By WIN Provider: Dr. Matthew Bird, Chiropractor
How often do you need to visit a chiropractor? This question becomes a loaded question, and it all comes down to, it depends. There are many reasons someone would choose to see a chiropractor, but the most common situation is pain.
Pain is usually the driving force which motivates people to seek out help and to figure out why they are in pain.
Chiropractors are primary care practitioners which specialize in musculoskeletal ailments which range from acute to chronic injuries, wellness/wellbeing, management of neurological disorders, pregnancy, childhood development and movement optimization for sport/employment/life. Depending on what your concern is, this can influence how often you should visit a chiropractor.
The scope of practice of chiropractors is a very broad range and covers a cornucopia of healthcare topics.
So, to say how often someone should visit a chiropractor depends on multiple factors that are unique to each person’s concerns.
ACUTE CONCERNS
If the situation is acute then the frequency of intervention would have to match the physiological demands that would support tissue healing and pain reduction.
Thus, treatments would lead to a higher frequency (days per week) of care to support healing and prep the individual for a progressive in-house or at home therapeutic program by building tissue resiliency and function.
Simpler acute injuries may resolve relatively quickly but most follow a 6-8 week time frame for tissue rejuvenation which does not necessarily mean that pain should be the driving force for seeking care.
Therefore, acute management is simple when it comes to marking expectations of recovery, but what if someone does not finish a full treatment program? Meaning consistency, progressive and continued self-awareness?
CHRONIC CONCERNS
Now it gets a bit tricky in establishing a treatment plan when we start to deal with chronic or lingering ailments or when things just seem to “pop up” without a mechanism of injury.
Whether we classify this as maintenance of chronic injuries/issues or performance/movement enhancement, the person’s individualistic characteristics and drive to improve become the main factors to consider. Knowledge is key when dealing with stubborn issues and we must dig deep and balance the three pillars of health: Diet, Exercise and Rest
MAINTENANCE OF HEALTH
It may seem simple to discuss these pillars of health in isolation but trying to balance them with all life’s challenges, it gets difficult quick.
Whether you are working 40+ hrs a week, raising a family, socializing with friends, or caring for elderly family members, it’s hard to maintain a balance.
But the best part of being human is that we are RESILIENT and ADAPTABLE! We must maintain a consistent lifestyle balancing the pillars of health. Unfortunately, the chains of habit are too light to notice until they become too heavy to break.
We are defined by our behaviours and our behaviours give away our inconsistencies which shows how our poor choices in life affect our health. The most consistent things in life are generally our sets of inconsistencies regarding our diet, exercise, and rest.
Maintenance therapy is a personal pursuit and can range on a very wide program of care. We must set goals at this stage and be honest with ourselves as to how we will stick to a plan.
The WIN Health Chiropractors are a very active and fun-loving bunch that will full heartedly help you achieve your lifelong goals. They can talk more with you about your specific concern and give you more information about how often to visit a chiropractor. All it takes is a simple phone call, or book online, to start your journey to optimization.