What are your thoughts on chiropractors?

[Docwoods]

My chiro IS an M.D.-he's terrific,and what a looker...

 

[daughtersrus]

I would never trust one. A close family member (and her entire family) is addicted to going. They each go at least once a week and often much more. The guy that they have been going to for the last several years is "redoing" everything that the previous chiropractor did. He's got them using some type of electric stim device at home as well as taking a bunch of "natural" supplements.

It's gotten to the point that if they are away on vacation for a week, they can't even enjoy it because they're complaining about being so uncomfortable from not going to the chiropractor that week.

I guess that I don't see the need to have children "adjusted".

 

[MM27]

I love my chiropractor. He has a physical therapist that works with him and patients are seen by him if he feels as though the injury or pain needs to be dealt with by a PT instead.

 

[5lilfish]

2 yrs ago I would have said that I would never go to a chiropractor. Then, last year I became desperate. I also had many of the same conditions ruled out. I was hurting. I decided to try a chiroprator. He really did help with a lot of my aches. I didn't really keep up with it once my big problems were better. One thing that made me give it up, that I did not like, was that the chiroprator blew off EVERYTHING any other doctor said. I agree that chiropractors can help but they are not the be-all-end-all. This guy made it sound that all other doctors were quacks.

Jess

 

[lemondog]

It definitely can be dangerous.

http://whatstheharm.net/chiropractic.html

Oh man, I probably should not have opened that.

It's not that I think chiropractors are "kooks" I just worry that they could do major damage during their manipulations, such as those mentioned in the above website. My best friend's husband saw a chiro for years, swore by him, until a back manipulation went wrong and he ended up needing back surgery to repair the damage. They sued and the chiro was actually ordered to pay for all their medical bills b/c it was determined he was at fault.

I just feel it's too risky to mess around with things that affect nerves, spine, brain stems, etc.

 

[kimmar067]

...they just *chuckle* CRACK ME UP..*giggle*...
































....SRSLY, I don't care to get my bones cracked.....yuk!

 

[Muushka]

I have (or probably should say had) chronic lower back strain (since 1971). I saw an orthopod or 2, to no avail. Finally, in 1993 I found a kick butt chiropracter in Palm Beach Gardens FL (used to live near there). That man popped my bones so well that since 1993 I have only needed him twice and the last time was in 2000. I would fly down for a treatment by him if my back went out! And he is not one to have you come back every week or month. I have probably seen him a total of 10 times in 17 years and my back is better today than it was when I was 18.

So if an MD is unable to treat a condition such as mine, a chiro is the best choice for me.

 

[testifyoncruises]

DP and I and DD go three times a week. I love it. I can tell you that mine has a malpractice insurance policy that costs a lot less than a MDs.

Some people think you can only go to the gym once a week and lose weight. Others know you need the maintenance of more frequent visits. I know that children who see our chiro no longer have ear infections, no longer are taking drugs like Ritalin.

I am a firm believer.

 

[5lilfish]

DP and I and DD go three times a week. I love it. I can tell you that mine has a malpractice insurance policy that costs a lot less than a MDs.

Some people think you can only go to the gym once a week and lose weight. Others know you need the maintenance of more frequent visits. I know that children who see our chiro no longer have ear infections, no longer are taking drugs like Ritalin.

I am a firm believer.

That is exactly what made me stop going. I can see how there might be some connection between structure and ear infections. It's when the chiropractors start talking about healing things like ADHD, depression, etc, that my eyes roll. A chiropractor may be great, but he isn't going to prevent a child from needing Ritalin.

I stopped going because if I mentioned anything any doctor said, my chiropractor would say it was bull. I liked the guy and he did help with my back (when I needed it and I would go back if I had a specific problem) but he is not a miracle worker.

Jess

 

[Inigo]

I had two separate chiroquacks tell me they could cure my crohn's disease through chiropractic care. Yeah, right. That solidified my belief that they are quacks.

 

[testifyoncruises]

It's when the chiropractors start talking about healing things like ADHD, depression, etc, that my eyes roll. A chiropractor may be great, but he isn't going to prevent a child from needing Ritalin.

My chiro never makes a claim that he can cure anything, but what he does is allow the body to not need Ritalin. I know children who have been seen by him who no longer need to take Ritalin nor suffer from ADHD. By adjustments, he is allowing the nervous system to be reprogrammed and the nerves control everything.

