Seeing a chiropractor is not only for back pain and neck pain. Chiropractic care at DC Family Chiropractic is an excellent way to keep your body at its peak performance through nutrition, adjustment and overall wellness. In addition, chiropractic care has been known to help a wide range of conditions from fibromyalgia to diabetes.

Doctors of Chiropractic (DCs), like Dr. Buckhaults, D.C., care for patients of all ages, with a variety of health conditions. Doctors of Chiropractic are especially well known for their expertise in caring for patients with back pain, neck pain and headaches, particularly with their highly skilled manipulations or chiropractic adjustments. 

The main job of a chiropractor is to find and correct the root cause of your nervous system interference. The most common causes of the nervous system that a chiropractor sees involve physical, chemical, and emotional negative influences. It is the job of Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. and his team to determine the root cause of these symptoms, and relieve the interference through a chiropractic adjustment. 

A chiropractic adjustment occurs when a chiropractor applies short, quick force to the joints in order to correct a misalignment, increase range of motion, or release pressure on nerves. The adjustment corrects spinal alignment which helps to restore proper function and reduce nerve irritability. The result is a loosening of the joint which allows you to move freely and without pain.

Spinal joints that aren’t moving right can choke or irritate nearby nerves. Chiropractic adjustments from DC Family Chiropractic will add motion to these stuck joints, reducing nervous system disruption. Chiropractic adjustment is not just for the back. Different parts of the body can be helped through spinal and joint manipulation. An adjustment can relieve pain, correct your body's alignment and improve your overall function.

The end goal of an adjustment is to reduce or eliminate pain entirely. Common issues that can be alleviated by chiropractic adjustments from Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. include:

• Lower back and Hip pain
• Neck  and Shoulder pain
• Headaches and Migraines
• Other spine related conditions

Properly performed chiropractic adjustments should not hurt. For most patients, chiropractic adjustments are painless. Some patients who are new to chiropractic treatments may involuntarily stiffen or resist the adjustment and feel a small amount of discomfort until they are able to relax during treatment.

There's a difference between hurting and soreness. Sometimes people will get some soreness after an adjustment. After an adjustment, you're moving your bones and joints differently than you have before. You're using your muscles differently that you have before. That's going to create some soreness.

It's like going to the gym for a hard workout after you haven't been in for a while - you're definitely going to get some sore muscles. That's very normal. It's kind of like the same kind of thing after getting adjusted, but probably not as sore as a hard workout.

Many of our patients report a feeling of relief, calmness, and a sense of well being after the adjustment, while others feel improved mobility.

Dozens of research studies have documented the safety and effectiveness of chiropractic adjustments. They are significantly safer than taking medications or having spine surgery. Research shows complications from chiropractic adjustments are rare and random.

Chiropractic adjustments don’t involve the use of drugs or surgery. Instead, chiro offers patients a safer, less risky way to treat back and neck injuries and pain using physical manipulation. Chiropractors rely on their hands and special instruments to apply controlled pressure, also known as spinal manipulation, to trouble areas of your body.

The goal is to improve your spine’s alignment and range of motion and to help your body achieve optimal performance by opening up the channels for nerve energy to flow freely through your body. Research has also shown chiropractic care to be helpful in treating neck pain and headaches. In addition, osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia may respond to the moderate pressure used both by chiropractors and practitioners of deep tissue massage.

If you are visiting Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. with for treatments, be very specific about your symptoms. This will help your us offer the safest and most effective treatment, even if it involves referral to another health care provider. All treatment is based on an accurate diagnosis of your pain.

Subluxation is a term used in the chiropractic field to describe what happens when one of the vertebrae in your spine moves out of position. It is used to describe when a joint doesn’t work the way it’s supposed to, whether it’s simply not moving how it should or it’s misaligned. Subluxation leads to numbness, tingling, pain, and burning in that area of the body.

A subluxation is a response to stress on the body. Muscles can spasm and get taught. Vertebrae lose range of motion when they lock up. Nerve function can be diminished by being compressed and choked. This interference effects the body’s ability to function properly. This interference depletes the ability of the brain to send out communication signals effectively, and the body to receive them.

Frequency of and treatment duration for chiropractic adjustments is one the most common concerns our patients have at DC Family Chiropractic. Should the sessions be done closer together for optimal benefit? Could you have too many adjustments? If you are feeling well, should you stop getting chiropractic help all together? 

The answers to these questions will vary from patient to patient and depending on the type of injury and pain you are experiencing. For some patients, the aim is to prevent injury and retain or improve flexibility versus a cure for a specific pain. Each of these factors will affect frequency of chiropractic adjustments and the period of time you receive them over. 

