Chiropractors – Do you love them or hate them.

I find myself possibly in need of a visit to a Chiropractor. I tweaked ny Lower back somehow by doing nothing more than bending over to pick up something off the floor. I’ll start with the fact that I have never been to one. It seems like when you talk with people about them they fall into one of two groups. Either the I love them or the I hate them group. I have no idea of where to start to find a good one or what to expect out of a visit to one. If anyone knows of a good one somewhere near the Saint Cloud area, feel free to share that Info. Also can you please let me know what to expect from a visit to one. I’m guessing that one visit to one will not resolve the issue. I also hope it does not take a ton of visits to start getting some relief.

I would advise seeking professional medical advice or diagnosis from a specialist. A chiropractor is not one of those. Not hating on chiropractors, they just aren’t medical doctors.

The chiropractor may or may not help you. You might have to decide for yourself on that one. I personally only tried it one time and it really didn’t do anything so I ever went back. Results may vary.

Never been to one but while fishing with Doc Frigo, I learned a lot about the practice.

I’ve never been to one and I don’t feel the need to thus far. Chiropractic services are a form of alternative medicine that help with mechanical disorders of the musculoskeletal system, especially of the spine. If you hurt yourself by over-doing, over-reaching, falling, etc. it’s likely a muscular situation, so doing stretches and strength training (especially for the lower back!) at home often helps the problem. All that being said, there are lots of people with underlying issues who really benefit from seeing a chiropractor.

Of the alternative medicines available, I think most people would seriously benefit from regular yoga and stretching over pricey chiropractic services. Yoga isn’t just for women, and you can do it alone in your house so no one will know!

I threw my back out a few months ago at work, went to a chiro for the first time. Did 4 adjustments 1 a day for 4 days and never felt better. He took x rays of my back and showed me what was out of align. It was my first time and probably not my last. But I don’t and won’t go regularly

I have used one before. You are correct it may be several visits or they might just give you a quick tweak and everything falls back into place. Once you get beyond the front desk it’s generally 10-15 minutes and they are done.

You will learn how to move / lift things as you age. It’s not fun but what learning process is?

i’ve never been to one and have no opinion good or bad about them.

i agree with Sharons explanation. well…….except for the yoga part!

if i get a “kink” in my back i lay flat on the living room floor. it works every time..the hardest part is getting back up!!!!!!!

once i had pain in my back and as the night went on it hurt so bad i had the wife take me to the ER…….doc said i pulled a muscle god that pain was bad. i got 2 shots of some kind of pain meds, and missed work for 2 days!!!!!

Go to a Physical Therapist. Most have a medical doctorate degree and give you exercises, strategies, and work with you to give you something you can use at home. You are also more likely to have insurance coverage for them as well.

Chiropractors are helpful, but their entire business model is predicated on you coming back for more appointments/adjustments/treatments, etc. The goal of Physical Therapists is to get you well enough that they don’t have to see you again.

Ive tried 2 different times at 2 different places. Both said they couldnt do anything unless I took muscle relaxers because my poop was so tight. Thought thats why I was there. Didnt want to take relaxers and then like how I felt. So here I am all F ed up and dont know what to do. Mine is lower part of neck and back left shoulder. Makes my damn head hurt.

I use them. They can help. Especially with the type of injury you have. Sometimes it just takes one visit. When my back is tweaked, and I don’t know what I did they can help get you some immediate relief.
The Dr. I use has saved me from needing surgery for a disk issue between my C5 – C6 disks. He even had me go to a back specialist, at Tria, because I needed him to approve an epidermal steroid shot to reduce inflammation while he did adjustments. He got me fixed so I didn’t need surgery. Fusing disks is a last resort. As the fused disks help, they also transfer all the strain to the adjacent disks. Causing future issues.
I still have some sensations in my left arm. I do ongoing maintenance by using a home traction devise.

My SO is a Physical Therapist and my best friend is a Chiropractor. Kinda funny hearing them go at it.

Without a doubt you want to go the route of PT. I don’t know the insurance fine print, but usually they are more* covered than Chiro. As BuckyBadger said, they don’t see you as a customer, they see you as a patient and want you to heal so they never see you again.

