Chiropractors are useful for localized back pain with no radicular component. The quacks "remove toxins" while the good ones make your back feel better. It's sometimes a crapshoot, so references are useful.
Hey Coach,
I’m in the middle of “Strong Enough” and you mention that chiropractors have a useful, legitimate place in the health care professions.
When do you find a chiropractor useful and how does one discern the difference between a good chiro and a quack?
I have trouble trusting these slippery sons-of-bitches. Especially when they start talking about removing “toxins.”
Chiropractors are useful for localized back pain with no radicular component. The quacks "remove toxins" while the good ones make your back feel better. It's sometimes a crapshoot, so references are useful.
Roger that - any idea what mechanisms are at play when they correct localized pain? Are we talking about a deep stretch on the soft tissue or actual realignment of facet joints, etc? I’m always skeptical when they talk about things being out of alignment.
I think that inflamed tissue is swollen and edematous, and that the manipulation disrupts the swelling and allows normal circulatory processes to resume. But really, I don't know.
Alright, thanks coach!
Maybe both, if the tissue prep before the manipulation was extensive enough.
Soule,
Where are you located?
I would start with a couple of guidelines in the search for a good chiropractor;
1. If they don't like dead lifting with proper form, then walk out immediately.
2. Find someone who deals with athletes.
3. Look for one with a sports diplomat.
4. Make sure they work on extremities, not just the spine.
For full disclosure I'm married to a chiropractor who sub specialized in body builders in the NYC area. (Note, she said SS has done more for my spinal health than anything else!) I recommend one that does extremities because in my experience going from a desk jockey to a much stronger desk jockey, I messed up my hands, wrists, and knees a few times and a good chiropractor can them them back quickly.
Let me know where you live and maybe I can help find you one.