Every person’s body is different, but most people can benefit from spinal manipulation and other chiropractic treatment. And a variety of studies have determined chiropractic care is helpful for many conditions, such as:

• Acute and chronic back pain
• Neck pain
• Headaches
• Back pain that may otherwise indicate surgery

Life's stresses will always continue to bombard your body, causing spine and nerve pressure to build up as before. However, if your spine is not checked and adjusted regularly, your body and overall health will suffer because the spine and nerve stress is not being reduced or eliminated.

A big factor that plays into the length of your chiropractic care is your condition. Has the pain in your lower back been building for a while, or did it just hit you? Have you just had major surgery or dealt with an injury? During your visit, you’ll want to talk with Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. about your goals. Are you seeking short-term relief or long-term preventative care?

Chiropractors go through a tremendous amount of coursework in order to earn their degree. Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. is more than happy to discuss his training with you. Chiropractors must earn a Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.) degree and get a state license. Chiropractic education requires at least 4 years of professional study and includes a 4-year undergraduate/college prerequisite in most states.

According to the American Chiropractic Association, 15 chiropractic programs at 18 different locations are accepted by the Council on Chiropractic Education, which is an agency certified by the Department of Education.1

Chiropractic Educational Requirements

Specific chiropractic educational requirements are typically comprised of the following:

• Of the 4 years of training to be a doctor of chiropractic, 2 years of basic sciences are required followed by the need for a successful completion of National Boards, Part 1
• The next 2 years of chiropractic training include the clinical sciences after which National Boards, Part 2 is required
• Part 3 of the National Boards chiropractic training that is necessary if the chiropractor plans to use physiological therapeutics in practice.
• Part 4 tests three practical skill areas, including:

• • Diagnostic imaging
  • Chiropractic technique
  • Case management.

You don't need permission or a referral from a medical doctor to visit a chiropractor to find out if you'd be a good candidate for chiropractic care. However, some insurance policies and Worker's Compensation require a referral from a primary care physician if you want reimbursement for chiropractic services to be considered for payment by your carrier. Most plans allow you to just call and schedule an appointment with a chiropractor.

The majority of patients at DC Family Chiropractic don't require a referral because chiropractors are trained as portal-of-entry providers. The training includes differential diagnosis which enables Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. to determine if the patient’s symptoms such as pain are related to the neurological or musculoskeletal systems or if the symptoms require further evaluation by another healthcare specialty.

The first visit to Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. and his team at DC Family Chiropractic will include some paperwork describing your health history and current health issue. This will be followed by a brief interview with Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. to better understand your situation. If you appear to be a good candidate for chiropractic care, a thorough examination will follow. If it seems unlikely that chiropractic care will help your situation, you'll be referred to someone who might be better able to address your concern.

In preparation for the chiropractic consultation, the patient will be asked to fill out forms that provide background information about their symptoms and condition. Patients are usually asked to provide information on family medical history, any pre-existing medical conditions or prior injuries, and previous and current treatments provided by other health professionals.

A thorough chiropractic exam includes general tests, such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and reflexes. Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. may feel your spine, move your joints and watch the way you walk. He'll also test your muscle strength, reflexes, and range of motion. Specific orthopedic and neurological tests may also be used to assess the:

• Range of motion of the affected body part
• Muscle tone
• Muscle strength
• Neurological integrity

If you get an adjustment at your first visit, expect a quick and painless procedure in most instances. Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. may push, pull, or twist a section of your body in order to realign any misalignments along the spine. 

(Please be sure to bring photo ID, insurance cards, and a list of current medications to this appointment).

Plan on being at DC Family Chiropractic for about 60 minutes.

Chiropractic adjustment can be effective in treating low back pain. Studies suggest that spinal manipulation may also be effective for headaches and other spine-related conditions, such as neck pain. According to some that get spinal adjustments, the effects can be felt immediately, and the patient will feel reenergized. It is also important to keep in mind that though the pain might disappear, the injury can still require time to heal.

Adjustments are often accompanied by non-manual therapies such as application of heat or ice, electrical stimulation, orthotic supports for your shoes, rehabilitative exercise, counseling about diet, weight loss, and other lifestyle factors, and nutritional supplements.

Dr. Buckhaults, D.C. and his team will focus on reducing your pain and increasing your mobility so you may maintain an active lifestyle, chiropractic care to restore spinal alignment and uninterrupted nerve flow to the rest of your body will enhance your overall health. Many find they recover faster and sustain wellness longer when integrating chiropractic with other specialties like physical therapy or acupuncture, achieving peak levels of physical function.