How many chiropractic adjustments does it take?
To understand how often chiropractic adjustments are required I am going to make a comparison. This may seem like an unlikely one at first, especially given the philosophical and practical differences between the Western medical approach to health care and the wholistic/vitalistic approach we take as chiropractors so let me explain.
If you were to require surgery it would be fair to say that to get the best result you would:
1) Want to be as healthy as possible before the procedure takes place
2) Be sure to do all the work both pre and post-op required (rehabilitation and lifestyle modification)
Let’s work with an example:
Mr X needs triple bypass heart surgery. This is a procedure performed to unblock clogged arteries (termed atherosclerosis). If Mr X were to have the procedure in 2008 only to continue with a life of high stress, long hours and sedentary work practices coupled with insufficient exercise and a poor diet, should he be disappointed to find out that in the years to follow the procedure would have to be repeated or worse still that he suffer a heart attack. Would he have grounds to say to the surgeon; “Why does this problem keep coming back after I paid you thousands of dollars to fix it?” It seems obvious that not only the need for the operation in the first place but also the success of Mr X’s procedure afterwards has everything to do with: 1) The state he is in before surgery and 2) The state he keeps himself in after surgery is performed.
Well, this idea holds true for chiropractic adjustments!
Chiropractic adjustments are procedures performed to re-align and unlock joints that have become pathological and lost their normal function (termed subluxations). If Mr Y were to have an adjustment on Friday only to continue with a life of high stress, long hours and sedentary work practices coupled with insufficient exercise and a poor diet, should he be disappointed to find out that next week he requires the same adjustments all over again? And all of this is not even accounting for possible irreversible damage that has already been done that may need to be managed for the longer term.
I often hear clients say; “Why does this problem keep coming back” to which our answer is; “Same life, same problem.” The real problem is the way we live our lives and only we can fix that. One of the effects modern day living (of which there are many) are the subluxations it creates in our joints, particularly of the spine. Our job performing chiropractic adjustments is correct subluxations as often as required to minimise the cumulative effects of habitual day to day living. How often we need to perform our corrections depends you! If you can’t change your life a lot, regular maintenance is the key to keep you as healthy as possible.
At Better Health we have put in place many of the resources you need to make the healthy lifestyle changes required to get the best result. Book in for an appointment today to find out what else you could be doing to get to your best.
Yours in Good Health,
Andrew Richards