RE: Chiropractors

[Sue Brown <sbrown@wamedes.com>]

>Last I knew, orthopedists are also trained to do chiropractic adjustments,
>they just do other stuff too.  Bone & joint medical specialists.  Yeah, I
>know my chiropractor isn't an MD, but frankly, when I first went to him
>(creaky neck)  I had a more complete neurological workup than I'd ever
>gotten from my doctor, who said "I'd take Motrin.  But if the chiropractor
>helps you, go ahead."
>

I don't know about the orthopods doing adjustments, but they are definitely
starting to acknowledge the chiropractor's value.  One of the physiatrist I
was working with today was giving a list of chiropractors names to one of
the X-ray techs.  A physiatrist is an MD who deals with mostly back pain
and I was monitoring the patients during their epidural steroid injections.
 One of the chiropractors on the list was mine...and the one that most of
the staff in the OR go to.

I was a *hard* sell on chiropractics...I had to be in horrendous pain with
a stiff neck that was straight as a board (military neck, it's called) with
my husband pleading with me to go to a chiropractor.  "Are you nuts?" was
my reaction...but pain is a powerful motivator and I finally relented.  I
went...scared to death that I was going to be crippled for life...and
totally skeptical of their value.  I had visions of some major hocus-pocus
by a modern day charlatan...but I had to bite it and admit I was wrong.
Within a couple of days, my normal spinal curvature was back, muscles
spasms gone, and I was totally pain free.  

I have used this chiropractor's services many times over the last 15 years.
 I'm a serious medical skeptic and I have zero tolerance for the fluff and
schmooze that seems to permeate our society -- like the "whorls" stuff of
TTeam, the magic powders and copper balls of the quack type of
chiropractors (saw this with my own eyes) -- some will even claim to
relieve non-related illness like strep throat and so on...those in this
category ARE quacks!  But there is a place for the well trained ones...and
they definitely do serve a specific, very helpful function.  I periodically
get vertebral misalignment or subluxation from one physical (usually
horse-related <g>) mishap or another and I've learned to get to the
chiropractor ASAP before the muscles set-up in a spastic state that's much
more difficult to fix.  The good therapists are honest, well educated, and
will only do what they can...and will send you off the neurosurgeon or
orthopod should the problem extend beyond their services.

Sue  

sbrown@wamedes.com
Tyee Farm
Marysville, Wa.
ARICP Certified Riding Instructor
Recreational Riding II, Dressage I