One of the most beneficial techniques our chiropractors use is manual adjusting. This is a hands on type of adjusting that is typically used to help relieve back pain.

 

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The problem with back pain 

Are you unable to enjoy life because of pain and discomfort? The reason for this is that pressure builds up in the joints and causes pain. If the pressure is not addressed, it can get worse and it is harder to reverse, inhibiting you even further.

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Chiropractic adjustment benefits

Manual adjustment chiropractic provides many benefits. 

 

Some of the top benefits are:

• Improved joint mobility, functions, and overall health

• Reduced pain by decreasing inflammation and unlocking restricted joints

• Strengthened overall immune system

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Improves joint mobility, functionality and overall health

With improved joint mobility, functionality, and overall health you are able to live life more fully without fatigue caused by restricted strength and health.

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Chiropractic Adjustment Before and After

With the release of pressure and pain in restricted joints you can engage in activities like hiking, skiing, running, sports, playing with your children, and even do work you were unable to partake in before. 

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Strengthens the overall immune system

With an increased immune system you are able to fight off sickness and disease much more effectively. When your body is not working optimally you can become susceptible to illnesses. 

 

​Our Process of Giving Chiropractic Manual Adjustments

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The manual adjusting hands on approach allows our chiropractors to apply controlled, quick pressure to joints, pushing them just beyond their restricted range of motion.

 

Rather than a "one adjustment fits all approach", our chiropractors are able to assess what adjustments your body needs in order to correct misalignments or other problems.

 

The typical process is as follows:

 

1. Evaluation & Physical Exam

2. Spinal Scan to show tension points  

3. X-Rays 

4. Discussing your customized treatment

5. Treatment begins

6. Stretching to "fine tune" your adjustment

 

Let’s now touch on each of these below.

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Evaluation

Typically a session begins with evaluating your concerns and or symptoms. This is done so we can find the treatment that is customized for you.

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X-Rays

X Rays and spinal scans are then made to make sure there is nothing to be concerned about and to see what your spine looks like. 

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Choosing your customized treatment

Once a full evaluation has been completed and the X-Rays have been analyzed, the type of adjustment can vary. 

Depending on the symptoms and your scenario, we then discuss what adjustment will work best for your needs. 

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Treatment session begins

At this point, most patients choose to lay on one of our massage traction tables which helps loosen the muscles before the adjustment.

Once our chiropractors are ready to begin adjusting, we guide you into the position you need to be in (face down, face up, standing against the wall, on your side, etc.). And the rest is manual movements with one of our chiropractors. 

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Final massage

Once the manual adjusting is finished, we use what is called a vibracussor to massage the muscles for a minute or two to sort of “fine tune” the adjustment for the best possible result.

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Talk to Your Chiropractor
In addition to following the recommendations mentioned above to help relieve stressors that cause tension headaches, have a discussion with your chiropractor. For some individuals, chiropractic adjustments or spinal manipulation can help improve spinal function which ultimately reduces stress. Your chiropractor may also provide more tailored nutrition or exercise plans to help maintain a healthy lifestyle that combats stress over time. The combination of these suggestions along with reducing your stress levels outside the chiropractic office may lead to fewer tension headaches and more productive, comfortable days.

How is Pain Connected to the Brain?
Do you know where you feel pain? It may sound like a silly question, but it isn’t. So I ask again, where do you feel pain? If you slam your right index finger where would you feel the pain? Most would say, “I’d feel it on the index finger of my right hand.” I would then tell you you’re wrong. Let’s take a journey with pain, where we feel it, and what it tells us.
 

• You don’t feel pain at the site of the painful spot. Pain is perceived or “felt” in the brain.

• There are different types of sensory receptors found in all layers of the skin.

  • Some sensory receptors take in information from the outside world.

  • Some detect information from the internal environment and organs.

• The information is presented to the brain for processing, and the brain then responds accordingly.

 

Nociceptors
Nociceptors are receptors that take in information about pain. A stimulus elicits activity of the receptor, such as a door slammed on the finger. That information is brought up through the nerves into the dorsal horn of the spinal cord and then up to the brain. In the brain, the information is deciphered as it relates to:

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• Temperature

• Pressure

• Chemical activity

 

In this example, it would be significant pressure. The brain triggers a response, such as pulling the hand away as a reaction and also an attempt to reduce the stimulation of those receptors. So while the receptors in the index finger and hand took the information, the perception of the pain occurred within the brain.

Pain as a Health Indicator vs. Performance Chiropractic
Pain is uncomfortable, right? It’s said that people are driven by seeking pleasure and avoiding pain; in my years in practice, I would say that yes, most often this is true. But there is another option, and that is to be driven by, and choose, optimal performance regardless of pleasure or pain. In other words, a willingness to engage with life and its experiences based on fulfilling potential. That potential is what chiropractic care is about.
 

• Eighty-nine percent of the nerves within the nervous system cannot send information related to painful stimuli.

• This means only 11 percent of the miles and miles of nerves have the ability to carry information related to pain.

 

This truth allows me to confidently write that even though most folks in society do this, using pain (or the lack thereof) as the indicator of health is a very unwise idea. The presence of pain, sure, can indicate that something is possibly awry and needs to be looked at; however, the lack of pain is in no way indicative that one is healthy.

 

Spine Health for Optimal Performance

 

As a chiropractor, I get to help all sorts of bodies perform better and heal. When this occurs, quality of life increases; people find relief, stress goes down, and family lives and professional lives improve. There are all sorts of incredible side effects that I’m thrilled to witness. One of my absolute favorite things of all time is when someone who is not in pain comes into the office and wants to get their spine checked and adjusted; this shows me that even if they don’t have the full picture of what chiropractic can do for them, they are engaged enough to know life and health is not about only being out of pain. They know that there is another level of potential to be reached and they’re seeking assistance.

When one engages with regular chiropractic care, there is no doubt that:
 

• Pain relief is often a side effect, which is great.

• The main benefit is that the nervous system -- your body’s communication system -- is allowed the opportunity to be optimally efficient because the spine is moving as well as it can and not interfering with any communication system function.

 

Communication system health and function is the basis of your physical health and the means to fully express yourself in your life. You want that system to function optimally. Here’s to living life based on fulfilling your potential!​​

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Ready to Get Started?

Click here or call our Auburn, WA office at 253.833.4800 to set up a consultation to see how we can help you eliminate pain quickly and to accomplish your spinal health goals.