CORE Chiropractic Blog

What Do Chiropractors Treat?

2010-08-28T10:50:00.000-07:00

Is Back Pain Caused By A Lack Of Exercise?

2010-04-13T15:08:00.000-07:00

Many people seem to want to know if you can just exercise lower back pain away. Is it only about exercise? That is, did you end up with lower back pain due to a lack of exercise? Or could it be something else?

Your back pain is not necessarily caused by a lack of exercise, but it's probably a good place to start looking. When I ask patients if they exercise, most are still saying "no." Those that do exercise tend to stick with the same machine or routine for their entire program. (And almost none of their "routine" exercises focus on improving their back muscles.)

So on one hand, we have those that don't exercise and have lower back pain. It's easy to take a guess and see that their spine is having problems due to a lack of muscular support. While their spine may need more work at this point (check with your healthcare professional), eventually they'll exercise lower back pain away by creating a muscular back support around their spine with regular exercise.

Those that do exercise, but are not performing a variety of movements are causing a different problem; muscular imbalance. They are likely only developing certain muscle groups while largely ignoring others. Worse, they may be performing activities that are alarmingly similar to what they already do all day.

They are strengthening muscles that are already overworked (muscles in the front of the body) and not strengthening muscles that are typically ignored (back muscles). This is a standard recipe for developing lower back pain problems and should be avoided.

Overall, maintaining a variety of activities that includes exercises to enhance cardiovascular health, strengthening and stretching will help exercise lower back pain away for good. The same formula works for almost everyone. First, due some exercise regularly. Next, make sure you take some time to strengthen your back muscles (especially if you already know you need it!).

Can Chiropractic Help Neck Pain?

2010-04-09T14:56:00.000-07:00

Your neck consists of seven very small vertebrae and supports the entire weight of your head. The average weight of the human head is 10 to 12 pounds, which isn't very light when you consider the neck is constantly supporting it!

Add in how much neck strain is incurred when you sit for long periods in front of the computer and you steadily increase the amount of work and strain you are expecting of your neck.

The neck also allows your head in nearly all directions which adds even more stress to your neck. With all of this responsibility, the neck is subject a great deal of stress, which often results in chronic pain and stiffness.

Once neck pain has been persistent for any period of time, you may begin to develop neurological symptoms. These may include numbness, tingling, or a "pins and needles" feeling. Usually these complaints are in the neck at all, but can be felt in the fingertips or up and down the arm.

If you begin to experience any of the neurological symptoms, this is usually an indicator that the neck problem is becoming worse. The early phase of pain is just stiffness, then it moves to real pain that can be sharp in nature. The pain will continue to get worse until the radiating symptoms begin.

Many people have neck pain and it is often extremely bothersome. Medical doctors cannot do a whole lot to permanently relieve neck pain. They can prescribe medications to mask your neck pain and they can do x-rays and other tests to see where the pain is coming from.

When they do find something wrong with the neck they will probably want to schedule surgery, which can prove to be a painful procedure with a long recovery. Surgery, while sometimes necessary, really should be considered a treatment of last resort. You can always do the surgery, but if you do the surgery first, you eliminate many other effective and conservative options.

If you have neck pain it may be wise to consult with a chiropractor before going to the extent of something much more serious such as surgery. Some of the first things that a chiropractor will do on your first visit will be to ask you questions about your neck pain.

Some questions they may ask are:

- When did your neck pain start
- What have you done to try to ease your neck pain
- Are there any other parts of your body that your neck pain stems to or from?

These are a few questions that your Chiropractor will most likely ask. After the initial consultation they will then perform a physical examination. The examination will consist of chiropractic tests, orthopedic tests, and a neurological examination.

This entire process will allow the chiropractor to get to the root of your problem and allow him or her to come up with a solution to your pain.

A common practice of chiropractors is to perform a neck adjustment. A neck adjustment is a form of spinal manipulation, and is very specific in nature. This is a very precise technique and is usually very effective in alleviating neck pain.

Chiropractic Miracle Story

2010-04-04T06:00:00.001-07:00

Does Chiropractic Help With Shoulder Pain?

2010-04-03T15:26:00.000-07:00

Chiropractors are known for their abilities in helping people with neck and back pain. The most common reason why someone even considers seeing a chiropractor is for back pain, specifically low back pain. Research and studies and the general consensus is that we can help in this area. What about shoulder pain? Is there anything a chiropractor can do to help shoulder pain?

You can certainly have a chiropractor take a look at and evaluate your shoulder problem. While the spine is most commonly adjusted, the chiropractic adjustment can be performed at any joint. A joint is anywhere two bones meet. In the case of the shoulder, we’ll be looking at three different areas; the clavicle (collarbone), the humerus (upper arm), and the scapula (the shoulder blade).

Any of these joints can move out of their normal position with extended use in the wrong way. Stress and poor posture in the upper back can lead the shoulder blade to become stuck and fixated in the wrong position. The chiropractor can adjust this area and work with the muscles to get things moving again.

The same principles apply to the humerus and the clavicle. There are certain movements in which each bone will take on a more primary role. The chiropractor can feel with his hand if the right areas are moving or not. If the joint is not moving, this means it is likely not functioning correctly. This is where the chiropractor’s expertise can be of most use.

The first evaluation of the shoulder is really to see if any of the muscles, ligaments, or tendons have torn. Depending on the severity of the tear, you may need an immediate referral for an MRI and a visit to an orthopedic specialist. You don’t want someone moving your bones around if you have a tear, and the chiropractor doesn’t want to do that either.

If you haven’t had any trauma to the shoulder joint and the pain has just come on gradually over the years. The chiropractor can take a look and provide adjustments and work to the muscles that can make a world of difference.

How Much Do Your Activities Cause Your Pain?

2010-04-03T15:23:00.000-07:00

Uh oh, it’s happened again. You can feel the initial “twinge.” That is, you can feel the early warning sign that you low back pain problem is about to come back again. You knew you should have been keeping up with your chiropractic visits and the exercises your doctor gave you, but you just haven’t done it.

You feel great most of the time, but you’ve learned that when you get this feeling, things are about to go downhill…fast. Sometimes you get off easy, just a few over-the-counter remedies and you can get back to work. Sometimes you’re going to be spending the weekend putting ice on your back and waiting for the doctor to open up first thing Monday morning.

Worse case is that you’ll spend the next couple of weeks trying to get yourself back to feeling not just pain-free, but to the point where you don’t feel like things are about to go bad at any point. That’s the worse feeling.

So it’s somewhere in one of these episodes that you begin to ask yourself, “Why does this keep happening? Is it something I’m doing or not doing?” Most of the time, the answer is “yes!” Now, our bodies are not made out of concrete, and no one can make sure that your back pain will never, ever return again. However, there’s plenty that you can do to keep the episodes at bay and keep from feeling bad more often than not.

Let’s not even get into some of the preventative measures like regular chiropractic care. Let’s just realize that your daily activities are usually what is contributing to your problem. If you sit all day on the computer, then get in your car and sit, and then go home and sit, and then go to sleep and do the whole thing all over again… you’re going to have problems.

Some people will do some exercises, but that seems to be primarily made up of sit-ups, walking, and riding their bike. None of these activities will strengthen the spine to any noticeable degree. Certainly nothing that is going to keep that “feeling” from coming back again. Your normal daily activities have a focus on actions that occur in front of you with almost no engaging of the back muscles for anything other than keeping you upright.

