One of the techniques used by your chiropractor to relieve back, shoulder and neck pain is spinal manipulation. This technique makes subtle adjustments to your spine's alignment to relieve tension on muscles and nerves. This is a non-invasive technique that people find effective against headaches, neck and shoulder stiffness, and lower back pain. Here is how this technique works and what it can do to relieve your annoying back and neck pain.
A Complicated Stack of Bones
Your spine consists of alternating bones (vertebrae) and soft cushions (intervertebral discs) which interlock in ways that let your spine flex and twist in all directions. But the spine is also concerned with protecting your spinal cord, which travels through the center of the spine. So the spine must restrict its movement so as not to put stress on the spinal cord.
Should any of the structures in the spine become misaligned due to an illness or injury, pressure is placed on the nerves that extend out of the spinal cord. As the nerves continue to be irritated, the tissues surrounding them becomes inflamed and painful. Depending on where the nerve irritation occurs, you'll experience pain in your lower back, shoulders, neck or head.
The Effects of a Misaligned Spine
When one or more of the bones in the spine are not in their natural alignment, your chiropractor calls it a subluxation. The misalignment causes a number of problems around your spine:
Spinal Manipulation and Other Pain Relief Techniques
Your chiropractor will recommend a number of non-invasive treatments to relieve you of the back or neck pain, such as:
The combined effect of these chiropractic treatments is to:
If you have any questions about chiropractic services and how they can help relieve your back and neck pain, consider speaking to a local specialist, such as University Physical Medicine, to discuss your concerns.
Share29 December 2015
After suffering with debilitating back pain for years, I decided it might be a good idea to finally meet with a doctor. I didn't want to beat around the bush with the issue, so I headed straight to a specialist who I thought could help me: a chiropractor. Even though it was my first appointment, my doctor was incredible and got to work right away on my problem. He took images of my spine and then talked with me about the results. I found out that several of my vertebrae were eroding, which was putting a lot of pressure on my spinal column. He made adjustments that made me feel a lot better right away. Check out this blog to learn more about how a chiropractor could help you.