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Chiropractic Care: The Pros and Cons of a Full Body Adjustment

Feeling aches and pains in your neck, back, shoulders—just about everywhere that matters? You’re not alone. Approximately 31 million Americans experience low back pain throughout their lives.

Don’t let those aches and pains rule your life. 

Keep reading to discover the pros and cons of a full-body adjustment. A trip to the chiropractor can soothe those pains away. It’s important to recognize the risks and rewards before scheduling your appointment, though. 

Discover the pros and cons of a chiropractic adjustment below!

Chiropractic Adjustment Benefits

In the United States, an estimated 149 million workdays are lost every year because of low back pain. This makes low back pain one of the leading causes of work absence and activity limitation throughout the world. 

Instead of missing work, consider these seven benefits of getting a full-body adjustment.

1. Decrease the Need for Surgery

During your initial appointment, a chiropractor will assess your pain. Then, they’ll develop a customized treatment based on your medical history, condition, trauma and surgical history, and overall diagnosis.

Chiropractors use spinal manipulation to align the body’s musculoskeletal structure. If the spine and body are properly aligned, the body will heal itself. This allows you to avoid surgery, even after a trauma (such as a car accident). 

This hands-on manipulation can restore mobility to your joints.

A tissue injury, fall, or repetitive stress can leave you with aches and pains. A chiropractic adjustment can offer pain relief to the bones, connective tissue, muscles, and joints. 

With a full-body adjustment and customized treatment plan, you won’t have to get surgery.

Instead, you can improve your body’s range of motion with a quick, easy adjustment. 

2. Limit Prescription Drug Use

Many people rely on prescription drugs to ease their pain after a trauma. However, many people develop a dependency on these drugs after some time. 

If you’re worried about taking addictive medications, see a chiropractor instead. A full-body adjustment can ease the pain you’re experiencing without medication.

A chiropractor can also offer exercise, rehabilitation, and nutritional counseling to help you heal.

With time, their guidance can restore your body’s function and prevent your pain from flaring up without medication. 

Instead of relying on drugs, natural health practices can offer holistic relief. Many clinics, such as this practice, focus on healing health problems through natural healthcare.

3. Determine the Root Cause

Prescription drugs might mask your pain, but they won’t solve the underlying problem. 

A full-body adjustment gives your chiropractor the chance to assess you from head to toe. They’ll determine where you’re tight and tense. Then, they’ll pinpoint your problem areas to give those parts of your body dedicated attention.

Determining the root cause of your pain can also help your chiropractor develop a long-term plan. That way, you can work to heal and strengthen this area of your body instead of “dealing” with the pain. 

4. Treat Headaches

Pain in your upper back and neck can also cause headaches. 

If you experience regular migraines, consider visiting a chiropractor. You might not realize your neck pain is causing your headaches. By treating the underlying issue (your neck pain), you can keep headaches from ruining your day.

5. No Side Effects

Unlike prescription medications, an adjustment doesn’t come with a long list of potential side effects.

Adjustments are safer than most treatments for chronic pain. Instead of a dangerous surgery or heavy medication use, consider making an appointment with a chiropractor.

Your chiropractor will also track your progress. If an adjustment doesn’t work, they’ll help you determine a safe, alternative treatment for your pain. 

6. Reduce Pain

A chiropractic adjustment can relieve:

  • Neck pain
  • Back pain
  • Muscle pain
  • Joint pain
  • Cartilage, tendon, ligament pain
  • Spinal cord compression
  • Inflammatory arthritis 
  • Headaches
  • Pinched nerves

The pain relief doesn’t end there. A full-body adjustment can also benefit patients with fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis.

7. Cost-Effective

Chiropractic medicine is more cost-effective than surgery and medication. 

Your insurance might cover your appointments as well. 

Either way, a single appointment won’t cost very much. Instead of paying for more expensive treatments, a full-body adjustment is a cheaper place to start. A chiropractor can try to determine the underlying cause of your pain during the appointment. 

That way, you also gain their insight before visiting a more expensive medical professional.

Chiropractic Adjustment Cons

Nothing is ever a guarantee. Here are a few cons to receiving a chiropractic adjustment to consider before scheduling your appointment. 

1. Costs Add Up

In some cases, your health insurance won’t cover chiropractic care. 

If insurance does cover your appointments, you should still consider how many appointments you attend. Multiple office visits can add up over time. If you don’t have insurance coverage, those repeat costs can become a burden. 

2. Slight Discomfort

You might experience a little discomfort or stiffness immediately following your full-body adjustment. However, this is normal. The pain usually fades after one to two days. 

If your pain doesn’t fade after 48 hours, make sure to check with a doctor.

3. Make the Visit

Some people experience so much pain that it’s difficult to make it to a doctor’s office.

Unfortunately, chiropractor care requires you to attend in-person appointments. If you’re in too much pain to move, these repeat trips can become inconvenient and cumbersome. 

Chiropractic care usually requires more than one appointment to relieve your pain. Keep that in mind if you require long-term care. 

4. Conditions 

People with certain medical conditions aren’t suitable for spinal manipulation. These include patients with:

  • Bone cancer
  • Acute gout
  • Existing bone or joint fractures
  • Excessive osteoporosis

There’s also the possibility of a stroke. A ruptured artery in the neck area can lead to stroke, though this risk is small. 

Align It Right: The Pros & Cons of a Full-Body Adjustment

Send your pain away and align your body with a natural solution. Our guide to the pros and cons of a full-body adjustment can put you on the right track for pain relief. 

Explore the Chiropractic section of our blog for more helpful guides.