If you’re going to keep a back problem away, you’re going to need to strengthen your back. Taking some time out to follow your doctor’s recommendations and perform some regular activity for the sake of your spine will go a long way in keeping things together. Keep the weight down, the stress away, some regular general exercise, and some regular exercise focused on strengthening your spine and you should do okay.

Just Do One Thing At A Time.

2010-04-03T15:19:00.000-07:00

If you’ve started to notice that your health is declining and it’s time to do something about it, you’re probably wondering where to start. You know you don’t feel good, you know you’re not doing enough healthy things for yourself, but it can all be a bit overwhelming. Even if your primary goal is to drop a few pounds and just feel better… which action should you take first?

One school of thought is to take massive action. This is certainly a good thing and has helped many overcome great obstacles. Taking massive action should lead to massive results. However, when it comes to changing your health, which massive action should you take? Go and buy every vitamin in the store? Run laps around your block until your legs won’t move? Schedule appointments with a chiropractor, personal trainer, massage therapist, and psychologist?

My suggestion is to take massive action… on one thing at a time. Pick something. It doesn’t have to be anything other than something that will move you closer to a long term goal of being healthy. To me, that would mean that I’m an appropriate weight, I’m generally free of pain, I have lots of energy, and my moods are pretty consistent in a positive way.

The major categories are going to be eating better and exercise.

Eating right can start with eliminating the things that you know are bad for you that you regularly eat. Too many sodas? Trips to the vending machine? Double frappacinos with whip? Something just popped into your head and you know it’s been slowing leading to a decline in your health. Pick one and let it go.

Bring your lunch to work a couple of days per week or find something healthy that you can eat at least once per day. Start taking a decent multi-vitamin if you’re not doing so already and drink a lot more water. Just do something healthy.

Once you’ve got this habit formed and are starting to feel pretty good about your results, time to reassess and eliminate something bad and add in something good. Keep this up until you get where you want to go.

What about exercise? I have to admit, doing this regularly is not always the easiest thing for me. I say it’s about spending the time and effort, but I think it’s more about not spending the time finding something that I really enjoy doing. You don’t have to start an exercise program by planning to run a marathon (unless that helps you get motivated).

Walking 1 mile and running 1 mile burn about the same amount of calories since it takes longer to walk that same distance. Find ways to walk more, even if it just means parking your car further away from the building at work. You can do it, but you have to start somewhere and that means taking action towards your goal.

You can get healthy, really! It’s possible for those that are willing to make the effort. If your health has declined to such a degree that you need professionals to help you heal and feel better, then by all means do that too. Take massive action… just do it on one thing a time.

Have You Developed "Computer Posture"?

2010-04-03T15:06:00.000-07:00

Have you developed "computer posture?" Is your neck beginning to jut forward while your upper back takes on the rounded shape of someone hunched over a keyboard all day?

It makes sense that no matter what your occupation, if you spend extended amounts of time in the same position, your body will begin to stay that way. Your body loves to adapt. If you lift weights, your body thinks that you must need bigger muscles to accomplish your daily activities. On the other hand, if you don't lift weights, your body assumes there's no need for big muscles.

If you are hunched over the keyboard, your body begins the process of creating a computer posture for you. A postural change that will help you stay in the position that you are in the most.

So to solve this problem (yes, computer posture is a problem), you're going to have to do activities that tell your body that your desire is to sit up straight -- and out of pain.

The great thing about your body is that you won't have to do the additional activities nearly as much as you are doing the position that is contributing to your computer posture.

You just have to do it effectively. You have to target the muscles of your back that support your posture and help you maintain a straight position. Just going to the gym and bench pressing is not going to get you the results you're after.

Spend time exercising your back and you'll make it difficult for you body to keep you hunched over your desk.

Do You Need Chiropractic After An Auto Accident?

2010-04-03T15:04:00.000-07:00

Do you need to seek out chiropractic care following an auto accident? My answer is a resounding "yes!" Why is it so important? Why can't you just rest and take the medications that were prescribed by your medical doctor? Is the insurance company going to give you a hard time about it?

The reason why chiropractic care is so important after an accident has little to do with you being in pain (although it's good for that too). A vertebra that moves out of its normal alignment can wreak havoc on your neck and its associated nerves. You may not be in a lot of pain immediately following the accident, but research indicates that most people will experience a bulk of their symptoms after a few days.

Once you start to feel symptoms, this is a good indicator that something has moved out of place, and likely that you're experiencing a sprain/strain kind of injury. Sprain and strain don't sound horrible, but really they are describing tears of various tissues in your body. The severity of the tear will indicate the type of treatment you should probably consider first. The chiropractor can help make the determination.

Eventually, your body will heal with scar tissue. Scar tissue is more sensitive than the previously uninjured tissue that you had within you before. Once scar tissue sets up (this takes about 3 weeks following the trauma), it will become increasingly difficult to get you back to your pre-accident state. Receiving some chiropractic adjustments to your spine will help assure that your spine is in its best position as that scar tissue begins to form. The better your spine is when all of this occurs, the more likely you can return pain-free following your therapy and treatment.

So why can't you just rest and take the medications? That may be your best first course of treatment for a couple of days following your accident, but certainly can't be the best choice long term. The medications are there to help you with pain, to help you get through the difficulty of the initial phase of your injury. However, they're certainly not fixing anything.

In addition to the chiropractic adjustment, you can typically receive additional therapies that will help your muscles and other soft tissue heal more quickly than just "resting" alone. The additional therapies also help with pain, swelling, and inflammation and can be a big help in the speed of your recovery.

Will your auto insurance or health insurance company give you any trouble? You have insurance for just this type of situation, when you need health care and you can't afford to pay for it yourself. Your health insurance company may have issue if the accident wasn't your fault and the other person should be paying for it (or their insurance), but otherwise you shouldn't have trouble here.

Your auto insurance policy will determine the amount of coverage and just how much help the company has to give. Still, it's your body and your health and you'll need to make sure your injuries are taken care of following the accident. Where you will have trouble is if months have gone by and you haven't gone to see any doctors, just hoping it will go away. Then you decide to tell your insurance company that they need to pay for it all. That doesn't go over too well.

If you've been in an auto accident, it's a good idea to see a chiropractor and do it as quickly as possible once you realize you've been injured. The faster you get some type of treatment, usually the better your results.

Low Back Pain After Sitting At Your Computer?

2010-04-03T14:54:00.000-07:00

These days, most people have to sit at their computer all day. They don't have the best posture in the world, and they don't always have the best ergonomic set up for their desks. They are also under a lot of stress. However, usually bad posture, stress, and poor ergonomics will lead to frequent headaches, neck and upper back pain... not low back pain.

Low back pain is usually reserved for those employees doing physical work, a lot of lifting, bending, and stooping. During the times that I've seen patients with more physical jobs, most of them presented to my office with low back pain. Now, the top half of their body provides the more abundant symptom.

So if you don't do physical work all day, why are you getting low back pain? I noticed the same two major muscle groups being tight and stressed over and over again. By stretching these two major areas, a lot of very common symptoms, including low back pain and sciatica seemed to get quick relief. Doing the stretches also seemed to make a difference long term in my patients' ability to get longer lasting results from their chiropractic care.

The first muscles you should stretch are your hamstrings. You sit all day and the seated position puts them in their shortest position. Standing up means your hamstrings are pulling on your pelvis and pulling things out of place. Keeping this muscle more flexible is key in helping your back pain.

