Experiences with Chiropractor?

[limewave]

I see a doctor that practices "functional medicine." I'm thinking this is like osteopath? I'm not sure. But there is a lot of chiropractic stuff involved.

I had terrible back pain after a bad mountain biking accident. I couldn't stand up straight or bend over to tie my shoes. I couldn't pick up dd out of her crib. I couldn't run or go for walks.

I was skeptical of chiropractors, so I went to my GP who sent me to physical therapy. I did months of physical therapy. My range of motion improved, but I still had pain. I could tell that whatever was causing my back problems, wasn't fixed.

A coworker recommended his chiropractor. I was desperate so I went. I cannot believe the positive changes I have seen. They were able to fix my back in about a month. I go back for "maintenance" appointments about every 4-6 weeks (earlier if I have another mntn bike crash).

It's worth it to me. My back is 100 times better than it was after a year of physical therapy.

On another note, they work with me on my total well-being. I've been able to go off all of my prescription medications. They help work on balancing my hormones and managing my hypothyroidism.

I recommend that you keep looking. If a doctor makes you uncomfortable, then run away! I always go with my "gut" feelings. Not all doctors/chiropractors are created equal

[badger]

reading artifactos' account of the chiropractor treating her horse reminds me of the time when I brought my dog to my chiropractor. We were talking about dogs and I was commenting how my dog's hips were really affecting him, and he told me to bring him in.

He made a couple of adjustments that placed his leg in a better position so he was feeling much better.

My chiropractor is almost legally blind, so he goes a lot by feel and I have to say that he's very intuitive and good. Never had a bad adjustment from him whereas the one previous to him was very much hit and miss with a lot of misses. And at $60/visit, it was just getting ridiculous and felt like he was too much in it for the $$.

As for Osteopaths, perhaps it's a Canadian thing, but it's not recognized around here and most people have never heard of them. My massage therapist is a specialist in cranial-sacral massage and she's been training on the side with the Osteopathic college down in the states somewhere but she can't advertise that she's a practitioner.

[bmccasland]

I've had terrific care and really bad care from chiropractors. The great care was from a doc that treated my stiff neck in a few sessions and taught me what to do to keep it happening again - too many hours staring through a microscope at one sitting, I had a straight neck. And the bad care was from a Quack-o-Practor that used one of the thumper things, said he could cure my vertigo (yeah, right, it's neural damage), suggested I come in for 6-8 weeks of therapy 3x per week. One session gave me the one of the worst migraines ever. Funny thing was that my neighbor had been trained by her chiropractor/uncle and it took her 4 days of working on my back and neck to un-do what the Quack did in 1 session.

So, I'll only go to one if I have a recommendation from a current patient. I'm much more inclined to trust massage therapists. Maybe that's misplaced, but I've been really happy with the care I've gotten from the MT's.

[Tuckervill]

As for Osteopaths, perhaps it's a Canadian thing, but it's not recognized around here and most people have never heard of them. My massage therapist is a specialist in cranial-sacral massage and she's been training on the side with the Osteopathic college down in the states somewhere but she can't advertise that she's a practitioner.

That'd be pretty tough to do, actually. Becoming a D.O. in the states requires the same education as an M.D., with an additional specialty in Osteopathic Manipulation Therapy. I doubt she's talking about the same thing as a D.O.

Karen

[snowroo]

My physio sent me to a chiro. He felt I have a joint problem (everything is just "stuck.") He also sent me to an osteopath.

I found the osteo made some pretty interesting claims BUT she managed to get me full range of motion in my neck in a very gentle way.