What to Expect...

In my last post, I gave you a general idea of why you would go to a chiropractic physician. Now, I want to let you know what to expect on your first visit. There are many different types of treatment styles used by chiropractic physicians, so my approach to a patient may be different from another chiropractor. When a new patient comes to my office, I spend a lot of time talking with them not only about the history and description of their present symptoms, but I also like to get information about about their general lifestyle as far as diet, sleep, stress, exercise, etc. Usually after talking with the patient, I have a pretty good idea of the different things that could be causing the symptoms. I then put the patient through a very non-invasive exam (looking at posture, orthopedic tests, muscle testing, reflexes, range of motion, etc.) to help determine the most likely cause of the symptoms and give a diagnosis. Getting the correct diagnosis is very important since we want to treat the cause (spinal disc, nerve, muscle, vertebrae, tendon, ligament, diet, etc.) and not the symptoms. A variety of therapies can then be used to help the patient start to fix the problem (chiropractic manipulation, acupuncture, ultrasound, massage therapy, nutrition, diet modification, at-home exercises, etc.). If I feel the patient would not respond well to chiropractic care, I give them as many options as I feel necessary to help them find a way to fix the problem. Every patient's case is unique, so the treament approach to each person is based on how they will respond best!

Have a great week!!

GO CUBS!!!!