What to Expect - 3 Phases of Care

Laying the foundation

Chiropractic care is like building a house – certain things have to happen in a particular order in order for everything to stand strong and work correctly. When building a house, if you tried to put up your walls before you had a solid foundation, your walls would be weak and eventually collapse. If you tried to put on your roof before the walls were ready, you would run into the same problem. The same is true for your body. Your body has to go through a particular plan of care in order to repair itself correctly and fully. There are three general phases of chiropractic care . . .

Phase 1: Relief Care

If you are in pain when you come into our office, the first objective is to help you feel better. Depending on the severity of your problem, it is typical to need care 2-3 times per week for 4-12 weeks. Of course this depends on you and your problems. Relief may come quickly for simple problems and slower for more complex problems or ones that have been bothering you for a while. As we are all individuals results will vary.

Phase 2: Corrective/Restorative Care

During the corrective care phase, muscles, ligaments, tendons and other tissues are allowed to heal more completely; thereby, helping prevent injury and re-injury. The body is inately a self healing mechanism. For example, if you cut your hand it will normally heal in 7 to 10 days. Of course worse lacerations or injuries take longer. Most fractures often take 4-8 weeks to heal, while soft tissue muscles, ligaments and tendons can often take even longer at 8 to 12 weeks to heal. The length of your treatment will depend on the severity of your problem, your overall health, and your motivation. There are limits. The body will try to heal itself. But sometimes the injury or problems is so severe its beyond the bodies ability to heal or correct itself. That's where we come in. We strive to help the body with just the right treatment or corrective force helping the body to correct or restore function and form.     

Phase 3: Wellness Care

Once your body has fully healed, it is important to come in for periodic adjustments to avoid problems in the future. Usually, this only requires a quick visit to the chiropractor, 1-2 times per month at first, then less as time goes on based on your lifestyle and goals. We have many patients that come by twice a year for checkups like going to the dentist.

It is during this phase that we look at the whole body and its wellness. We ask the questions: What can we do today to help us live longer? What can we do today to help us have less aches and pain in the future? What vitamins and in what quantities are recommended for my body and conditions? What exercises and how often are right for me? How do we get more rest with sleep? What diet and nutritional changes should you consider making for a more healthy you? How to release some stress from your life?