Chiropractors? Real medicine or quacks?

[arminnie]

Chiropractic school is 4 years (as is accupuncture) unless summers are included and then it can be done in 3 years.

Neither are medical school. Shouldn't be confused or compared to mds. Each has it's own uses.

Just as many doctors (mds) who are quacks as chiros. Believe me - I have friends on the medical board.

I have had horrible sciatic pain for 3 months. I've been to chiro, accupuncturist (helped with pain but does not cure) and medical doctors. It was the chiro who insisted on an MRI. I have a cyst on my spine - which will require surgery from a neurosurgeon. But none of the medical doctors thought an MRI was necessary so I suffered for months.

 

[declansdad]

Well they don't practice *medicine* (which is one of the many reasons I see them and why I also became one (though I don't practice now)), they practice chiropractic. So your question is hard to answer b/c it's "no, no".


But I don't go to "wrack 'em crack 'em" chiros anyway; I see light-touch, osseous adjustment every so often, make the whole universe seem a happier place after a visit chiros, and I don't *want* to stay away. In fact I was just looking up colleagues of our chiro for when we're in Orlando, just in case.

What part of this definition of medicine do they not practice?

Definition of MEDICINE

1
a : a substance or preparation used in treating disease b : something that affects well-being

2
a : the science and art dealing with the maintenance of health and the prevention, alleviation, or cure of disease b : the branch of medicine concerned with the nonsurgical treatment of disease

3
: a substance (as a drug or potion) used to treat something other than disease

 

[shortbun]

I seriously think it depends on wether you'd rather take loads of drugs or be adjusted. A chiropractor with a good massage staff can do wonders. OR-you can just lay around and take muscle relaxers and strong pain killers. My doctor/chiropractor is a holistic healer. She is wonderful and when she can not help, she sends you to the right place. I've had two REALLY bad GPs; prescribed meds that damaged me and refused to admit it...put me in danger. Doctors of all types can be bad or good. I could not put any of them in a category of real or unreal but certainly pay attention and stay informed rather than just taking what your doctor says as THE answer.

 

[wilderness01]

For muscular pain, maybe??

For any sort of disk or severe spine problem, never.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Love my chiro. I started seeing him when I was pregnant with kids #2. I had sciatica really bad and he kept me walking.

DH has hip issues and sees our Chiro too. At first it was every day, then down to 3 times a week, to once a month. Before our car accident it had been 7 months since DH had seen the chiro.

 

[Jennasis]

I was nearly permanently crippled by a highly regarded chiro. Never ever will I allow one to touch me ever again.

I sought the help of a orthopedic surgeon who fixed me 100%. this was all this year, so still fresh in my mind.

 

[JimR24]

When my son was very young (2-3 months) he had issues with reflux. No formula would stay down. After multiple visits to his doctor and lots of medication and xrays we took him to a chiro friend. She had been asking us for about 2 weeks to bring him in so she could look at him. After 2 visits and very minor "adjustments" he had no more issues.

Like everything else in life, there are good and bad in every profession.

 

[Geoff_M]

Just as many doctors (mds) who are quacks as chiros. Believe me - I have friends on the medical board.

However, I get the impression that the MD community does a little better job of policing itself of quackery then does the chiro world.

I personally think that within the realm of skeletal-muscular problems, chiropractors are just fine. It's the other "woo" promoting practitioners that you should RUN away from.

 

[HOGFAN]

I had WONDERFUL results when I saw a chiro for my neck problems. I wish I could have kept up with it but my insurance only paid for about 20 visits.

 

[Owlpost23]

There is a reason they aren't MD's.

Quacks, all of them.

My chiropractor IS a doctor.Best of both worlds.

 

[tvguy]

My mom is an RN, so I grew up hearing chiropractors referred to as massusses trying to pass themselves off as Doctors.

Throw in that none of the medical insurance I have ever had in the past 30 years has covered chiropractic treatments, I've never been inclined to go to one.

 

[C.Ann]

A good chiropractor will tell you that his/her treatments are a complement to good overall health care. Any chiro who tells you that he/she can cure anything that ails you with chiropractic alone is probably high on the "quackometer".

I have used chiropractors in the past and had very good experiences.

(Underlining mine..) That's pretty much how I feel..

There have been times when DD acheived very good results from them.. I, on the other hand, ended up much, much worse..