People have the most trouble because they can't quite get it stretched. First step would be to get off the floor. That's usually too much! Stand up or sit in a chair and put your leg straight out on a chair. Slowly try to touch your toes. Just go slow and only as far as you can reasonably go without pain. Hold the stretch for at least thirty seconds. Repeat on each side twice. Usually people just don't hold their stretches long enough to do much good. Consistency will make the difference in getting more flexible.

The next muscles to stretch are your hip rotators. Relieving the muscles here takes a lot of strain off the sciatica problem. For this one, you can even do it while lying in bed or on the floor. Keep one leg straight while you pull your other leg up to your chest. You should feel a pull. You can further stretch this area by pulling your knee across your body to get better results. Again, hold the stretch for at least thirty seconds.

Chances are, you're not going to stop working on your computer any time soon. Taking a few minutes each day to do some stretching will make a world of difference. Seeing a chiropractor on a regular basis is also a huge help.

"Are You Doing The Same Thing Every Time?"

2010-03-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

When patients have been a couple of weeks into any care program, they often ask, “Are you doing the same thing every time?” It’s a legitimate question, since from the patient perspective, it may appear that each visit is the same.

Each vertebrae can move up to 16 different directions. There’s forward, back, tilting to each side, and rotation to each side – plus every combination thereof. So the real value in visiting a chiropractor is our ability to determine which vertebrae is out of alignment and then move it back into the right place.

Your goal is likely to get out of pain (or eliminate some recurring symptom), so you want to create a change in the spine. In order for us to create a change, we’ll need to make virtually the same adjustment on a regular basis for a period of time until the vertebra learns to hold the correct position.

It’s likely that each adjustment is to the same vertebra and taking it in the same direction, and that’s by design. Each patient will have their own misalignment that needs correction so treatment (although appearing very similar) will be different for each patient based on which bones are out of alignment and how long it’s taking to make a difference.

So your visit will potentially be the “same thing every time” for awhile. Each patient, however, is getting the adjustments that are right for them.

Some patients may also need additional therapies, exercises, stretches, or some time spent alleviating muscle spasm and “knots.” We strive to give you just what you need and nothing more.

What If You Can't Afford Treatment?

2010-03-18T08:39:00.000-07:00

With all the debate going on about government-sponsored healthcare and keeping costs down, chiropractic care remains one of the cheapest methods of solving many different health conditions.

For less than the price of a round of steroid injections, you can get weeks to months of chiropractic treatment that will typically have longer lasting and more beneficial effects — without the side effects.

Now, I understand that many people can have difficulty with starting a treatment plan that may include multiple visits in a week. That’s at least a co-pay every time they walk through the door. I don’t want to sound unsympathetic, but I know that people waste so much money on things that are harmful to their health while putting their health issues on the back burner that could easily be solved now.

Is it really that you can’t afford treatment? Or is it that you just don’t see it as a priority? Every situation is different and your situation may be that you truly cannot afford it, but I’ve encountered many patients that just don’t see their health as a priority and that’s unfortunate.

At our office, we bend over backwards to offer discounts and alternate payment options in an effort to help you afford care, so it’s always surprising when people don’t choose to take advantage. Others are thrilled that we offer choices and ways for them to get all the care they need now and then pay for it over time.

I can sleep at night knowing that people that really want the help will always get the help at our office. If you need chiropractic care and wonder how in the world you can afford it, know that there are offices out there that will give you the payment assistance you need to make it happen.

Embrace The "Pop"

2010-03-11T08:38:00.000-08:00

Are you afraid of hearing the “pop” noise when you get adjusted? Do you cringe when someone “cracks” their knuckles around you? Maybe it’s time to just embrace it. Learn more about what the “pop” is and why you should be happy when you hear it.

When the chiropractor performs and adjustment, often (but not always), you’ll hear a noise that goes with it. It’s called a cavitation. It’s really just the sound of the joint getting freed up for just a fraction of a second. Gas is released and you hear the noise. It also is a good indicator that your spine moved — and that’s a good thing.

If you are using a hands-on chiropractor and never hearing any noise, it’s not to say that you won’t get better. The noise can vary in volume from patient to patient, and from visit to visit. Since the doctor is using the right force in the right direction, you’ll still get results.

I differentiate if for myself. Usually if I’m hearing “clicks,” that means to me that we’re getting some movement, but the joint is not going to stay in the right place for long. Once I start hearing “clunks,” I know that the adjustment will hold longer and the right results are sure to follow.

So, it’s just noise and it means you’re getting better. Why not just embrace the pop?

Can Chiropractors Help With TMJ?

2010-03-04T08:37:00.000-08:00

I’m not sure why this is, but there have been a growing number of new patients coming to our office with TMJ problems. Issues with your TMJ (temperomandibular joint, a.k.a. your “jaw”) most commonly lead to jaw pain and headaches.

TMJ issues can arise from a trauma to the jaw, like when you play sports or you happen to get hit. A lot of the issues comes from just going to the dentist. Not that the dentist did anything wrong, it’s just that when you have to hold your mouth open for so long and the muscles get tight and pull things out of place.

Then the jaw starts to pop or click each time you open your mouth. A lot of this can be accepted for awhile, but when it starts to lead to pain is when people want to take action. Some patients arrive in our office dealing with a totally different problem. Then I’ll get a question like, “Can chiropractic help my jaw?” Then the conversation begins.

The treatment is usually focused on working the muscles of the jaw. Kind of like massage, but more specific to the jaw muscles. Usually one side is way tighter than the other. Loosening up the tight side goes a long way in easing the pressure.

The TMJ itself can be adjusted through chiropractic. In our office, we can adjust the joint by using our hands, or the use of a low-impact adjusting tool called an activator. Both methods work well and seem to relieve the pain and pressure in the jaw.

Is There An Easier Way To Stretch Hamstrings?

2010-02-25T08:36:00.000-08:00

Most of the patients that come to my office sit at a computer all day. (Who doesn’t these days?) I also seem to have more than my share of people that are active in running and working out, but not necessarily taking the time to stretch.

Since sitting all day at the computer is limited in its movements, the same areas of their bodies seem to get tight and stressed. One of the primary muscle groups that seems to lead to a lot of low back pain is having tight hamstrings. The hamstrings are the muscles at the back of your thigh. Can you bend down and touch your toes? If not, and you feel pulling at the back of your thighs, you probably have tight hamstrings.

Another test would be if you lay flat on your back, how high can you lift one leg at a time before your knee starts to bend, or before you start to get so much tightness that you can’t go up any further. If you can’t make it to 90 degrees, your hamstrings are too tight. If you can’t make it past 30 degrees, like a lot of patients, you are in trouble and need to get moving on regular stretching.

At this point, I do have to warn you that you should consult with a physician before attempting any exercise program. Done!

If you try to stretch your hamstrings in the most common ways; from a standing position and then bending over, or sitting on the floor with your legs stretched out in front of you and then try to reach your toes, you may be having trouble. Take a look at someone holding this position. They are doing more stretching to their backs then they are to their hamstrings. That’s because in order to hold that position, they have to be at 90 degrees! Which is the point you want to get to anyway!

Since you can’t do that, your back compensates and you reach out with your neck and strain you back. Try this instead: Sit at the edge of a chair or bench. Reach one leg out in front of you with your leg straight and your foot pointing straight up. Keep good posture and just reach as far as you comfortably can. If you feel a good stretch, then hold it for 30 seconds and then repeat. If you feel sharp pain or anything other than a stretch, back off until you get back to the right position.

It’s also way better to stretch after you’re already warmed up too, like after working out or having walked for ten to fifteen minutes. You’ll get a lot more out of the stretch and have fewer complications.

