Who on these forums sees a chiropractor? WARNING - LONG POST

[horseshowmom]

I still think it's unfair to call a group of people quacks based on one's negative experiences. Because of a few bad cops do you call all of them bad? Do you consider all surgeons inept because of some who've removed the wrong body part or who critically botched up a surgery? There are stories after stories of people who died because of medical mistakes. Based on that, would you mock or degrade all doctors? I am most empathetic to anyone who has gone to any type of specialist that have made their situation worse. I know this first hand. I have been left in worse conditions than when I started with certain practitioners but I know that it was that particular person who was the problem and not necessarily the arena they were practicing under. I could go on and on with unfavorable stories I've personally heard about medical dr.'s but by no means is it indicative of all or the majority of doctors. Again, I truly, truly understand if you've had a bad experience. My heart goes out to you but please do not denounce an entire faculty of people especially when there are good ones that are helping others.

Bam

Another excellent post! I've had HORRIBLE experiences with dentists but I don't mock their entire profession. I've had some who (I discovered too late were notorious for the practice) fill perfectly healthy teeth and create new cavities when the fillings didn't seal. Talk about thousands of dollars spent!!! I've had others tell me they accepted my insurance only to be handed a bill for triple the quoted price and the comment, *oops, we dropped your insurance last month*. Every profession, whether medical, legal, business,education, whatever...have one thing in common: people. Some people are honest and ethical, some are not.

 

[bigbadbrandini]

Reading threads like this one reminds me that I have so much to be grateful for. I have a mobile body, it works well and I don't have a lot of pain (unless it's DOMS from doing an STS workout! LOL!). I even have a high, right hip. Yup, it's about a half inch higher than the left. My right foot is bigger than the left, my right side is ALWAYS my stronger side and it makes my right shoulder look higher than my left. I am not asymmetrical.

And I've never had to go to a chiropractor. But now I'm educated in case that day comes...so thank you everyone!

 

[catr]

I have had good results with a chiropractor. I would think you should notice some improvement in a week or two of treatments if he is going to be able to do anything for you.

I have some scoliosis too. I get spasms across my shoulder blades where the twist starts and spasms across my hips with sciatic like pain if I get stressed or have gone a period without working out. I have an old copy of Bonnie Prudden's "Pain Erasure" that has maps of trigger points. My husband presses on the trigger points in my back and butt when I get messed up. The spams are greatly reduced after one treatment and usually gone the next day after a couple of more sessions. So maybe accupressure or trigger point therapy would help.

Surgery will always be there as an option, but there is not reason to rush into it if you are getting by and can check out other alternatives.

 

[princessbear]

Thanks everyone. I didn't realize my post would turn into such an interesting topic. I agree that there are bad doctors, bad dentists, bad chiropractors, bad auto mechanics, etc. out there. The chiro I started to see comes highly recommended by two friends who are pain free after years of pain. I DID see my ortho today and explained to him that my level of pain is minimal and certainly not constant. I asked him if I would cause more damage if I put the surgery off and he said absolutely NOT... I can's cause damage - it is AC joint arthritis. He agreed that if I am not in pain (or if I only have twinges of low-grade "hurt" once in a while like I explained), there is no need to go under the knife right now. He also mentioned that since my shoulder feels better than it did a couple of months ago, I may become asymptomatic and though the condition will remain, and I have an ugly bump where the bone protrudes where the clavicle and shoulder meet, I may not need surgery ever - or for a while. The option is always there. He recommended that I take 1500 mg of glucosamine/chrondroitin daily for the joint inflammation. I've taken this in the past with a problem in my wrist and it helped immensely, so I will try that.

I am so relieved with this decision - I had spur removal and joint clean out of the shoulder in October 2008 and the recovery was better than I thought, but I still couldn't do upper body weight work till mid-January per PT orders and even then I had to go REALLY REALLY light.

Whether or not the chiro works will remain to be seen, but I am hopeful and will remain optimistic that it will work. The power of the mind is wonderful thing!

