One of the opportunities I have as a chiropractor is educating my patients on how chiropractic helps them feel better and move better. This is especially true when patients have another medical condition that may seemingly have nothing to do with the chiropractic care they are receiving.
Here’s an example: A chiropractic patient is also seeing a medical doctor for rheumatoid arthritis. X-rays taken in my office confirm that the patient has misaligned vertebrae that are causing discomfort. Chiropractic adjustments clearly are relieving his pain and improving his range of motion – and thus his quality of life.
Yet, when my patient visits his medical doctor, he is told that his neck pain is a result of his rheumatoid arthritis.
Chiropractors are trained to detect and correct vertebral misalignments, known as subluxations, and research has documented that what we do is very effective. And unlike medical doctors, we don’t cover up the symptoms of aches and pains with drugs or resort to invasive surgery.
As part of our training, we also learn to look for symptoms of problems we CANNOT address, and in that case we will refer you to your medical doctor for diagnosis and treatment, if necessary.
Similarly, medical doctors often refer their patients to our office when they think we can help. So often when there’s a diagnosis in addition to subluxation, reducing the subluxation helps to reduce it all.
Bottom line: If you have an underlying medical condition, I welcome a discussion about your symptoms and how they relate to your chiropractic care. My goal is to help you feel better and move better at every age and stage of your life, and I am here to answer any questions you may have.
— Dr. Waldron