Why Don't More People See Chiropractors?

2010-02-18T08:35:00.000-08:00

According to various polls and questions asked of the public, more than 50% (sometimes 60%) of the population indicate they would consider visiting a chiropractor. For the last forty years, the percentage of people that actually do so has remained the same. While more people are seeing chiropractors than ever before, consistently only 10% of the population does so.

Why? If so many people would consider chiropractic as an alternative to other medical choices, why don’t they actually do it when the need arises?

They don’t know what to expect.

Most people have gone to see a medical doctor. They have an overall understanding of what they can expect when they walk in the office. They expect a little window, to be handed some paperwork to fill out, and then eventually get a chance to visit the doctor and tell them where it hurts. They also know that they’ll likely be handed a prescription that will help their symptoms and they can be on their way.

What happens when they go to see a chiropractor? That’s just it. They don’t really know. They assume it’s similar to a visit to an MD, except that instead of a prescription the chiropractor is likely to “pop” something. Do they really need something “popped”? They’re not sure so they go with what they know.

They don’t know if their condition can be helped with chiropractic care.

They think of chiropractors as helping with auto accidents and low back pain (if you just go by the most common advertisements seen), but they don’t have that. They have headaches, or neck pain, or shoulder pain. Can a chiropractor help with that? They look at a couple of yellow page ads or run through some websites. Some say they do, some don’t say anything about it.

Can they get help by seeing the chiropractor? Again, they’re not sure so they just go back to what they know. They want relief and they want it fast. They’ve gotten relief before by getting a prescription so once again they find themselves at their physician’s office.

They don’t know who to see.

All the chiropractic ads say different things. Activator Methods? Gonstead? Palmer Graduate? Do I need that? Is one really better than the other? This guy seems okay, he’s wearing a white coat and advertising “decompression.” Do I need to be decompressed? All of the chiropractors seem to be advertising slightly different things, while the medical doctor offices all seem to be closer to the same.

There can be a lot of confusion about visiting a chiropractor. While many chiropractors offer an initial no-charge consultation, most people just aren’t going to sit through a consultation when what they really want is pain relief as quickly as possible. It’s really up to the chiropractic profession to continue to educate and get a consistent message out there so people will know what to expect, which conditions are regularly treated, and understand some of the terminology that is out there when it comes time to make their choice.

Back Pain: It's Not Always What It Used To Be

2010-02-11T08:35:00.000-08:00

If you ignore a back problem, it will likely not go away on its own. Sometimes you can get through an episode when it’s early in the condition with some over the counter medications and rest. So you’d think. If the underlying problem is never addressed, the back pain problem is there to resurface again at a later date.

Usually when the pain returns, it hurts a little bit more and lasts a little bit longer. Over time, the episodes will start to show up more frequently until the person takes the actions necessary to create a more substantial healing. (Hopefully they go to see a chiropractor and get their spine in its proper alignment instead of relying on stronger and stronger medications.)

More often than not, the person dealing with the back pain follows their doctor’s orders and concern themselves with their back only when the pain shows up. Then they return to doing all the same things that led them to the the problem in the first place. Then the symptoms return and they show back up to their doctor.

“I know what I’ve got, doc. Last time you told me it was my L5 disc.” They then expect you to do what you did last time, give them the relief in the same time frame you gave it to them last time and they can get on with their lives. Sometimes it happens just like that, sometimes the episode takes a couple of extra days to return back to normal.

Eventually, they’ll get the same condition, they’ll show back up to your office, expect the same results… and they won’t happen. The doctor will end up doing more tests and discover that they don’t just have an “L5 disc” problem anymore. They now have L4 and L5 and the sciatic nerve is being compressed. The previously minor disc bulge at L5 has turned into a full blown disc herniation with potentially more invasive treatment needed to alleviate the pain.

How could this have been avoided? Once you’ve been notified that you have a back problem, seek relief from the pain first. Once the pain is gone, you must distinguish that your “pain” and your “problem” are two different things. Celebrate the relief of your pain, but evaluate what may have led to the problem in the first place.

Are you strengthening your back muscles? Are you getting enough exercise? How are your daily activities contributing to the problem and how can they be modified. Don’t accept your back condition and assume it will never change or get worse. Most of them can and do get worse over time.

Get Healthy! Just Do One Thing At A Time.

2010-02-04T08:34:00.000-08:00

How Much Do Your Daily Activities Create Back Pain?

2010-01-25T08:33:00.000-08:00

Neck Pain After Extended Computer Use?

2010-01-18T08:30:00.000-08:00

You sit down at your computer, ready to put in a full day’s work and make some serious headway on your projects. You know you’ll easily be spending 8 to 10 hours sitting in front of the computer.

You’ve set up your computer workstation as effectively as you can figure. Your keyboard is appropriately placed in front of you and your monitor is directly in front of you at eye level. So why will your neck start to hurt? Why will your effectiveness be destroyed by the nagging, aggravating neck pain that seems to show up more and more frequently?

If you are regularly spending a lot of time in front of a computer, you have to realize that your body is going to begin to change and adapt to take on this frequent activity. Your front neck muscles are slowly growing shorter and tighter, while the muscles in the back of your neck are growing longer and weaker.

The back muscles are also growing full of spasm and knots while they are forced to hold up your ten pound head for hours at a time. You would think they would grow stronger from having to hold your head up all the time, but it just never seems to work that way. As they get longer, they are growing weaker, and the job of holding up your head becomes increasingly difficult.

The best options are to do exercises and activities that will counteract the extended computer usage. The rule of thumb is to spend time stretching the front of your neck and strengthening the muscles in the back. This same rule applies to anyone looking to improve posture.

To stretch the front of the neck, turn your head slightly to one side, about forty-five degrees. If you turn your head to the right, you are stretching the left and vice versa. Place your right hand on left side of your chest and pull down gently as you tilt your head back. Stop immediately if you feel sharp pain or any dizziness.

To strengthen the back of the neck, the easiest route would be with a neck exercise machine. Some health clubs have them, but they are more of a specialized device. You can also fold up a towel and place it against a wall. Put the back of your head against the towel and push into it. Hold for a few seconds and release. This is an isometric contraction.

If you are unable to complete some of these movements, or you find that you can’t painlessly move your head backwards, it may be time to visit a chiropractor. The chiropractor will perform a spinal adjustment and restore the normal movement of your spine.

Your neck shouldn’t hurt just because you’re sitting in front of your computer. You’ve got to work and pain can be a nuisance, but it doesn’t have to be there with a little effort.

Back Pain: How You Stand Gives It Away

2010-01-11T08:29:00.000-08:00

Once you see someone doing it, it’s hard to avoid it any longer. You’ve seen it, you may have even done it. You stand on one leg. I’m not talking about standing on one leg like a flamingo, but rather standing where you are putting all of your weight on one side of your body.

Eventually, that side gets tired and you switch to the other side. A sort of “dance” ensues for the rest of the day. Why would it feel more comfortable for you to stand out of your normal alignment? Why is it uncomfortable for you to be straight up and down. And why won’t your back pain go away?

Typically, someone that has this type of condition is regularly experiencing low back pain and possibly sciatica (pain that shoots down the back of their leg). This is a common complaint when someone is dealing with sacroiliac problems. The sacroiliac joint is where your pelvis meets up with your sacrum. The sacrum is a triangle shaped bone that ends in your tailbone.

