How to find a good chiropractor?

[garcia]

I've been in a few car accidents and have nagging injuries from years of MMA and think I could benefit from working with a chiro. Neck, back and shoulder/knee pain is really getting to me.

I have heard many horror stories of the consequences of hiring a poor chiropractor. I believe there was a bodybuilder from the 90's who had his neck broken by his chiro.

Is there some sort of database or forum that I can access online to stear me to a top chiro in my area? Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Mr_Magoo]

a good ART guy is your best bet, most of the time are chiropractors as well, Google Active release technique and u should get a website that lists certified ART practitioners

 

[tkav1980]

This is just my opinion and i hope i dont offend anyone . that is not my intention.

My mother worked for an orthepedic surgeon for 10 years. most of his business came from fixing things chiro's messed up. my advice would be to see a doctor first. you might have permanent damage and remember you only have one body, treat it right
just my 2 cents

 

[Dusty Hanshaw]

This is just my opinion and i hope i dont offend anyone . that is not my intention.

My mother worked for an orthepedic surgeon for 10 years. most of his business came from fixing things chiro's messed up. my advice would be to see a doctor first. you might have permanent damage and remember you only have one body, treat it right
just my 2 cents

I couldn't agree more.

 

[MAINEVENT]

This is just my opinion and i hope i dont offend anyone . that is not my intention.

My mother worked for an orthepedic surgeon for 10 years. most of his business came from fixing things chiro's messed up. my advice would be to see a doctor first. you might have permanent damage and remember you only have one body, treat it right
just my 2 cents

I understand where your coming from but I also see alot of people on a daily basis whose underwent surgery and wish they wouldn't have. So it works both ways.

My opinion is to go by word of mouth and do a little research. IMO if your that concerned get an xray and mri first. You can never physically break a neck unless there is already an underlying cause. Not all chiropractors perform rotatory breaks (twisting and cracking the neck) as there are alot of different techniques.

 

[Sesshomaru]

a good ART guy is your best bet, most of the time are chiropractors as well, Google Active release technique and u should get a website that lists certified ART practitioners

Werd. Ive only had one ART guy who wasnt that good of a chiro or ART so I left. Everyone else who Ive had has been very awesome.

One question you might want to ask is whats the average grade of adjustment that they perform (1-5 with 5 being Steven Segal shit). The chiro who sucked performed grade 5 adjustments and that shit hurt. Everyone who was a grade 3 was gentle and didnt overdo it.

At the end of the day, go by your instincts and ask: 1) are you getting better, 2) did the adjustment hurt (it shouldnt), 3) did you feel immediate bloodflow or improvement (this can happen with accute deviations), 4) is your doc focused on healing (i.e. getting to know your history, talking to you, etc. rather than just coming in, cracking you, and then leaving), etc.

For me, it helps to have a chiro who is/was currently/recently involved in some sort of sport that way they know the mind of an athlete and how to work with them.

 

[garcia]

This is some really helpful stuff, guys. Thank you. I have never been to a chiro before and am gunshy, but this pain & discomfort is getting rough.

 

[Big Bapper]

There are allot of doggy chiropractors out there, I booked a session with one and he refused to work on me, said I had no problems and did not charge me for his time. WTF

All I wanted was a few things clicked into place from years off heavy lifting, I had a doctor that trained at the gym were I used to train do a session on me and the cracks that came from my back were unreal.

 

[Jarconis]

I go to one of the best ART guys in texas here in austin, you know hes good, because there are always UT football players in his lobby waiting to go see him.

 

[Mr_Magoo]

my point is that a lot of ART guys are chiropractors and rather knowledgable, an ART chiropractor is gonna be brighter then a regular chiropractor, where do u live, i can always ask my guy if he knows anyone in the area

 

[aoj]

I pinched a nerve in my neck and had radiating pain down thru my right shoulder and arm for years. I couldn't sleep on my right side or i would wake up with that whole side of my body numb. I had an MRI done when it first happened and they found nothing so then i went to PT for almost 1.5-2 years doing hot/cold, traction and a number of other things and nothing worked. I stopped working out for a a couple years and one day my mom was talking to someone at work who had similar pain and went to a chiro. She set up an appointment for me, and at that point i was very skeptable of chiros, but i figured what the hell i may as well give it a shot. Best decision i made. After going for a couple times a week for a couple weeks i could finally sleep on my right side after not being able to for years at that point. My chiro is someone who works out with heavy weights so he could relate at least and he did a couple xrays before ever adjusting anything.

