Lower Back Pain
Chiropractic treatment is highly effective at relieving the symptoms and providing excellent long-term recovery from chronic and acute lower back pain.
How we treat it: We begin treatment by taking a thorough medical history and asking relevant questions about your pain. We then perform a thorough examination, including orthopedic and neurological testing to uncover the underlying cause of the problem. After this, we will suggest the course of treatment that is most suitable for your condition, including those aimed at relieving the immediate symptoms as well as correcting the underlying problem that caused the symptoms in the first place.
Your treatment may consist of a variety of hands-on techniques, such as gentle spinal manipulation, mobilisation and massage of the lower back region. It may also include stretching and strengthening advice and exercises. The sooner you begin treatment for lower back pain, the faster and better the results. If the condition is left untreated it can become chronic, and subsequently more complex to treat.
The risk of lower back pain can be reduced through regularly movement, avoiding prolonged or excessive positions. Try to keep mobile – low impact exercises such as walking, swimming and yoga can be helpful – and avoid sitting for long periods of time, whether at a desk, behind the wheel of a car, or in front of the TV.
Neck Pain
As with headaches, neck pain can be related either with problems directly within the neck or lower down in the spine. These can be caused for a variety of reasons, including mechanical issues.
How we treat it: Neck pain chiropractic treatments specifically target the cervical spine, while back pain treatments address the lumbar or thoracic spine. Chiropractic adjustments for neck pain generally involve precise movements in the neck area. Other treatments may also include massage and electrical stimulation.
The following tips can help to prevent neck pain. Sleep position can play a significant role. Ensure your head is at the same height as the rest of your body when sleeping if you can. Opt for a firm mattress, and avoid sleeping on your front.
Posture and your daily routine also have a part to play. Sit upright and roll your shoulders back gently occasionally. Avoid keeping your neck in the same position for extended periods (e.g., when sitting at a desk). Be cautious while driving or cycling if you are already suffering from neck pain.
Headaches & Migraines
Headaches and migraines can often be related to problems with the neck and spine, aggravated by poor posture. Chiropractic treatment can be very effective in tackling these problems. This common type of headache is known as a ‘cervicogenic headache’, which is actually caused by a problem in the neck. The pain is not actually originating in your head. This pain will vary in intensity, location and duration and occurs either in the forehead, temple and/or ears, or behind the eyes. Poor posture often comes from sitting at a computer for long hours, spending a lot of time behind the wheel of a car, watching lots of TV, and increasingly from excessive mobile phone use.
How we treat it: First, we will fully examine and assess your condition, making sure that we rule out any other possible causes. We will conduct a series of neurological, muscular and orthopedic tests, as well as studying the range of motion in your cervical spine (neck region of the spine). We also document a detailed health history, in order to rule out other possible issues.
With headaches it may be necessary in some cases to take x-rays or MRI scans of the neck, spine or head, to make sure that we check for any other causes. We can arrange and refer our patients for scans/tests. Once the assessment is completed we will recommend the optimal course of treatment tailored for your individual condition.
One key way to prevent headaches is to maintain good posture, and to keep your back and neck mobile by avoiding long-term sedentary positions.
If you work at a desk, make sure you take plenty of screen breaks.
A standing desk may also be a good investment, which will allow change positions consistently throughout the day, without disrupting your work. A side benefit is that you'll burn on average 80 calories per hour extra, just by standing.
It's advisable to have your neck and posture checked regularly by a chiropractor. Prevention is a lot easier, quicker and cheaper than cure.
Children’s Treatment
Aches and pains can be a normal part of a child’s development but they may also be prone to back and neck related complaints. For example with the condition of scoliosis, an excessive sideways curvature of the spine, young girls around the age of 11-12 are particularly susceptible. If you are concerned about this, then you should consider having their spines screened by a Chiropractor, which will help early diagnosis and intervention.
Children can benefit greatly from chiropractic treatment. Their bodies are continuously growing and developing, so it's essential to ensure a smooth development process and minimise issues with their spine early on that could cause future problems. Chiropractic care for children is well-suited for this purpose, acting as a form of preventative maintenance rather than a repair-focused intervention typically required for adults.
How we treat it: By providing a gentle, efficient approach to treating spinal issues early on, chiropractic treatment plays a key role in maintaining children's optimal musculoskeletal health as they grow into adulthood.
Chiropractic treatment is perfectly safe for children and the results can be incredibly beneficial. In fact we often find that children respond much faster to treatment than adults.
The important thing for parents to remember is that children’s backs have exactly the same limitations as adults, and are therefore just as vulnerable to similar stresses and strains encountered.