He didn't cure my friend's Crohn's, but since seeing his chiro he no longer needs to take medication for it.


My chiro also has no issue with me seeing a regular doctor. I finally had to turn to medication because my sinus infections were so bad that I was not sleeping for weeks on end. It is the over dependence on medication that my chiro rallies against.

He will also tell you that a doctor is very important for emergency care and if he gets shot the first place you would find him is in the hospital. He is very much patient first, chiro second. He does some but does not solicit personal injury cases as it would change the dynamic of his practice.

He has done work with babies as young as six weeks working to fix torticollis.

 

[Muushka]

I had two separate chiroquacks tell me they could cure my crohn's disease through chiropractic care. Yeah, right. That solidified my belief that they are quacks.

And there is the problem (IMHO). I don't believe that chiros should be dabbling in anything other than bones and muscle.

But my chiro did in 20 minutes what the orthopods could not do in 21 years.

The term 'don't throw out the baby with the bathwater' comes to mind.

 

[jekajekalynn]

I know some of them are just glorified snake oil sales ppl... But I had one once that was a miracle worker on my upper back after I fell.

 

[Shmily1]

DD18, DS19 and I all go to the chiro. DS has tremors and the realignment has helped to lessen his shaking. The neurologist told me his tremors were from the base of his brain. I took him to the chiro and his neck was not aligned properly up there. The more they adjusted it, the less shaky he was.

DD was having major back pains when we had a wreck. I took her to a spine specialist and they wanted to do all kind of probing tests and put her to sleep and eventually do surgery to correct her back.... she was 12!!! I took her to the chiro and had her adjusted and she has had no more problems. When I first took her, she was also constipated. We have since learned that when she goes there and they adjust her lower back, we should go straight home!! She will also call when she has strep throat and get an adjustment to lessen the headaches and time for her strep.

I still go also because I'm not easy on my back. I don't sit right, pick up heavy stuff, and sleep in some stupid positions. None of us go regularly, as in several times a week or month, but we do go if we are having any issues and for maintenance every couple months. I can't see any of us NOT trusting our chiro. I do have to agree that there are some quacks out there, but most are very good at what they do.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I had a good friend who saw a chiropracter for 3 years for back pain. She then got bronchitis one winter and went to her physician, who did a Chest X Ray. She had a tumor in the exact spot that had been bothering her. And it was lung cancer. And the cancer had already spread to her brain. She spent several years undergoing grueling treatment and subsequently died from the brain mets.

I don't have an opinion on chiropracters one way or the other. But I would caution anyone being treated for pain to please see a physician to rule out serious causes before turning to alternative treatments like chiropractic.

 

[krcit]

I had a good friend who saw a chiropracter for 3 years for back pain. She then got bronchitis one winter and went to her physician, who did a Chest X Ray. She had a tumor in the exact spot that had been bothering her. And it was lung cancer. And the cancer had already spread to her brain. She spent several years undergoing grueling treatment and subsequently died from the brain mets.

I don't have an opinion on chiropracters one way or the other. But I would caution anyone being treated for pain to please see a physician to rule out serious causes before turning to alternative treatments like chiropractic.

I agree with this. 25 years ago, my mom was having numbness and weakness in her hands. She went to a chiro who had her come in 2x a week for a few months. She wasn't getting better so my dad took her to a nuerologist who in 10 minutes diagnosed a tumor inside her spine(benign thank God) I have no problems with chiros but like any other type of profession, there are the good and the bad.

 

[KramBerries]

I've never been to a chiro. My faith healer has tons of good anecdotal evidence on how good he is. If he can't heal it I just go to a doctor.

 

[Tinkmom75]

I do not know about the ADHD thing and Ritalin, but my DS stopped having ear infections after seeing our chiro. I have had my ears adjusted several time and am amazed that you can feel the drainage afterwards.

 

[Tinkmom75]

It definitely can be dangerous.

http://whatstheharm.net/chiropractic.html

It can be dangerous also to get xrays (radiation), surgery can be dangerous, mis-diagnosis. Not everyone who sees a traditional Dr. lives.

 

[jog58]

It can be dangerous also to get xrays (radiation), surgery can be dangerous, mis-diagnosis. Not everyone who sees a traditional Dr. lives.

Everything in life poses some amount of danger. She was asking for information and I was pointing her in the direction of part of the information I was familiar with. I have no dog in this race. To each their own.