 

[blackhole]

i dont think there is such a thing as a good chiropractor. i think they are about as useful as a homeopathic doctor. my grandfather did heavy labor at a steel mill. was also an 'old school' powerlifter. when he got older he had some minor back pains and went to see a chiropractor - and he f**ked his back up 10 times worse. after a few of those crap sessions my g-pa just decided to lose 30 lbs and strengthen his abdominal wall - problem fixed

 

[Mr_Magoo]

i dont think there is such a thing as a good chiropractor. i think they are about as useful as a homeopathic doctor. my grandfather did heavy labor at a steel mill. was also an 'old school' powerlifter. when he got older he had some minor back pains and went to see a chiropractor - and he f**ked his back up 10 times worse. after a few of those crap sessions my g-pa just decided to lose 30 lbs and strengthen his abdominal wall - problem fixed

thats whats good about a good ART guy, they recognize strength imbalances and fix tissue adhesions that mess up ur range of motion

 

[Sesshomaru]

thats whats good about a good ART guy, they recognize strength imbalances and fix tissue adhesions that mess up ur range of motion

Yup. Also, sometimes you all have to realize that if youve been going a while with your back out of wack, things may get worse before they get better because your body is now used to being out of alignment. Once you are able to maintain a steady alignment, its all good. Your chiro should be telling you this shit so that you know what to expect. If not, ask.

 

[James]

Anyone know a good database or website where I can find a good ART specialist in my area (NH, MA)? I have been mulling around on google and I'm not having a lot of success..... I have a lot of lower back problems that are overdue for some type of correction.

 

[MAINEVENT]

Anyone know a good database or website where I can find a good ART specialist in my area (NH, MA)? I have been mulling around on google and I'm not having a lot of success..... I have a lot of lower back problems that are overdue for some type of correction.

http://www.activerelease.com/

 

[bigdfk]

ART sounds like one thing, but personally - and no disrespect to anyone - but I would be very hesitant to see a chiropractor. If I ever have any issues with my back I'm going to an orthopedic surgeon. I don't know what kind of certifications are required for a chiropractor... I do know that orthopedic surgeon had to go through hell to get where he is today and odds are, he knows what hes doing.

By buddy has had back issues for as long as I've known him and goes to the "doctor" (aka the chiropractor - his words, not mind) every once in a while. Well, lets just say he keeps having to go back for a reason.

edit - OK I was curious about chiropractic schools so I started looking up the admissions requirements for the first school I saw. I couldn't find any. Guys thats not a good sign. Here is an article I found comparing the admissions requirements. Take it with a grain of salt because I don't have time to do any more research, but if you can find any more info that would be cool. I think this is reinforcing my previous conception that going to see a chiropractor may not be the best decision... at least for me.

http://www.rebuildyourback.com/chiropractic/students.php

 

[Sesshomaru]

ART sounds like one thing, but personally - and no disrespect to anyone - but I would be very hesitant to see a chiropractor. If I ever have any issues with my back I'm going to an orthopedic surgeon. I don't know what kind of certifications are required for a chiropractor... I do know that orthopedic surgeon had to go through hell to get where he is today and odds are, he knows what hes doing.

For what its worth, I went to ortho before I ever went to a chiro and the ortho didnt do shit. My pain still lasted and it was only until I found ART and a chiro that I was able to lift again.

If you dont know what kind of certifcations are needed for chiropractic care, why are you implying that they dont go through hell to get to where they are (as brought about by your comparison to orthos)?

By buddy has had back issues for as long as I've known him and goes to the "doctor" (aka the chiropractor - his words, not mind) every once in a while. Well, lets just say he keeps having to go back for a reason.

Do you ever go to your general physician just once in your life? No you get follow ups to see if medication is working and if not then you are switched onto other shit.

If you knew anything about the spine, you would know that chiropractic is not a one shot endeavor. If you have an accute injury, you can get it fixed within one to a few adjustments depending on the degree. But overall, the spine is something that takes a ton of abuse and needs to be tuned up. Monthly visits are not uncommon because its a for of preventive health just like getting bloodwork, physicals, etc.

edit - OK I was curious about chiropractic schools so I started looking up the admissions requirements for the first school I saw. I couldn't find any. Guys thats not a good sign. Here is an article I found comparing the admissions requirements. Take it with a grain of salt because I don't have time to do any more research, but if you can find any more info that would be cool. I think this is reinforcing my previous conception that going to see a chiropractor may not be the best decision... at least for me.

http://www.rebuildyourback.com/chiropractic/students.php

Youre comparing apples to oranges here and there is so much wrong in the arguments in that article that it will suffice to say that its biased and FOS. Medical school and chiropractic school are different branches of medicine so to say that one is better than the other based on differences is retarded.

I think that the people knocking chiropractic need to try it for themselves before spouting off. I have tried both and recognize that there is a time and place for using all kinds of medical professionals (drs, orthos, chiros, etc.) but to think that one of them is going to be able to cure all of your ills is very stupid.

 

[MAINEVENT]

Alright, i cant take this shit anymore. I can handle a little abuse but some of you get your fucking heads out of your ass. Seriously, its like saying every bodybuilder or person who juices is a meathead and/or has roid rages. QUICK FUCKING GENERALISING.

And to be honest, no you dont have to be an ART practitioiner to be a good chiropractor. If that was the case, how come the ART chiro down the road sends me his patients all the time.

 

[bigdfk]

Sorry guys, I guess comparing medical school to chiropractic school was a little silly. I was just curious and stumbled across that article. And yeah, I'm sure there are some great chiropractors out there, but my family never used chiropractors so it's very much an unknown area to me. My bad.