You have two of these joints, one on each side of your body. Each joint is designed to move, particularly when your leg moves up, like when walking or running. Through various activities, it is possible for this joint to become stuck or not move as well as it should. This causes one side of your body to not move as effectively as it should.

More importantly, that movement out of its normal alignment may cause a functional short leg. One leg may visually seem shorter than the other, even though it is the same length if we were to take out a tape measure and actually measure each leg. This functional short leg makes it very difficult for you to stand straight up.

Worse, if you try to force it, you will become increasingly uncomfortable until you return to position that is out of alignment but is taking pressure off that joint. You see this in almost every condition. Your body wants to keep you out of pain, even if that means that you have to get in a crazy position to maintain it.

So what’s the fix? A chiropractor will find the area of your spine (or pelvis) that is out of its normal alignment and help move it back into place. When the joint function is restored, the normal movement can return, and the person will actually feel more comfortable standing in proper alignment. If nothing is done, the patient will continue to experience more significant symptoms until something is done. At that point, no “dancing” or standing on one leg will be enough to help.

Your Back Pain Just Started, But...

2010-01-04T08:28:00.000-08:00

There are problems that have just started, lurking beneath the surface where you have not yet felt their pain. You may go years, occasionally feeling some soreness and stiffness, just to have it go away on its own. Maybe you feel a twinge, take a pill, and it all seems like it’s going to be okay.

Then one morning you get up, accidentally drop your socks on the floor, bend down to pick them up and you can’t get back up. You are having so much pain that you barely manage to make it to your bed and hang on. You start taking pills like crazy until you manage to pull out the yellow pages and find a nearby chiropractor.

On your visit to the chiropractor, he explains that your spine is showing signs of wear and tear, that your problem likely began years ago. “What? I just bent down to pick up my socks. My problem started this morning.” The problem with believing that your problem is new is that you will also likely believe that your pain should go away quickly.

You are likely forgetting about all the times you felt warning signals and quickly dismissed them or medicated them away. You don’t realize that you haven’t been able to touch your toes in years, you don’t exercise regularly, and your job entails you sitting for extended periods of time. These were all factors in the building of your spinal problem, long before you ever felt your first symptom… the back pain.

The back pain ended up as the final result of the years of build up on your spine. Now you can either go for stronger drugs to cover things up, or you can begin to undo the years of ignoring the warnings and work to build up a healthy and normally functioning spine. The good news is that it rarely takes nearly as long to put your back together as it took to make it bad in the first place.

There is a point of no return. There is a point when you’ve ignored and dulled the warning signals for so long that the degeneration in your spine and the bulging of your spinal disc have eliminated some of the more conservative treatments. There is a time when your only choice is a spinal surgery or injections to stop the pain even if they aren’t fixing anything.

What can you learn from this? When the back pain hits, take a good look at when your problem began and not just when your symptoms began. Seriously evaluate what its going to take to get your spine back to a good place and pain-free. The longer you wait in taking the proper steps, the more difficult the journey.

Can Chiropractic Help With Shoulder Pain?

2009-12-25T08:27:00.000-08:00

Can You Exercise Your Way To Bad Posture And Back Pain?

2009-12-18T08:27:00.000-08:00

While I want to encourage each and every patient I come into contact with to start making healthier choices for themselves, I’ve had to learn to be very specific in the questions I ask them about what it is they’re doing.

“I started going to the gym three days per week!” To hear someone that has done little to no activity for themselves for years, it’s hard not to just be excited at that moment. When you’re dealing with someone who spends a majority of their day either sitting in their car, sitting in front of a computer, and sitting on their couch at home actually engage in physical activity… you want to pat them on the back and just be happy for their accomplishment.

You also want them to be successful. I want them to feel better, to have better posture, and end their back pain. I don’t want them to be discouraged because their posture seems worse and their back hurts more. That will only lead to them discontinuing all activities again. If I can direct some of what they do at the gym, they may just see the results they’re after and keep it up!

If you are going to the gym and using the cardio equipment, you’ll want to avoid things that going to make them worse. The treadmill is okay if you stand straight while you’re doing it. The recumbent bike and other stationary bikes seem to keep the person sitting with bad posture or slouching over the handlebars. The stair-steppers also seem to have a high incidence of people leaning on the machine. If you’re going to hunch over all day and then hunch over on the machine, you’re not going to help your situation.

I usually recommend the elliptical machine, because it almost forces you to stand up straight, requires some coordination, and has no impact on your joints while you’re doing it. Great for people looking to make a healthy change.

As far as the exercises you choose, the machines, and the weights, just remember that you’re trying to counter all the other daily activities that you perform. The weakest area that will help the most is to strengthen your back! Doing bench presses and abs will only further hunch you over unless you balance it with likely twice as much activity to your back.

You can’t keep working the front of your body and ignoring the back and think that your posture will improve. You can’t keep your back muscles long and weak and think that your back pain will end. Working the muscles that you can see easily in the mirror may make you feel a little better when you start to see some tone in your muscles. Unless your working your back muscles, that “tone” may be telling you that you’re on your way to more back pain.

Perform exercises that help you keep good posture and you’ll maximize your efforts.

Take Charge Of Your Health

2009-12-11T08:26:00.000-08:00

Most health problems can be avoided. Many of the problems we deal with every day didn’t have to be there at all, if we were willing to take a good hard look at ourselves and decide to be healthy.

The first question is, do you think your body wants to be healthy or do you think you have to medicate it into being “healthy?” An easy example is if you get a cut on your skin. You know that the bandage doesn’t heal the cut, your body does. It just knows that it needs to heal that area and it gets to work. If you are a healthy person, the cut will likely heal much faster than if you are unhealthy.

I see this in my practice every day. I’m a chiropractor and we work with aligning the spine to improve the patient’s health. In order for the spine to stay in its proper position, the muscles will need to work with us. The health of the muscles will determine how fast the patient gets results.

Too many people are in pain, come in and get treatment, just to find that the results take much longer than they thought they would. Then I see patients in moderately good health that bounce back much faster than expected. The patient that consistently makes more healthy choices will get better faster than the patient that doesn’t. Period.

So how do you avoid most health problems and stay healthy? There’s not a lot of mystery to it, believe me. I’ve tried, probably just like you, to find any other new possible way to get healthy other than what has been tried and true.

1. Eat right – What does this mean? Fruits and vegetables, you know, all the stuff you don’t want to eat. If you look at your health as just the results of what you’ve been doing so far, this will help in your motivation. Eliminating one bad food at a time and replacing it with something healthy will go a long way. Maybe no more sodas, instead you’ll be drinking water. Replacing green tea for coffee, or reducing your sugar intake.

Continue to make these better choices and eventually you’ll see a big difference in how you feel. Many conditions are the result of long term diet issues. If you eat poorly, you don’t give your body any materials to maintain your health.

2. Exercise – Don’t start your new exercise program by opening up your front door and running 10 miles. Find some ways to build momentum in your exercise program. Take a walk, go play catch with your child (or even your dog), or get a bike and start doing laps around your block. Find a way to get started and go from there.

Exercise will improve the tone of your muscles, make you stronger, and most importantly, will help you deal with stress. Stress is a huge factor in your health.

It all sounds to easy, right? It’s not easy. Staying consistent with these elements of your goal to get healthy will yield plenty of benefits, just figure out your best way of sticking with it. I’ve found that adding in (or taking out) one thing at a time will make all the difference. You won’t lose fifty pounds in six weeks, but whatever you do lose will stay gone. Over the long-term, that’s what will make all the difference in your health. Take charge of your health!

