Chiropractic care is often overlooked when people are in severe, sudden or long-term pain. One of the main reasons is that they want instant relief. Pain medications often give people this quick relief. However, chiropractic care is a better and cheaper long-term solution. Yes, medications can help ease the pain of the problem, but often do not treat the underlying cause of pain. There is however situations where people need to supplement the chiropractic with medication so the healing process can begin. There are three main phases that each person goes through when they are in pain.
The first stage is relief. Here the pain is minimized after a couple of chiropractic visits, in a couple of weeks and with medication if needed, some people feel relief instantly. This stage is usually the quickest and has the most benefit for instant relief of pain. However, it is just the tip of the iceberg in dealing with the pain.
I say this because if you just put a bandage over a broken arm you may help stop the bleeding or pain, but the arm is still broken. The same is seen in many chiropractic situations. When people come in and feel the instant relief, many people quit coming back. This is just like the bandage. The pain is gone but the main culprit is still at large. Whether it is from your daily routine or just some random act that caused the pain.
This is when the second phase of healing comes into play, correction and restoration. In this phase many chiropractors should be focusing more on stretches and exercises to help teach you how prevent the problem from occurring again or how to live with the long-term pain. This phase is often the most frustrating for people because it can range from weeks, to months, to years depending on the severity and length of time you have had the condition.
The last phase of chiropractic care is the maintenance phase. Here people come in routinely to help make sure that their bodies are aligned correctly and functioning properly. Whether it be correcting subluxations or helping muscles relax so they do not pull on bony surfaces causing pain. This stage like the previous one is different for everybody depending on the amount of maintenance that is needed. Some people come in every two weeks while others can come in once or twice a year; it all depends on how you take care and are in touch you are with the body.
If you have any questions about chiropractic care and how we could help you either become pain free or stay pain free give us a call at Cornerstone Chiropractic of Hortonville, LLC at 920-779-3300. Have a great day!