You might have seen a plethora of spine cracking, neck-snapping, and satisfying sounds of relief on the internet. And although it seems tempting to do yourself or with a friend, trying to imitate chiropractic professionals isn’t the best idea for your body.
Chiropractic care has recently sparked curiosity – with good reason, as regulars report chronic pain relief amongst many other benefits.
But what is chiropractic care, and who can perform it?
Chiropractic care is a complementary medicinal practice that can relieve and treat problems that involve the musculoskeletal system with a specific focus on the spine.
This article will explore modern chiropractic care and how scientific evidence backs how effective the practice is. And for those that are sceptical about getting a treatment done, we also outline the safety procedures and what you can expect with a chiropractic adjustment session.
Keep reading to find out more!
Are you looking to book a chiropractic adjustment session? Do you suffer from chronic pain? Visit Ridgeway Health and Wellness to book an appointment with our professional chiropractic practitioners today!
What is the musculoskeletal system?
The musculoskeletal system is composed of muscles, bones, joints, cartilage, and tendons. It is an essential part of the body that allows one to move, support your body’s weight, more importantly, protect crucial organs.
So when you feel pain and stiffness in your body, it is likely your musculoskeletal system isn’t in tip-top shape.
Here are the parts of the musculoskeletal system in detail:
- Bones: All the bones in your body support, project, store calcium, and produce the necessary blood cells. They are the foundation of your movements.
- Cartilage: This is a type of connective tissue that acts as a cushion for your joints, along your spine, and ribcage.
- Joints: These are where your bones connect. They have various ranges of motion, such as a hinge or a ball and socket. It allows you to move your limbs back and forth or round and protect your organs by disallowing movement.
- Muscles: Each of your muscles is made up of thousands of stretchy fibres that allow you to control your body better. This is why athletes have prominent muscles. Muscles are also responsible for swallowing and fine motor movements.
- Ligaments: Ligaments are made up of tough collagen fibres. They are responsible for connecting bones and help stabilise joints.
- Tendons: Tendons are in charge of connecting your muscles to your bones. But unlike ligaments, they aren’t stretchy at all.
How does it work?
The nervous system is in charge of voluntary movement when it comes to your muscles. Some involve muscle groups that allow you to do activities such as walking, jumping, or sprinting. There are also smaller movements essential such as typing on your keyboard or pushing the lift button.
There are ways, however, to keep the system strong and it starts with maintaining your overall health. This includes eating a balanced diet, maintaining a good BMI, and avoiding injuries.
Sadly, there are cases where you cannot control the illness from occurring, such as ageing, congenital anomalies, and unexpected diseases that can limit the movement of your body. For these unavoidable occurrences, chiropractic care is one of the most reliable solutions.
Common musculoskeletal disorders
There are hundreds of disorders that affect the musculoskeletal system. From the way you move to the way you swallow and speak, the musculoskeletal system can cause problems when not in decent shape.
Here are some of the most common and uncommon musculoskeletal conditions and disorders professionals encounter:
- Ageing: The process of ageing is natural and unavoidable. Throughout a lifetime, bones will lose their density and lead to osteoporosis, and individuals would be more susceptible to bone fractures. It also leads to pain, stiffness, and a decreased range of motion.
- Arthritis: Although prevalent in older individuals, arthritis can happen to adults as well. It is characterised by pain, inflammation, and joint stiffness.
- Back problems: One of the most common complaints of any human being is back problems. Some have minor pain due to bad posture, but others suffer more severe disorders, such as herniated disks or spinal stenosis.
- Cancer: Cancer also affects the musculoskeletal system. This includes bone cancer and sarcomas.
- Congenital abnormalities: These, in layman’s terms, are called birth defects, and these affect functions from birth. Most who are affected by this have a limited range of motion.
- Disease: Various diseases can affect the musculoskeletal system. These include osteonecrosis, fibrous dysplasia, and brittle bone disease. There are also more than 30 types of muscular dystrophy.
- Injuries: From sports to simply walking, there are many instances where you might suffer from a bone, muscle, ligament, or cartilage injury. Examples include, but are not limited to, carpal tunnel syndrome, bursitis, tendinitis, sprains, muscle tears, and broken bones, tendons, and ligaments.
Although many go through life with only having age to deal with, everyone experiences mild muscle and joint pain from time to time—significantly lower back pain. But some suffer from more chronic illnesses that require relief.
How does a chiropractor manipulate your musculoskeletal system?
A chiropractor uses their hands or a small instrument to apply sudden force to the body, which allows the body to re-adjust and realign itself. This is known as manipulation. But in this case, a suitable type of manipulation.
And no, it doesn’t hurt.
With Ridgeway Health and Wellness, you are ensured of a safe and reliable alignment procedure to heal the source of body pains.
Here’s how the process goes:
- Your chiropractor will ask for your medical history.
- If you have any pain, they will also ask you when and how it started. You should also disclose if you’ve also had any recent or past injuries and accidents.
- They will then conduct a physical exam that helps them reach a diagnosis. They might even do an X-ray before proceeding.
- If they think you would benefit from the treatment, a treatment plan will be created.
- You will then schedule your first session with them!
Get the best chiropractors to relieve your aches and pains with Ridgeway Health and Wellness today. Give us a call!