Can I Be My Own Chiropractor?

2009-12-04T08:25:00.000-08:00

At least once a month I get a question from a patient asking some version of “Why can’t I just adjust myself?” And more often, I have patients that regularly do adjust themselves, particular grabbing their own head or neck and performing a maneuver that gives them a bunch of “cracks” and makes them feel like they’ve done something good.

There are probably more reasons than what I’ll list here, but the answer is “no” you can’t be your own chiropractor. You can be your own mechanic (to a point), you can be your own handyman (to a point), you might even be your own doctor at times, but you leave the more specific and more complicated tasks to the experts.

Getting a spinal adjustment is one of those complicated things that doesn’t seem so complicated on the surface. What is it that the chiropractor is really doing? Why do I need to have a chiropractic adjustment, what’s wrong with just twisting my own neck?

I think you’ll agree that if you are trying to move your spine, you have determined that it is either not moving or it has moved out of place, right? If it can go the wrong direction and cause pain and discomfort, then it makes sense that if you move it further out of place you can make it worse. So… how do you know which way to move your vertebrae? The move that I see being performed is a “move everything and hope I get the right one at some point.”

Each vertebrae can move up to sixteen different directions. Do you know which way your vertebra has gone? That’s where the chiropractor comes in. They are trained to determined which way the bone has moved and how to move it back into the correct place. Some of the directions are extremely difficult to accomplish on your own. Chiropractors don’t adjust themselves either!

The same principle that applies to adjusting yourself also goes for having someone “bear hug” you at a family gathering and having your kids walk on your back. It’s just not specific and the person performing the “therapy” has no way of knowing which part of your spine needs to be adjusted.

The next question is “If I can’t adjust myself, why does it feel better when I do it?”

You’ll notice that when you do it, the good feeling doesn’t last long. That’s why you keep doing it over and over again during the day. You still get the endorphin release, so you’ll temporarily get a influx of pain relief that makes you think you’ve done something good for yourself. However, you’ve more likely either moved something the wrong way or moved a different bone than the one that needs it. The pain and discomfort returns once the endorphins are gone and you’re back to where you started.

In summary, you cannot be your own chiropractor. I know it can seem like a simple thing, but chiropractors are the experts at finding the right area of your spine to be adjusted and then moving it back the right way. See the experts!

Is Chiropractic Care Needed After An Accident?

2009-11-25T08:25:00.000-08:00

Do you need to seek out chiropractic care following an auto accident? My answer is a resounding “yes!” Why is it so important? Why can’t you just rest and take the medications that were prescribed by your medical doctor? Is the insurance company going to give you a hard time about it?

The reason why chiropractic care is so important after an accident has little to do with you being in pain (although it’s good for that too). A vertebra that moves out of its normal alignment can wreak havoc on your neck and its associated nerves. You may not be in a lot of pain immediately following the accident, but research indicates that most people will experience a bulk of their symptoms after a few days.

Once you start to feel symptoms, this is a good indicator that something has moved out of place, and likely that you’re experiencing a sprain/strain kind of injury. Sprain and strain don’t sound horrible, but really they are describing tears of various tissues in your body. The severity of the tear will indicate the type of treatment you should probably consider first. The chiropractor can help make the determination.

Eventually, your body will heal with scar tissue. Scar tissue is more sensitive than the previously uninjured tissue that you had within you before. Once scar tissue sets up (this takes about 3 weeks following the trauma), it will become increasingly difficult to get you back to your pre-accident state. Receiving some chiropractic adjustments to your spine will help assure that your spine is in its best position as that scar tissue begins to form. The better your spine is when all of this occurs, the more likely you can return pain-free following your therapy and treatment.

So why can’t you just rest and take the medications? That may be your best first course of treatment for a couple of days following your accident, but certainly can’t be the best choice long term. The medications are there to help you with pain, to help you get through the difficulty of the initial phase of your injury. However, they’re certainly not fixing anything.

In addition to the chiropractic adjustment, you can typically receive additional therapies that will help your muscles and other soft tissue heal more quickly than just “resting” alone. The additional therapies also help with pain, swelling, and inflammation and can be a big help in the speed of your recovery.

Will your auto insurance or health insurance company give you any trouble? You have insurance for just this type of situation, when you need health care and you can’t afford to pay for it yourself. Your health insurance company may have issue if the accident wasn’t your fault and the other person should be paying for it (or their insurance), but otherwise you shouldn’t have trouble here.

Your auto insurance policy will determine the amount of coverage and just how much help the company has to give. Still, it’s your body and your health and you’ll need to make sure your injuries are taken care of following the accident. Where you will have trouble is if months have gone by and you haven’t gone to see any doctors, just hoping it will go away. Then you decide to tell your insurance company that they need to pay for it all. That doesn’t go over too well.

If you’ve been in an auto accident, it’s a good idea to see a chiropractor and do it as quickly as possible once you realize you’ve been injured. The faster you get some type of treatment, usually the better your results.

Low Back Pain After Sitting At The Computer

2009-11-18T08:24:00.000-08:00

My practice is in an area that is filled with people that sit at their computer all day. They don’t have the best posture in the world, and they don’t always have the best ergonomic set up for their desks. They are also under a lot of stress. However, usually bad posture, stress, and poor ergonomics will lead to frequent headaches, neck and upper back pain… not low back pain.

Low back pain is usually reserved for those employees doing physical work, a lot of lifting, bending, and stooping. During the times that I’ve seen patients with more physical jobs, most of them presented to my office with low back pain. Now, the top half of their body provides the more abundant symptom.

So if you don’t do physical work all day, why are you getting low back pain? I noticed the same two major muscle groups being tight and stressed over and over again. By stretching these two major areas, a lot of very common symptoms, including low back pain and sciatica seemed to get quick relief. Doing the stretches also seemed to make a difference long term in my patients’ ability to get longer lasting results from their chiropractic care.

The first muscles you should stretch are your hamstrings. You sit all day and the seated position puts them in their shortest position. Standing up means your hamstrings are pulling on your pelvis and pulling things out of place. Keeping this muscle more flexible is key in helping your back pain.

People have the most trouble because they can’t quite get it stretched. First step would be to get off the floor. That’s usually too much! Stand up or sit in a chair and put your leg straight out on a chair. Slowly try to touch your toes. Just go slow and only as far as you can reasonably go without pain. Hold the stretch for at least thirty seconds. Repeat on each side twice. Usually people just don’t hold their stretches long enough to do much good. Consistency will make the difference in getting more flexible.

The next muscles to stretch are your hip rotators. Relieving the muscles here takes a lot of strain off the sciatica problem. For this one, you can even do it while lying in bed or on the floor. Keep one leg straight while you pull your other leg up to your chest. You should feel a pull. You can further stretch this area by pulling your knee across your body to get better results. Again, hold the stretch for at least thirty seconds.

Chances are, you’re not going to stop working on your computer any time soon. Taking a few minutes each day to do some stretching will make a world of difference. Seeing a chiropractor on a regular basis is also a huge help.

When Your Ergonomic Chair Isn't Enough

2009-11-11T08:23:00.000-08:00

Based on the best ergonomic research available today, you would believe that if your monitor is in the right place, if your keyboard and mouse are positioned just right, you’ll be free of any type of repetitive stress injury.This is just not the case.

My practice is in an area heavy on computer users. They all work for top notch companies that have hired ergonomic experts to measure the angles and modify the employee’s desk and chair to make sure they are in the best position possible. Still, all of the people that come into my office are still experiencing pain and discomfort in the head, neck, upper and lower back.