Maybe try to find a PT that has a dry-needling certification, I sometimes have the lady stick needles in lower back and it does wonders.

buckybadger wrote:

Chiropractors are helpful, but their entire business model is predicated on you coming back for more appointments/adjustments/treatments, etc. The goal of Physical Therapists is to get you well enough that they don’t have to see you again.

All of the ads you see on TV for legal help after an accident are owned by DC’s and DO’s. Not lawyers.

Like anything else there are some really good Chiropractors that know the body and can help and then there are some that have no clue. I have had some back issues taken care of with a couple adjustments.

My dad injured his back pretty bad and ended up having back surgery. He reinjured it years after and the doc said surgery time again. He sought out a chiropractor tried a couple and was able to get his back better, even the surgeon agreed it worked after looking at x rays. I finally had the need to give it a try a few years back, it has given me relief so know even more I believe in them. Yes you may have to go once a month to keep in line. The biggest piece of advise I will offer is do not go to one that does not do x rays first before adjusting you. Hope you find relief.

I have had back issues on and off most of my adult life. Mostly lower back. Once I slipped a disk by sneezing as I was awkwardly laying on the floor playing with my daughter.

My experience is a medical doctor will do absolutely NOTHING for you in this case. Probably tell you to take ibuprofen.

Either a chiropractor or physical therapist. I love my chiro and couldn’t imagine life without. He fixes so many little things before they become bigger problems. But when I slipped my disk I also did physical therapy. One of the best things you can do for your lower back is get your core muscles in shape. That’s what physical therapy will do, teach you simple exercises to strengthen those core muscles. The dry needle thing can help too.

IMO Chiro’s are good for some stuff, and not so good for a lot of others that they say they can fix. I had never gone to one before, but had a sciatic nerve issue that had me barely able to walk. After one appointment I was feeling a lot better, and by the 3rd I was back to normal and didn’t see my chiro again for a year+. Now when I’m feeling a little out of alignment I go see him, on my schedule and he doesn’t try and get me in more often, as it should be.

Williams Integracare (formerly Williams Chiropractic) in Sartell was the place to go around StC when I was growing up. And I’ve heard they still do a good job since the owner passed away a few years ago.

I kind of wanted to skip the medical ( Doctor ) route. First due to the time it tales to get into see one and second because everyone I know that has started with a Dr. ended up being referred to several other Dr’s prior to getting to one that could actually help them. Right now what I really want is at least some relief rather soon. I can hardly get up and walk across the room.

BigWerm wrote:

IMO Chiro’s are good for some stuff, and not so good for a lot of others that they say they can fix. I had never gone to one before, but had a sciatic nerve issue that had me barely able to walk. After one appointment I was feeling a lot better, and by the 3rd I was back to normal and didn’t see my chiro again for a year+. Now when I’m feeling a little out of alignment I go see him, on my schedule and he doesn’t try and get me in more often, as it should be.

Williams Integracare (formerly Williams Chiropractic) in Sartell was the place to go around StC when I was growing up. And I’ve heard they still do a good job since the owner passed away a few years ago.

I really think this is a Sciatic nerve issue. Just because of: Where its located at, how fast it came on, and the type of pain it is.

I know many people who have infants who really struggle with collach (sp?). They would go to a chiropractor and one little adjustment and they were good as new. One of my boys had it really bad and I had read about a little trick which sounds like a BAD idea, but it worked brilliantly. They said to grab them by their feet and hold them upside down for a few seconds. I did this and his head was literally spinning like he was unwinding. His completely went away immediately after doing that. I was amazed.
Generally though if you are having issues its a sign that your muscles and tendons are not effectively doing their job so you need to correct that in order to avoid recurring problems. Its quite funny that a back issue could be caused by another issue in a completely different part of the body.

fishthumper wrote:

I really think this is a Sciatic nerve issue.

I’ve had that issue before. Eventually it just went away on its own. But it will probably get worse before it gets better. Stretch it out the best you can every day, and increase movement to as much as you can tolerate.

gim wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>fishthumper wrote:</div>
I really think this is a Sciatic nerve issue.

I’ve had that issue before. Eventually it just went away on its own. But it will probably get worse before it gets better. Stretch it out the best you can every day, and increase movement to as much as you can tolerate.

It will go away MUCH faster with a good chiropractor.

fishthumper wrote:

I really think this is a Sciatic nerve issue. Just because of: Where its located at, how fast it came on, and the type of pain it is.