 

[princessbear]

Update

So, 3 weeks of chiropractic treatment later, my back pain is better and my neck pain is better... BUT now my shoulder is in constant agony, I can't move it without pain and I've been up two nights from the pain. Coincidental? Perhaps. My chiro "claims" that the shoulder is getting new messages from the spine and is adjusting to them. At first I was eager to believe that - but now, I'm coming up on two weeks of progressive pain and limited range of motion and I'm thinking maybe he did something. But he never touched my shoulder so how could he do something? Other than the fact that he's been cracking my neck alot, and maybe that has had some effect. All i know is that I can't stand the pain anymore and I keep telling him that it hurts and he tells me to be patient, does some new things to me ... and it is no better.

I AM going to call my ortho on Monday morning and make an appointment. Something isn't right. I haven't been able to work out in 2 weeks because of this and I'm out of my mind.

Has anyone had this kind of experience? Have you been to a chiro and had something other than you were going there for start bothering you - and did it get any better - any worse? I'm at the end of my rope here...

TIA

 

[morningstar]

Has anyone had this kind of experience? Have you been to a chiro and had something other than you were going there for start bothering you - and did it get any better - any worse? I'm at the end of my rope here...

TIA

Yes indeed, I've had a chiropractor not only not fix the problem in my neck that I went in for (and didn't even attempt to diagnose that issue before he started treating it), but after a month's worth of treatments, one day I just couldn't walk- he had done something to me that caused my leg to be in incredible pain. People say that not all chiropractors are like that, and that there can be a bad practitioner in any group of health professionals, but I've never had a dentist accidentally make it so my jaw couldn't close, or a massage therapist that made my arm stop flexing, or a physiotherapist that made it impossible to turn my neck. I have had an acupuncturist leave needles in my back; I removed them myself 8 hours later.

 

[BreckGirl]

Just my 2 cents...

I agree - in ANY profession (ANY) you are going to have your "quacks." YOU are the consumer, so you've got to find someone you can trust or comes recommended.

My husband injured his hand somehow (he felt something "pop" when he tried to pick up his laptop). He went to doctor after doctor, hand specialist, occupational therapist... he was tested for carpal tunnel... the list went on. He was miserable because he couldn't use it much to pick things up! He had just started going to the chrio for a bulging disc. He casually mentioned it to the chiro, who said, "here... let me take a look at it." The chiro felt around, made a slight adjustment - and... ALL BETTER! Not another issue with it. I was always skeptical of chiros, but this made me a believer. I've even started going myself, and he's been able to help some cranky neck/shoulder issues and a hip issue.

HTH, and good luck to you!

 

[morningstar]

Interesting article about chiropractic care here: http://www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/09-10-21#feature

 

[melimcn]

I also LOVE my chiropractor. I call him my magician, because he fixes EVERYTHING, not just my back. Like yours, mine explained how everything works and evaluates me thoroghly before each session. I think that's a big differentiator in good ones vs. bad ones.

My chiro has helped me with sciatica, plantar fascitis, headaches and my recurring spinal compression (which is why I went to him in the first place). It's always been that I just loosely mention some aggravating issue I'm having, he examines me and then starts explaining why things are hurting there and how to make adjustments to fix it.

I can't say enough about him!

 

[Gayle]

I also LOVE my chiropractor. I call him my magician, because he fixes EVERYTHING, not just my back. Like yours, mine explained how everything works and evaluates me thoroghly before each session. I think that's a big differentiator in good ones vs. bad ones.

My chiro has helped me with sciatica, plantar fascitis, headaches and my recurring spinal compression (which is why I went to him in the first place). It's always been that I just loosely mention some aggravating issue I'm having, he examines me and then starts explaining why things are hurting there and how to make adjustments to fix it.

I can't say enough about him!

Melissa - I could've written your post. I love my chiro!

 

[hiitdogs]

Interesting article about chiropractic care here: http://www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/09-10-21#feature

Not exactly an unbiased article Medical doctors sure never make any mistakes, that's why 225,000 people die every year from medical mistakes, negligence or interaction of prescription drugs.

There are good chiropractors and bad ones, just like there are good doctors and bad one. The one that wrote that article is certainly not one that I would consult.