If you haven’t been to see a chiropractor before, you will inevitably be some uncertainty about the chiropractic profession.
You may have done some Googling to ask “what does a chiropractor do?” or “what can a chiropractor treat”. With any luck, some of these questions can be answered on our website.
But with life (and the internet) being the way it is, you are likely to have encountered contradictory information along the way.
For this reason, we’ve written a blog detailing the 5 biggest myths about chiropractic.
- Chiropractic treatment is painful
This is, perhaps, the biggest worry people have when seeing a chiropractor for the first time and is compounded if you are already in pain.
Chiropractors are not sadists and are not trying to inflict pain. Chiropractors tend to be very empathic and probably understand what you are experiencing better than most.
As a rule, chiropractic treatment is comfortable experience.
We are always working to improve our adjusting skills so that treatment is relaxing and pleasant for both you and your chiropractor.
You will also find that, as your chiropractor learns your body and what works best for it, treatment will become easier and easier.
- Chiropractors can help when you are in pain
OK, this is a half-truth.
Of course, chiropractors can help when you are in pain. Nearly every time somebody comes to Gloucester Chiropractors for the first time, they are in pain.
But what chiropractors really deal in is prevention.
If you are just seeing a chiropractor when you are in pain, you are missing the real benefits of care.
Pain is a symptom of an underlying issue. Preventative treatment allows you to enjoy your day-to-day life without worrying about when those issues are going to reappear.
The ultimate goal, which is very achievable, is to slow down wear and tear, ensuring you are able to live a full and healthy life.
By keeping on top of things and having a check-up every now and again, much like an MOT, you can reap much greater benefits than just pain relief from chiropractic care.
[Research also shows people that do this also spend less on treatment than those reacting to painful episodes]
- Chiropractic treatment can be dangerous
This myth was started during a dispute between American chiropractors and the American Medical Association (AMA), culminating in a law suit.
In 1987, a judge concluded that the AMA had entered into a long history of illegal behaviour to eliminate the chiropractic profession. Part of this historic behaviour was to overstate the risks of chiropractic care.
Unfortunately, these fears persist, despite having been completely de-bunked.
This has meant millions of people missing out on preventative musculoskeletal care and a societal norm that one must put-up-with pain.
Chiropractic treatment is one of the safest forms of treatment available, comparing favourably to over-the-counter painkillers and routine GP visits when considering significant adverse events.
There is one common risk that chiropractors cannot totally avoid, and that is short-term worsening of symptoms. For most people, this will not occur, but the risk cannot be totally eliminated.
Nevertheless, a risk of short-term worsening does not constitute a danger and so chiropractic care should be considered safe.
- Chiropractors just treat spines
There are 364 joints in your spine and it is the link between your upper limbs and your lower limbs, as well as the left and right side of your body.
Therefore, chiropractors do tend to spend a significant amount of time treating spines and back pain.
But a chiropractor spends five years at university, learning about the whole human body.
This knowledge allows chiropractors to offer truly holistic care, treating you as a moving, functional, connected person, rather than just an elbow or hip.
The nursery rhyme about your knee bone being connected to your thigh bone is absolutely correct.
To help you get the most from chiropractic treatment, your chiropractor will look at your whole body.
- Chiropractic treatment is expensive
There is no getting around the fact that chiropractors charge for their services and so cost is a factor for most people thinking of seeing a chiropractor.
If you haven’t seen a chiropractor before, the chances are that you will need a course of treatment to see improvements. This leads to a “front-loading” of expenditure, where the cost of treatment is greatest at the beginning of care.
But if you stick to the plan outlined by your chiropractor, you will get through this phase and visits can be spaced out.
Even considering the condensed frequency of visits at the start of care, however, chiropractic treatment compares very well with alternatives.
You might spend £300-400 with a chiropractor in order to resolve a significant episode of sciatica. The alternative treatment would be a steroid injection, which costs in the region of £3,000 and doesn’t address underlying causes.