Also, I assume you are like me in front of a computer for far too long, which is not good all around but especially for sciatic nerve issues (so I’ve been told). I’d call Williams and setup a time. They will do an intake survey of your general health and specific issue and should do an adjustment. Took my 3 visits to be back aligned, but definitely could feel some improvement after the first one.

To answer the question.. the BEST one ever is in your backyard. Quantum Chiropractic in Sartell, is who I went to for years, before moving to Maui and now Isle. I am contemplating driving down from Isle/Brainerd to see him again. Dr. Mike was the best and you went on your schedule, not his. Sometimes my adjustments last for months, somedays weeks, depending on what I did !!! Google him, you can thank me later.

FWIW… I went to Dr. Williams too… until I found Quantum.

Over the years I’ve had multiple skeletal issues – partially rotator cuff tears, back, neck, knee, foot, elbow – mostly the result of youth and high school sports. The first orthopedist I saw (Twins shoulder specialist at the time) asked what sports I played growing up. When I told him football, hockey and baseball he laughed and told me I had hit the trifecta.

Over time I have visited chiropractors twice. The first was for lower back pain. He told me the issue was digestive and I needed to take “dragon pills”. Never went back. The second was for a neck that was locked up tight. Three adjustments later I had temporary relief but returned to the prior state in three days. Went to physical therapy after that, they gave me a similar adjustment and stretching exercises that resolved the problem after three visits.

I now go straight to PT.

Brad Dimond wrote:

“dragon pills”

WTF are dragon pills lol

Ha! Lots of people on this forum with back issues. Me too! My experience with a chiropractor is he couldn’t relieve my pain. A surgeon did. Not the chiropractor’s fault. Turns out I had a benign tumor in my L4.

Hope you get it figured out Fishthumper, and find a way to prevent it in the future.

I’m with Sharon on this one for all people and health in general. What’s the first thing your cat or dog does when they get up???

They S-T-R-E-T-C-H

I’ve been in the Laborer’s Union since I was a kid, and for the last 15 years the companies I’ve been with have had a stretching program. Keeping your flexibility is huge, and prevents a ton of soft tissue and back injuries.

Knock on wood, but I’ve never been to a chiropractor or physical therapist in my life.

I stretch before work, at work, on weekends, on fishing trips, in the stand, while driving, getting fuel, in meetings, etc, etc. I stretch all of the time, it truly does a body good

Back in my gym rat days of the 90’s, I went to a few chiropractors. Had one that was a complete waste of time. The issues I had in my neck were not any better after 4 visits.

Found a person that specialized in muscle kinesiology. Had a couple visits that used massage therapy, electrical stimulation, and adjustments. The results were excellent.

The past few years I have been doing monthly visits for 90 minute deep tissue massages at a place in Woodbury. Helps with blood flow issues in my legs and relieves any muscle knots.

Everyone is different and different things work for different people. I have issues and have a messed up back. The doctor wants me to pop pills and look at surgery, the Physical Therapist gave me exercise and want me to pop pills, and the chiropractor gave me the same exercise as the Physical Therapist and adjusts me so I don’t need pills. I don’t like taking pills. I have been to multiple professionals over the years. Some were just a waste of money. I have been to 4 different chiropractors that have not done much and 2 that were great. I know it is not close to St. Cloud but for anyone else if you are looking for a good chiropractor in the Lakeville area check out Dr. Kent Carder at Lakeville spine and health. Just like every profession, some people are better than others. Best luck in finding something that works for you. Don’t be afraid to try chiropractor services. I would not be able to live my life the way I do without my chiropractor. Also my chiropractor is way cheaper than the pills they wanted me to take.

I not only tweaked, my entire back cascaded down as I walked down the stairs a number of years ago and I pretty much was on the floor for 2 weeks and could barely move without pain. Went to doctor, relaxants and pain meds did nothing, went to PT, similar results, finally ended up at a Chiropractors office a few months later ( found out I have one leg shorter than the other, and a foot condition that leads to strain being pushed up to my back up from my feet) … To that end, Chiropractors keep me in the game and have for some time. Doctors and PT not so much. Everybody’s story is different. I would rather pay a good Chiropractor who I go like clockwork, versus taking pills left and right.

Paulski