Why isn’t the ergonomic chair enough? Why doesn’t it “fix” everything that can go wrong? Do we need more expensive chairs?

I don’t think this is the problem. You have to agree that the early computer workstations were not very ergonomically friendly, so it certainly helps to have improved that situation. I still see people that have problems because of either spinal misalignments or because they get so little physical activity that their spines are starting to show the wear and tear of their normal daily activities.

Just about every problem with the spine can be linked to some kind of trauma. Trauma from a car accident or a fall is easier to notice. A small, repetitive trauma that seems benign when done for a short period can really start to affect the person when done for forty or more hours per week and compounded by years of the same movements.

The muscles in the front of the body become short, creating a hunching over. The muscles in the back become longer and, because of this, they become weaker. After awhile, the best chair in the world is really only providing support for a spine that is not nearly as healthy as it could be.

In fact, it could be argued that since the chair is providing all the “support,” the person may not feel the need to improve their own spine and create a better support for themselves. Over time, the spine is only getting weaker and more is being asked of the ergonomic equipment meant to prevent injury.

What’s the solution? See a chiropractor, and make sure your spine is in alignment. Next, get some exercise and work specifically on targeting stretching of the muscles in front of your body and strengthening muscles in the back. Now your ergonomic setup will actually have something to support!

Chiropractic As Part Of A "Get Healthy" Program

2009-11-04T08:23:00.001-08:00

If you’re like many people, you’d love to be a healthy person. If you already feel pretty healthy, that’s great. However, I’ve noticed more and more people are searching the internet for ways to get healthy. They want to be healthy, they just don’t necessarily want to have to take any difficult action steps in order to make it happen.

Getting healthy usually means all the normal steps. Eating better, getting some regular exercise, and addressing various ailments and symptoms that have begun to show up. Still, most people are going to take a passive approach to their health. They want to do things and go places where things will be “done to them” rather than them having to “do stuff.”

Let’s take eating better for example. There’s no real mystery any more for you in which foods are good for you. Fast food is usually bad (even the stuff they try to make seem like it’s good for you), and vegetables are good. When you are snacking on potato chips, you can’t honestly be telling yourself “I sure am eating healthy.” Eating healthy things, putting only healthy things in your shopping cart, and worse, planning your meals ahead of time so you don’t get caught starving and nothing to eat but fast food requires effort.

Exercise is the same thing. Remember those belts that people used to strap around their waist and get shaken into better health? You don’t see them anymore because exercise really is not a passive thing. You’ve got to get out of your chair and regularly move around to make anything happen. After awhile, just walking around is not really going to get you the results you want either. You’ll have to put in more effort to increase the intensity of your exercise to hit the next level.

Here’s the good news for those people that want to do something healthy, but don’t want to put forth a ton of effort. Get a chiropractic adjustment. You don’t have to wait for headaches, neck pain, or back pain to decide to visit a chiropractor (even though that’s what a lot of people do). Getting a chiropractic adjustment is one of the easiest things to do, and one of the healthiest.

It’s an insidious thing. You don’t see that your spine is breaking down. You don’t see the degeneration process start to occur in your spine and the spinal discs. You just know that things aren’t quite right. I’ve had patients that never complained of anything more than low back stiffness, before coming in for their first chiropractic visit.

However, their x-rays showed advanced spinal degeneration something that simply could not happen overnight. The best part of all in starting this type of program is that the only “action” you have to take is to show up. The chiropractor will do the rest, and you get to just sit back and feel better about taking a healthy step toward a better you.

What's That "Cracking" Sound?

2009-09-29T13:58:00.000-07:00

Not everyone has to get "cracked," but everyone would benefit from a chiropractic adjustment. If you've considered chiropractic and wondered if it was right for you, give us a call today for a no-charge consultation.

Dan O'Brien And Chiropractic

2009-09-21T13:31:00.001-07:00

If Dan O'Brien Needs Chiropractic maybe you could use it too? Give us a call today!

Don't Quit Before You Start - Truly Inspirational

2009-08-28T06:25:00.000-07:00

A Day In The Life Of A Spine...

2009-08-26T07:51:00.000-07:00

Does your spine need help? Give this Houston Chiropractor a call!

Some Basketball Inspriration...

2009-08-18T06:08:00.001-07:00

Chiropractic for Ear Infections?

2009-07-08T14:12:00.000-07:00

Need a Houston Chiropractor? Give us a call!

Jerry Rice Speaks Out For Chiropractic

2009-06-17T17:33:00.000-07:00

Need a Houston Chiropractor? Give us a call!

Consumer Reports - Chiropractic # 1!

2009-06-07T17:24:00.001-07:00

Need a Chiropractor in Houston? Give us a call!

Chiropractic Care For Kids

2009-05-11T12:35:00.001-07:00

Need a Houston Chiropractor? Give us a call today!

Chiropractic for High Blood Pressure

2009-04-16T08:12:00.000-07:00

Need help with your health? Give this Houston Chiropractor a call!

A Chiropractic Miracle?

2009-04-01T10:49:00.000-07:00

If you need a Houston Chiropractor for your own "chiropractic miracle," give us a call!

How Old Do You Have To Be To See A Chiropractor?

2009-03-07T16:00:00.000-08:00

Is there an age requirement to see a chiropractor? I've told my patients over and over again that "you're never too old to get an adjustment" and that's the truth. The oldest person I ever adjusted was 94 years old. (If you know anyone older, send them my way -- it'll help my story!)

So.. is anyone too young to get an adjustment?

The soonest I've ever adjusted anyone was within an hour of their birth. My own kids! My youngest had the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck 4 times when he was born. He didn't look so great when he first showed up in the world.

Of course, being chiropractors, we were very concerned about his spine. I checked him within an hour and found a misalignment of his spine at very first vertebrae. So I adjusted him. No, I didn't lay him on the table and give him a good "crack." It was just the slightest pressure from my pinkie finger to the right bone moving it in the right direction.

If you meet him, you'll know he's as healthy as could be. Glad I didn't have to find out how that early trauma might have had an effect on his health.

Yay! It's March!

2009-03-01T06:53:00.000-08:00

The sun will start to shine a little bit longer, the weather a bit warmer... but not yet as hot as summer. It's almost Spring! And just in time for this wonderful new weather is the CORE Chiropractic monthly e-newsletter!

I know you're excited, I can feel it through my laptop! To get this month's newsletter, please click on the link below!

Click here for CORE Chiropractic's March Newsletter

Last Weekly Health Update for February!

2009-02-23T09:00:00.001-08:00

Here you go, your last weekly health update for the month. Whew! The month has flown by! Have you made your way closer to your health goals? Click on the link below to get this week's update:

WEEKLY HEALTH UPDATE FOR 02/23/09

Weekly Health Update for 02/16/09

2009-02-16T09:00:00.000-08:00

Here's this week's health update. Are you reading these? Do you have any questions? Please feel free to leave a comment below!

WEEKLY HEALTH UPDATE FOR 02/16/09

Weekly Health Update for 02/09/09

2009-02-09T09:00:00.000-08:00

To get this week's health update, just click on the link below!

WEEKLY HEALTH UPDATE FOR 02/09/09

Time Again for our Monthly e-Newsletter!

2009-02-06T11:50:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! Hope you're enjoying and actually have a chance to read our newsletter each month. It's filled with lots of health information you won't find in the general news.

