strengthen your postural muscles and improve your balance

A healthy posture helps us stand, walk, sit, and lie in positions that place the least strain on supporting muscles and ligaments during movement and weight-bearing activities.

Correct posture also:

• Helps us keep bones and joints in correct alignment so that our muscles are used correctly, decreasing the abnormal wearing of joint surfaces that could result in degenerative arthritis and joint pain.
• Reduces the stress on the ligaments holding the spinal joints together, minimizing the likelihood of injury.
• Allows muscles to work more efficiently, allowing the body to use less energy and, therefore, preventing muscle fatigue.
• Helps prevent muscle strain, overuse disorders, and even back and muscular pain.

Visit the Spinal Wellness Tab to see some ideas of how to think about your posture through the day and a downloadable home exercises to help you find your optimal posture.

Click here to schedule your spinal alignment