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Ask the Chiropractor Chiropractor Questions, Chiropractic Questions
Could having a bad bed to sleep in each night undo the chiropractic care I'm getting? I've been going to the chiropractor, but I don't seem to feel better. My back still hurts pretty often.
Yes, a bad bed is certainly a cause of "undoing" spinal adjustments from your chiropractor. This is especially true if you sleep on a soft and saggy, or lumpy mattress. To help your chiropractic adjustments "hold" longer, you should sleep on a firm and even mattress; this helps keep your spine aligned when you're sleeping on your sides, as it won't be curved sideways from being on a saggy mattress. Also, if you're sleeping on your sides, you should sleep with your legs bent, one above the other, with a pillow between your knees. In addition to this, you should sleep with a pillow under your head that is as thick as the distance from the edge of your head to the edge of your shoulder, so that your head remains in your centerline -- parallel to the mattress, so that you don't sleep with your head tilted to the right or left. The best way for you to sleep is on your back with a curved cervical pillow, or a rolled up towel, or a soft pillow bunched up under your neck with your head falling backward over the pillow, to support your natural forward cervical (neck) curve. You should never sleep face-down, because this requires you to have your head all the way turned to the right or the left, and lying with your head turned for a sustained time period will lead to spasms of various muscles in your neck, which will cause subluxations (misalignments) of the vertebrae to occur. The only way to safely sleep face-down is if you have a bed built like a chiropractic adjusting table, with a slot for your face to breathe through -- that truly allows your face to be DOWN!
I sometimes get backaches which turn into really bad headaches after. Could this problem be solved by regular chiropractic visits?
Backaches DO often lead to headaches, especially if the pain starts in the neck or upper back. This is because the most common cause of headaches is dysfunction (subluxations) of the vertebrae (bones) in the neck, causing pain, which is then referred to the head. The BEST treatment for this problem is regular chiropractic care!
I just got in a car accident. I felt fine at first, but woke up the next morning with a bad neck ache. What should I do?
If you were in a car accident, you should definitely get checked out by a chiropractor as soon as possible. Nearly everybody in a car accident has some degree of whiplash injury, involving especially the neck, upper back, middle back, and often the lowback. This is an extremely common cause of spinal dysfunction that only leads to worse, chronic spinal problems and recurring, never-ending symptoms, such as headaches, neck pain, back pain, shoulder and arm pain, sleeplessness, dizziness, sciatic pain, and even jaw (TMJ) pain, if left untreated.
I am an athlete and I exercise pretty often. Does this mean I should be going to the chiropractor?
Yes, everybody should get checked out at least periodically by a chiropractor. If you're exercising properly, it is still common for segments in your spine to subuxate (misalign), and this is because most subluxations are caused by postural stress (having one's head leaned forward too much of the time, too much sitting, sleeping in a twisted position, etc). When it comes to exercise, too many people overwork and overdevelop muscles of the chest and front of the arms, and not nearly enough exercise of the extensor muscles of the spine and the back of the shoulders.