Chiropractic for People
Musculoskeletal problems, joint pain, back pain, neck pain and headaches can occur for many reasons. These can include minor sports injuries and tensions. They can also be as a result of stress, poor posture, individual conformation, inappropriate working practices or incorrect manual handling techniques. Many medical conditions and health disorders can impact upon the body’s nerves, joints, skeleton or muscles. Any of these factors can cause aches and pains, physical weakness, muscle wasting, ill-health and/or disease.
Good health can be as much about enjoying a good quality of life with a positive sense of physical, mental and emotional well-being, as much as it is about being free of pain and disease. When the body is well balanced, it can cope with the everyday stresses and strains of daily life more easily and is better equipped to deal with unexpected trauma.
Pain and ache can occur in a person of any age, from the very young to the elderly. Pregnancy can cause general aches and pains including joint and back pain. Whilst many babies and children easily shrug off the rough and tumble of daily life, there are many incidents such as bumps, falls and tumbles that are an inevitable part of childhood. Like adults, children can also suffer from headaches, back, neck and shoulder pain from carrying heavy bags and using computers, laptops, tablets and gaming equipment. As an adult, work-related activities and stresses and back pain can often result in time off work. The restriction of movement and joint pains experienced by many elderly people can make the later years of life less active and restrictive.
People of all ages can benefit from chiropractic which can provide gentle and effective relief to help alleviate, enhance the ability to cope with, or eliminate the pains and aches resulting from the demands of everyday life and those caused by many medical conditions or injury. Patients seek treatment for a wide variety of conditions, including back pain, neck pain, joint pains, headaches caused by neck problems, and prevention of migraine and conditions arising from sports injury. Waterside Chiropractic offers the McTimoney Chiropractic technique which is a gentle non-invasive holistic treatment which works to realign and balance the musculoskeletal system, aimed at releasing restrictions within the joints and musculature and restoring health, movement, soundness and performance through manipulation and mobilisation, relieving muscle tension and associated discomfort. No anaesthetic or drugs are needed and comprehensive individualised after-care advice and support forms part of the package. Aftercare advice normally includes exercises, stretches, health and lifestyle counselling and strategies to assist the patient in managing their condition. Together with Soft Tissue Release (STR), an advanced sports massage technique widely used in assessing and stretching soft tissues; (muscles, fascia, tendons and ligaments), it is an extremely effective treatment. STR involves repeatedly and quickly stretching small areas of the soft tissue. Precise pressure is applied to part of the muscle which is then moved to achieve a very specific stretch. STR also helps to increase range of movement, relieve pain, prevent, repair and manage injuries.
Chiropractic can help people with many different aspects of life. Have a look at how chiropractic may be able to help you!
Questions
Chiropractors believe that the correct functioning of the nervous system is paramount for a healthy body. Chiropractic is concerned with the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of biomechanical disorders of the musculoskeletal system and the effects of these disorders on the function of the nervous system and physical and general health. Chiropractic treatment is a method of releasing restrictions within the joints and musculature whilst considering asymmetries within the skeletal alignment so that the nervous system can work as efficiently as possible. A range of techniques are normally used to improve function and increase the mobility and range of motion of the joints with the aim of providing relief from pain and discomfort.
Chiropractors use manual techniques (normally spinal adjustments and other joint and soft tissue manipulation) to mobilise and manipulate specific joints and muscles that may be causing back, neck, pelvic and musculoskeletal problems. There are a number of different chiropractic techniques that are practiced universally; Waterside Chiropractic predominantly offers the McTimoney Chiropractic technique integrated with soft tissue release (STR) for human patients and this approach is integrated further with the International Academy of Veterinary Chiropractic (IAVC) technique for animal patients. These techniques are recognised for being relatively gentle, precise, whole body approaches to chiropractic care for both humans and animals.
Both people and animals, particularly when they are in pain, can be very sensitive. Chiropractors use just their hands to deliver quick, light adjustments which ensures minimum discomfort. It is the speed and precision of the adjustment rather than the force applied that helps to realign the body. The body is then in the best position to use its innate ability to heal itself.
McTimoney Chiropractic is a gentle non-invasive holistic treatment which works to realign and balance the musculoskeletal system, restoring health, movement, soundness and performance through manipulation that releases restrictions within and realigns the joints, relieving muscle tension and associated discomfort. No anaesthetic or drugs are needed and comprehensive individualised after-care advice and support forms part of the package.