It's also got inspirational stories to help lift your day. Thanks for being our patient. We truly appreciate each and every one of you!

Stay tuned for new and exciting things happening in our office. You know we're always up to something!

Click here for the February 2009 newsletter

Weekly Health Update for 02/02/09

2009-02-02T09:03:00.000-08:00

To view the weekly health update for this week, please click on the link below:

WEEKLY HEALTH UPDATE 02/02/09

How's your new year coming along? Have you been making healthy changes? Is this the year?

Please remember that we are hear and ready to help you answer any health concerns you might have. Not sure about whether we can help with your problem? Just ask! Know someone that may benefit from chiropractic care but you want to make sure it can help before you tell them? Just ask!

See you around the office!

Weekly Health Update for 01/26/09

2009-01-26T12:41:00.000-08:00

Hope your January has gone well and you've enjoyed learning more about your health.

Did you know you get a "brand new you" every 7 years? Interesting stuff! Let us know if you have any questions!

Here's the link for this week's update: January 26th Weekly Health Update

It's that time again... Update for January 19th!

2009-01-19T12:40:00.000-08:00

Here's the link to your Weekly Health Update for January 19th!

January 19th Health Update

Weekly Health Update for 01/12/09

2009-01-12T12:37:00.000-08:00

Here's your Weekly Health Update for January 12th!

How's your New Year coming along? Any resolutions made? Are they broken already!

There's still plenty of time in the year to get healthy. Don't give up!

Here's the link: January 12th Weekly Health Update

January e-Newsletter!

2009-01-07T12:04:00.000-08:00

One of the most important things we try to instill in our patients is that they continue to learn new things about their health.

When we do our weekly health class, there is never anyone that regularly spends time learning about their health... yet our health is our most valuable possession!

We offer everyone a monthly e-newsletter at absolutely no cost. You can download by clicking on the following link:

January 2009 Newsletter

We hope you find it helpful and look forward to hearing from you!

Weekly Health Update - January 5th edition

2009-01-05T12:34:00.000-08:00

Here's the link to the Weekly Health Update, the first for 2009! Check back each week for the next one in the series.

Usually I get it ready for viewing on Mondays. You'll find the quick information helpful and immediately applicable.

To Your Health!

Here's the link: January 5th Weekly Health Update

Is 2009 The Year You Get Healthy?

2008-12-29T07:00:00.001-08:00

Is 2009 going to be the year you finally get healthy? Not just pain-free, but actually healthy? What would it take? Is it just too big of a mountain to overcome or is it something you could actually do in the coming months?

Here's what I see that usually makes the person overall pain-free:

1. Healthy movement of their spine (usually because they see a chiropractor)

2. Balanced activities (usually indicated by having good posture)

3. Flexibility (accomplished by regularly doing stretching activities)

To make a real change in your health, you'll have to monitor what kinds of food you eat.

1. Are you taking some kind of multi-vitamin? (Chances are your food is not nearly enough to give you all the nutrients you need)

2. Do you drink a lot of water?

3. Do you eat a lot of vegetables?

Pick one thing, but pick something to work on and improve. Keep at it until it's "just what you do." Then you can add in the next and the next and see your health improve. It's a new year and time to make some changes!

People Seeing Chiropractors All Over The World!

2008-12-22T14:51:00.000-08:00

In our practice (just because it's in Houston), we see people from all over the world. More recently, the new patients I've seen have been to see chiropractors in their native country and are seeking a chiropractor in Houston.

Are they all in pain? Some, but definitely not all. They just have gotten used to being "in alignment" and prefer not to end up back in the same condition or pain that they had previously.

They are pro-actively seeking out healthy choices for themselves. The patients that have come in are overall healthy looking people too. Chiropractic is not the only regularly healthy choice they make for themselves.

They exercise regularly, eat decently, and are conscious about how they sleep each night. Glad to see people seeing chiropractors, even better to find out they're from all over the world.

Remaining Consistent... At Least For Awhile

2008-12-15T12:27:00.000-08:00

This is probably one of the greatest issues for patients when they first start a chiropractic treatment program... staying consistent with their treatment. The first couple of weeks can make or break your treatment, but it's hard to understand.

You come in, you're in pain and you just want to get better. The good news is that most people see a significant difference in just a couple of treatments. Then they drop out of care, just to have their symptoms quickly return.

You don't have to walk in and expect that you'll need to be under chiropractic treatment for the rest of your life in our office, but you have to be consistent at the beginning of your treatment to get the best results.

More patients get only temporary results, and it all comes from how good they are at following treatment recommendations at the beginning of care. We can do many things well at CORE Chiropractic, but we still haven't figured out how to treat you if you don't show up to our office.

Many Thanks!

2008-12-12T06:42:00.000-08:00

Thank you to everyone that participated in our Patient Appreciation Day and Toy Drive. We had one big box that we hoped to fill and donate to the Houston Area Women's Shelter. Instead, we probably could have filled three!

The shelter was happy for the donation, lots of people got free chair massages, free adjustments, and won random gifts such as massages, ice packs, and Starbucks gift cards.

This will certainly be an event that we will do each year and hope that it just gets bigger and better.

Many thanks again from your chiropractors here at CORE Chiropractic!

Big Event Coming Up 12/6!

2008-11-26T11:48:00.000-08:00

The good news is that we have our Patient Appreciation Day and our Annual Toy Drive coming up on December the 6th from 10:00am to 12:00pm. The bad news? Everybody seems to be having some sort of event that day!

Here's the basics: Come to CORE Chiropractic on 12/6 if you are a current patient. Bring a toy and get an adjustment at no charge!

We'll also have Jeremy Runnels here doing massage and healthy information from Hiett Ives.

If you know someone that has been considering chiropractic care, they can bring in a toy all next week and get a consultation, examination, and up to 2 spinal x-rays at no charge. You can't beat that, and the kids are the ones who benefit.

Any questions? Call our office at 713-622-3300.

A Holiday From Your Health?

2008-11-18T10:12:00.000-08:00

As we approach the holidays, it seems that for most people the holiday is really from their health. This is the time that many patients discontinue treatment, start to miss more appointments, are stressed, and just eat badly.

The good part from all of this is that this inevitably leads to a decision to be healthier in the coming year. But what if you didn't take this holiday from your health?

What if you decided to keep your spine adjusted, eat reasonably, and take some "time outs" as necessary to keep your stress levels down? What would your Thanksgiving and December look like?

If you can visualize feeling good through all of this and not foggy and run down, you can start getting healthier now instead of waiting for next year.

It's getting close to the end of year...

2008-11-17T13:50:00.000-08:00

Okay, I know it's still November 17th, but the time is just flying by. What will you do differently in 2009? Will 2009 be the year that you finally get healthy? Will you decide to visit CORE Chiropractic and get out of pain once and for all?

As we head into the Thanksgiving holiday, is "good health" something you can truly be thankful for or do you need an extra boost? The most common reasons why people don't get the help they need:

No time
No money
Don't know what to do

You don't have time? Did you know that typical chiropractic visit last only about 15 minutes? Do you have 15 minutes?

No Money? Maybe it will help you to know that most insurance companies have chiropractic coverage as part of your plan. You might be surprised to find out how little your out-of-pocket expense will be.

Are you just not sure of what to do for your problem? Not sure if chiropractic can help you? This is exactly why we offer an initial consultation at no charge. Let's sit down and talk. Let's find out what the problem is and if chiropractic can help. Then you can make an informed decision about your health.

It's not too late to get healthy in 2008. Why wait until '09?