Adjustments
The adjustment is a safe, natural, noninvasive procedure used by the chiropractor to restore and improve health. Learning the art of adjusting is a skill that requires years of study and practice. Chiropractic doctors are the only health care professionals trained to deliver the chiropractic adjustment. Spinal adjustments by any other individual or health care professional have been shown to be dangerous and less effective.

What Is A Spinal Adjustment?
In basic terms, the spinal adjustment or spinal manipulation refers to the process in which the doctor of chiropractic skillfully applies controlled force into one or more "subluxated" vertebrae of the spine. The adjustment is also frequently used in the pelvic region to normalize the sacroiliac joints. The adjustment is usually delivered using the hands or through the use of a specialized mechanical tool.

When Should Spinal Adjustments Be Given?
Spinal adjustments are applied to certain vertebrae of the spine which are no longer in their proper position or where functioning has become impaired. Vertebrae which lose their normal position or proper motion are commonly termed vertebral subluxations. The chiropractor uses a number of unique tests and procedures to determine which, if any, vertebrae are subluxated. If subluxations are found, immediate correction is generally indicated. Since like cavities subluxations are not always painful during the initial stages, even those who are not experiencing back or neck discomfort should receive periodic spinal checkups.

What Do Spinal Adjustments Do?
Adjusting helps correct vertebral subluxations. Correcting subluxations reduces pain and inflammation, reduces muscle spasm and tension, normalizes spinal biomechanics and more importantly, can remove nerve irritation and interference which can improve overall health and wellness of the individual. Chiropractic adjustments are the only way to eliminate vertebral subluxations and only the chiropractor is trained to detect subluxations and deliver the chiropractic spinal adjustment to correct subluxations.

The Non-Spinal Adjustment
In addition to adjusting the spine and pelvis, almost every other joint of the body can be adjusted by the chiropractor. This includes the joints of the hands and feet, wrists and ankles, elbows and knees, shoulders and hips, ribs and the jaw. In fact, some chiropractors are even trained in techniques to adjust the joints (sutures) of the skull.

Like the joints of the spine, joints in the extremities can also become misaligned and fixated. Chiropractic adjustive techniques can restore and enhance extremity joint functioning which can increase the life of the joint and keep wear and tear to a minimum. This is of special interest to athletes who generally demand optimal joint performance from highly stressed joints. Adjusting provides an immediate increase in joint range of motion and also supplies the joint with nutrients, as motion is the only way to bring nutrients into the joint cartilage and flush wastes products out.

FYI
Did your mother ever warn you that "cracking" your knuckles would give you arthritis? If she did, we're sorry to say that she was wrong! Research has actually shown that individuals who habitually "crack" their knuckles over their lifetime actually lower the incidence of arthritis in their knuckles compared with those who do not. Researchers believe the knuckle "cracking" increases joint nutrition and maintains joint motion, both of which are essential for a healthy joint.

What is Chiropractic Care?
Chiropractic care involves an examination of the spinal column. This may be done with:

• x-rays
• muscle testing
• body balancing
• palpitation of the spine for muscle, bone or movement irregularities
• instruments that detect heat or energy
• other means to determine your spine's health

An unhealthy spine is characterized by spinal stress, nerve pressure, bone deterioration (like osteoporosis, lipping and spuring), disc degeneration, or vertebral misalignment. Often chiropractors describe this complex of spinal changes as: Vertebral Subluxation Complex.

Three Phases of Chiropractic Care

1) Intensive Care Phase
In this phase our objective is to correct or substantially reduce the subluxation damage in your spinal column and nervous system. In this phase you might be experiencing a lot of symptoms such as pain, discomfort, disease or stress. From a compassionate viewpoint we want you to be as symptom and pain free as possible in as short a time as possible. From a practical viewpoint our goal is subluxation reduction/correction. We hope both will come about quickly. In many cases it took time for you to get sick so it may take time to get you well.

Please cooperate in keeping your appointments and modifying your lifestyle in ways that will help you get out of the intensive care phase quickly.

2) Reconstruction Phase
In this phase our objective is to monitor your spine while it strengthens and begins to "hold" its chiropractic spinal adjustments for longer periods of time. In this phase many of your symptoms and complaints may have disappeared or decreased. It is critical however that you continue your visits even if you are feeling much better. Your spine must be carefully checked to prevent a reoccurrence of subluxations which could cause a relapse or return of symptoms.

3) Maintenance Phase
In this phase your spine is now holding its adjustment and has become reasonably stable. It is handling stress well.

Maintenance care is similar to regular dental care. You may not know if you have dental problems (like cavities) developing so you go to the dentist to get check-ups.

In the same way, you may not know it if you have any spinal subluxations so it's important to go to the chiropractor and get your spine checked to prevent subluxation.