It's tricky - and I would never, ever allow one to "crack" my neck or anything of that sort.. I don't care how highly regarded they are..

 

[indimom]

My husband has had good luck with his chiropractor. He has slight scoliosis and it gives him some back issues that then travel into his hip and leg. He'll go 3 or 4 times, get better, then quit going. Six months later he's complaining about the hip again. Add a few more months and he's back to being adjusted.
I think he needs to just have a standing appt. every six weeks or so and stick with it, it does wonders for him.

I've never been, but wouldn't be concerned about giving it a try.

Every insurance company we've ever had has covered chiropractic care.

All that being said, I do NOT believe they can cure everything by straightening out your back. My sister took her son for ear infections and I thought it was silly. She ended up being very dissapointed in the results and went back to the ped.

 

[MIGrandma]

I think they are good for some things, maybe not so much for others.

I have had one good experience and one bad. The bad was when I had a herniated disk in my back and went for chiropractic treatment 3xweekly for about a month. It hurt worse. I stopped going and a month or so later if healed itself.

The good experience was with migraine headaches. I had them about 30 years ago, but after a couple neck adjustments I have not had another one since.

 

[AKL_Megs]

I think they are quacks.

Some people SWEAR by them. More power to them, I guess.

I'm with the poster who commented on their not being covered by insurance companies as questionable.

We have a family member who doesn't believe in MEDICINE or actual doctors for ANYthing. They take their babies to the chiro and ONLY the chiro for everything. The baby has a terrible cough and a high fever? Nothing the chiro can't fix. Are they SERIOUS? How about some antibiotics or something for relief! Poor baby, made to suffer.

Anyways, that is my opinion.

 

[Disneyfreak616]

They're the real deal!

 

[Pinkpony]

My son is seriously thinking about going to chiro school, but I've been trying to talk him out of it for the very reason that so many people perceive them as quacks. I don't want him to suffer the stigma, I guess.

And, now, after reading this thread, I'm still confused. It costs as much to go to chiro school as it does to go to optometry or dental, so I've been trying to sway him in the direction of one of those, but so far it's not working.

I'm glad to see that there are a lot of positive results for so many of you that posted.

 

[Magpie]

My chiropractor is covered by my husband's work insurance. He specializes in sports medicine and works with our local team.

My husband first went to him many years ago when he cracked his tailbone falling out of a plane (he opened his chute too late) - on his doctor's recommendation, actually. He helped my husband a lot, including when he slipped a disc a few years back.

So when I started getting pain in my shoulder, I went to him myself. He did an x-ray and identified the problem as a pinched nerve in my neck. Some adjustments, a lot of stretching at home, hot and cold packs alternating, and several weeks later I was all better. I can tell now when I'm getting tight and I do the stretches he taught me, and I feel better.

Our chiro would like us to come in for regular "maintenance" but we don't and he doesn't pressure us. He freely admits that some problems are better treated with traditional medicine and will refer clients to a doctor, if necessary.

My daughter is seeing him now because I noticed that she had developed a hunch to her shoulders (all that reading!). He took a bunch of pictures of her with little velcro balls stuck to her, measured her forward head posture, and gave her a bunch of individualized exercises to do. She's standing noticeably straighter now! Much prettier.

So yeah, I like our chiropractor. I don't think he's a quack, and our doctor doesn't think so either. Chiros and doctors can work together, cooperatively.

 

[sunnyday123]

I think they are quacks.

Some people SWEAR by them. More power to them, I guess.

I'm with the poster who commented on their not being covered by insurance companies as questionable.

We have a family member who doesn't believe in MEDICINE or actual doctors for ANYthing. They take their babies to the chiro and ONLY the chiro for everything. The baby has a terrible cough and a high fever? Nothing the chiro can't fix. Are they SERIOUS? How about some antibiotics or something for relief! Poor baby, made to suffer.

Anyways, that is my opinion.

What a whack-job. Poor baby.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I get horrible headaches and tried going in for that. I went for the inital consult and the next visit and never went back. After researching it, I learned that there is no empirical evidence to show that chiropractic care has any effect on headaches. I also read that neck adjustments are linked to a higher risk of stroke. I just know that he made everything hurt worse, and I'm pretty sure no human neck should move the way he made mine move. There was not even any warning as to what he was about to do. No thank you!