Chiropractors are known for helping low back and neck pain. In fact, 57% of people who experience low back or neck pain visit the chiropractor. (That number should be 100%!) When you have pain, you have inflammation in the area of pain and over time the inflammation causes bone spurs.

When you have pain in an area, you end up with an uneven wear on the joints (if you were adjusted, you can correct any misalignments you have) which causes degeneration and wear and tear.

What kind of neck pain?

Chiropractic can help with all kinds of neck pain! This includes things that comes from the neck. Headaches, sinus issues, ear aches, arm and shoulder pain, dizziness, along with other things. Chiropractic can help with muscles that are causing the pain, with disc issues that are causing pain and discomfort, and with bone misalignment due to reduced cervical curve (text neck, whiplash).

Once we know where the pain is stemming from, we can address the issues you are having. More often than not, I do take x-rays on the neck due to how moveable the neck is (compared to other areas of the spine), how close the brain stem is to C1, and to check for instability of the spine.

Sometimes in cases of whiplash, a cervical (neck) collar can help with the instability and fatigue the neck has until the muscles are healed enough to hold the head back up properly. On average a neck weighs 11 pounds! That’s a lot to hold up when you have strained muscles.

Posture is very important in the neck. When you have decreased cervical curve, it’s like holding a bowling ball out in front of you instead of in line with the spine.

Chiropractic

In my office I am big on muscle work along with adjusting! Working on the muscles help you heal quicker. Depending on if you have a reduced cervical curve (most likely, about 9 out of 10 patients do) then you will get given “the towel exercise”. I will most likely tell you to ice (ice is nice) and to rest as much as you can the first days of pain. That means no exercising at the gym!

If you have any questions on how chiropractic can help you, give me or a chiropractor near you a call! Remember the sooner you get help, the quicker you will get well. The longer you put it off, the longer it will take you to heal with chiropractic help. If you have pain, don’t wait until it goes away, because it WILL come back. Promise. Typically it’s worse the second and third time.

~Dr. Lacey~
Carder Chiropractic Clinic, INC.
El Reno, OK 73036