McTimoney Chiropractic was devised by John McTimoney in the 1950s. He used the technique initially to treat human patients and then adapted it to be able to treat animals. Animals, like humans, have a musculoskeletal structure that consists of bones, joints, ligaments and muscles, and like humans, they can suffer from similar types of skeletal disorders and muscular strains, e.g. back, neck, pelvic and joint pain. The McTimoney Chiropractic technique can be used on humans and animals of all ages, from the very young to the elderly.
McTimoney Chiropractic is a whole body technique; that is the whole body is assessed and treated, not just the area of pain and discomfort. This is because the area that may be most affected by pain or discomfort may be as a result of a problem in another part of the body, i.e. it is compensating for another area. It is a treatment that is known for being relatively gentle and most humans and animals enjoy being treated and respond well to treatment. Chiropractic can help with freedom of movement by maintaining mobility and a good range of active and passive motion within the joint.
Soft Tissue Release (STR) is an advanced sports massage technique widely used in assessing and stretching soft tissues; muscles, fascia, tendons and ligaments. It is a dynamic, highly effective technique that has an immediate and powerful effect on muscle and connective tissue. STR is a combination of Myofascial Release, Therapeutic Massage and Active Assisted Stretching. STR involves repeatedly and quickly stretching small areas of the soft tissue. Precise pressure is applied to part of the muscle which is then moved to achieve a very specific stretch.
Muscles are made up of strands of muscle fibres which should lie neatly alternating with one another. Each muscle has attachment points where they attach to bones or other connective tissue. However, muscle fibres can become damaged which can distort attachment points and cause restrictions in mobility and pain.
Stretching is often used for easing the pain of muscle tension and realigning the body so that it functions in a more optimal way. However, unlike generalized stretching, soft tissue release targets specific areas of tension within a muscle. It is also useful for targeting muscles that are difficult to stretch actively and for isolating a muscle within a group of muscles that would normally stretch together.
STR involves the use of manual pressure on a muscle to create a temporary false attachment point and then taking the muscle into a pain-free stretch to address adhesions within the muscle fibres. STR is used to increase range of movement, relieve pain, prevent, repair and manage injuries.
STR is an excellent way of treating tendonitis in a muscle as it takes pressure off its point of origin, which is where the inflammation occurs in this condition. It has also been proven to be useful in the treatment of certain conditions such as medial and lateral epicondylitis (Golfers and Tennis Elbow) and plantar fasciitis (Policemen’s Foot/Heel) as it stimulates tissue repair in these conditions.
The International Academy of Veterinary Chiropractic (IAVC) is affiliated with Options for Animals International, which offered a post-graduate program in animal chiropractic from 1986. Most of the work in animal chiropractic is extrapolated from the human chiropractic profession, both in technique and in functional theories to explain clinical results. The last decade has demonstrated tremendous potential benefits of animal chiropractic from applications in clinical practice. The International Academy of Veterinary Chiropractic technique is an emulation of the Gonstead and Diversified techniques.
Like McTimoney Chiropractic, Veterinary Chiropractic is a manual therapy, which looks for areas of restriction of movement and restores function of muscles and joints in the neck, back, pelvis and limbs to maintain optimum movement and soundness. It also focuses on the biomechanical dysfunction of the spine and its effects on the entire nervous system throughout the body.
Veterinary Chiropractic treatment does not replace traditional veterinary medicine; however, it can provide additional means of diagnosis and treatment options for underlying problems or pathologies as well as treating biomechanical-related musculoskeletal disorders.
Veterinary chiropractic treatment can be used for:
• Chronic musculoskeletal problems
• Acute problems such as tension or stiffness
• Addressing compensations from underlying pathologies
• Prophylactic treatment to maintain fitness
• Maintenance of soundness in older animals
• Enhance performance ability in animals
• Treatment of chronic and acute pain syndromes
• Complementary treatment for chronic lameness
A healthy animal should move symmetrically and bend in all directions without tension. Even though animals have a muscle mass over the spine, the vertebral joints are flexible and relatively easy to manipulate with minimal force. An animal showing tension, pain, muscle imbalance or asymmetry, may possibly have restricted movement within a joint. When a chiropractor identifies restriction of movement within a joint, the aim is to restore mobility to the joint by means of a speedy, short thrust along the plane of the joint. This is called the chiropractic adjustment.
Chiropractic can help an animal to move more freely and symmetrically. By maintaining mobility and a good range of active and passive motion within the joint, wear and tear of the joint can be minimised and will promote long-term health. Hence treatment can be suitable for animals of all breeds and ages. Performance animals will normally need the most frequent treatment due to the stress on their body.
Links
Chiropractic and Work-Related Activities
Chiropractic for Older People
McTimoney Chiropractic for Children and Families