Seeing a Chiropractor: One-Time Visit Versus Long-Term Care

People visit the chiropractor for many reasons: back adjustments, vertebrae alignment, preventative care, or chronic pain conditions such as whiplash or scoliosis. Different chiropractors have varying ideologies regarding adjustments. The primary objective of some chiropractors is to help get their patients back to good health, and no additional appointments will be necessary unless there is another problem.

Other chiropractors recommend routine preventive maintenance treatment that might require one weekly appointment or a visit every few months. Still other professionals believe that adjustments should only be done when necessary. This article compares a single chiropractic appointment with long-term treatment.

How can a chiropractor help? One-time or long-term care

Chiropractic care is effective in treating different types of aches and pains. Chiropractors can treat back or neck pain within a few adjustment sessions, sometimes with the patient visiting once per week. Some patients' visits can be more regular and take longer, depending on their condition, the factors responsible for stressing the body, and the duration of their symptoms. Patients with previous injuries may need extended treatment, depending on the treatment or rehabilitation that they received when the injury happened.

Spending a great deal of time in front of a computer and not exercising frequently can contribute to regular back and neck pain. Some people may find relief and prevent problems by going to the chiropractor for regular adjustments every two to four weeks.

Chronic pain may require long-term chiropractic care

Patients who are in severe pain due to a condition or injury will likely require intensive treatment. This might mean going to the office two or three times a week for back adjustments. The number of visits could gradually decrease over months, but treatment could continue for a year or more. The treatment duration typically depends on the condition, the level of pain, and how severe the damage is, as well as how well the patient responds to chiropractic treatment.

If the patient does not notice any significant improvement within the first few weeks, the treatment is probably not effective, and they may need to try other options, like going to a chiropractor who uses a different technique or to a medical doctor for an evaluation.

Since different chiropractors use varying methods (for instance, conventional thrusting adjustments versus low-force adjustments), patients may need to consult many chiropractors to find a good fit. They also need to consider a chiropractor who can modify their treatment plan as it progresses. It is hard to know beforehand how many treatments that a patient will need. The expectation is a treatment plan spanning three to six weeks, followed by another evaluation and a new treatment plan, depending on the patient's condition and response.

The body benefits from ongoing care

Visiting the chiropractor for ongoing or maintenance care to keep the spine and body in proper alignment has many health benefits, including the following.

Maintain organ health: A correctly positioned spine benefits the patient's organs' health because adjustments directly affect the neurological system. Each spinal nerve has a direct channel of contact with certain organ systems. A properly coordinated spinal column can reduce the risk of ailments and long-term disease.

Better immunity: If the neural system can transmit and receive information without interruption from subluxations, the immune system will be performing at its optimum. This might help ensure general wellbeing throughout the year.

Increased mobility: Chiropractic care does more than spine alignment; it also works to ensure that the soft tissues around the spinal joints are not inhibited. Therefore, individuals may discover that they experience less discomfort and are less prone to injury due to an improved range of motion and enhanced flexibility.

Improved lung function: One of the lesser-known benefits of chiropractic therapy is that it may improve lung capacity, according to the Centers for Respiratory Health. This lowers the risk of a heart attack, stroke, and other life-threatening cardiovascular conditions.

It is common for people to stop visiting their chiropractors when they feel better. This is not advisable. The chiropractor will recommend maintenance treatment as soon as the person is pain free, as this approach has numerous advantages beyond just preventing pain.

The bottom line

If you want to correct minor misalignments before they create severe problems, getting chiropractic adjustment once a month or twice a year is typically enough. Or, you can decide to book an appointment with the chiropractor once you begin to feel pain or muscle tension. You and your chiropractor can decide what is best for you: a one-time visit or long-term care.

Request an appointment here: https://spine-chiropractic.com or call Spine Chiropractic at (423) 910-2302 for an appointment in our Ooltewah office.

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