chiropractors?? Anybody had any success with them?

Okay so I have had a chronic injury/pain. It is either piriformis injury or a back issue that is causing pain in my hamstring glute.   I have seen doctors and I have tried a cortisone shot and rest- lots of rest but it doesn't seem to make any difference.  I read in Runners World this month about the use of chiropractors and how they can treat  a lot of chronic pain issues.  Anybody have any success with chiropractors?  The physical therapist I went to really advised against it saying they didn't usually help people.  I guess I would like to try it before going back to the doctor who doesn't really know what is going on with me....  Any advice on using chiropractors????  Thanks for any help you can give!!

Wow!  I'm astounded that physical therapist said that.  Well, actually, not astounded at all.  The "normal" medical community doesn't like chiropractors because it cuts into their business.

I have been a regular patient of chiropractors years, literally since I was a teen.  Being tall and a touch top heavy, I have always had back issues.  I swear by the care a chiropractor can provide and will recommend it to anyone.  I see mine about once a month for "maintenance" care, whether I need it or not and I haven't had any "real" back issues in almost a year.

Mind you, some are better than others.  There are those who are just in it for the money.  You'll recognize them by the number of times they say they want to see you.  Ask around, I'm sure you'll find people who see them.  Ask for recommendations as to a good one. 

I've been to several and will never go again. My dad went to many and he's a terrible mess.  My husband went to one (at least) and wasn't helped. 

I didn't like how they are very pushy and "know best" and always talk you into a chronic "maintenance" situation.  I've asked that they don't crack my neck and they agree and then crack my neck.  One guy "diagnosed" me out of anger because I told him the visits weren't working for me and that I wasn't coming back.  (I was young and very polite)   They are not allowed to diagnose unless they are also MDs.  He basically admitted that I had a degenerative problem and he couldn't have "cured" it anyhow. 

My dad went to so many and had to pay out of pocket and he never got any relief.  

If you have a back injury, I'd find out what it is and then research how you can treat it.  My arthritis is treatable with exercise and stretching and I haven't had trouble in years.  My husband's back trouble is treatable with mild, occasional muscle relaxers and de-stressing.  My dad is a lost cause (long complicated story). 

I think it really depends what one you do to.

Some are totally quacks, and claim to be able to cure everything from allergies to depression.  I think that's nonsense.

I went to one that was recommended to me by a good friend.  I had a specific back injury.  Through adjustment and ART (Active Release Techniques), he was able to help with that particular injury.  I had been to a doctor prior to visiting him, and had been given lots of muscle relaxers, pain meds, and cortisone all with no relief.   This was the only thing that was able to speed recovery.

When talking to this chiropractor, he said I should come until I'm fixed, and then don't need to come back until I feel pain again.  I saw him 3 times within a 2 week period, then again 6 months later.  Haven't seen him since.  The original pain has completely diminished, although I'm still suffering from some sciatica.

My DC specialized in sport medicine, and sports related therapy.  Try asking around to people you know.  Anyone that requires frequent repetitive visits, I think should be avoided.

That helps.  I was reading about ART for my problem and is recommended for what I may have.  I did find one in my area that uses ART.  I will keep all your recommendations and comments in mind.  Thanks guys.  

I have never personally been to one but my dad has been going to the same guy since before I was born (I'm 27).  He started going to the chiropractor after falling and injuring his back at work when he was in his early 20s.  His doctor at the time recommended it.  I've asked my dad if he thinks the chiropractor has helped and he told me that he thinks he has but, if he was to do it all again he would have never went because now he 'has to' go every week otherwise his back gets sore and tight.  He will probably continue to go every week until he dies.  He thinks they do legit work, but for their legit work to work you have to go in for an adjustment continuously. 

i've really only had luck with 1 or 2. the first one wasn't so bad as he was into other alternative methods & didn't always recommend recommend an adjustment to fix everything. 

i worked for another one that taught a specific technique. can't remember what it was though, but it was very non-invasive. after working with him & speaking to the students in chiropractic colleges that he taught, i would say the some of them actually do care. but those were students. but the chiro i worked for took great pride in his ability to help people. one thing i learned is there are many different techniques so finding one that suits you mayb not be easy.

one of the last chiropractors i visited found that i have scoloisis & that was attributing to my period pains. after having gone to every doctor imaginable since i was a pre-teen, i thought the claim a bit skewed.  but he adjusted me 2 days before the start of my period & i had almost no pain. i would go to him every month & would be ok. the months i didn't go, i got it bad again. the sad thing is since i've moved away no other chiro has been able to do it for me & i've had to live with the pain.

as with any sort of 'healers' you can usually tell if they have a sincere interest in helping you.  well some times.

i've never needed one but my mom sees one pretty regularly, he works wonders for her, he's a sort of holistic chiropractor, it sounds silly but they see things like if you have headaches they can wiggle your body and make them better, your hand hurts and he can twist your knee and make it go away, nausea, anxiety, acid reflux, all of these things this chiropractor has helped my mom with by wiggling her feet. amazing. 

I am a very firm believer in Chiropractors, and feel there are very good ones out there, and some very not good ones out there.  In my occupational med office I occasionally refer some of our chronic back pain patients to one particular Dr, and he does a good job with them.  You should not need frequent visits.  I have chronic low back pain and have had surgery.  I also have some sciatic problems and piraformis problems and have seen both PT and a Chiro.  The PT did not help me that much and did not want me to see Chiro.  However the Chiro helped me tremendously.  What I do know about Piraformis issues is a lot of the pain is from muscle, and the more stretching you do after exercise the better off you will be.  I also have been known to stop in the middle of my eliptical training and stretch.  There are some very good stretches for these areas.  I currently see a Chiro about every three months, but not unless I am having signicant discomfort and stretching is not helping.

Good luck.

Leslie

I've been to 4 chiropractors, at different times.

The first was when I was young, and nobody knew what was wrong with my back (they still don't) - he saw me once a week, and did nothing useful. Stopped going, but I don't think it was because he said I was done - we just gave up.

The second was when I had hip problems - the physical therapist said that my problem couldn't be helped by PT and recommended a sports chiro. I went til the problem was fixed, and then he sent me on my way - he was a good one.

The third was recently, when I decided that maybe if I started seeing a chiropractor regularly, I could stop having back pain. She jumped on this, and insisted that I see her 3 times a week, apparently for the rest of my life. I bought it for a little, but wised up eventually. (I should have wised up earlier, when I asked her about exercise, and she said "Oh, I'll have to look that up," and when I suggested that I start doing weights, she said "Oh, I wouldn't do that." And when I told her I was starting yoga, she said "Why?")

My current chiro helps when I have a problem (last week I slept on my neck wrong, and needed a couple visits to straighten it out), but for the most part wants to see me first once a week, then every other week, then every 3rd week, til I'm weaned off - he doesn't try to get me to come any more frequently than I need to.

Here's what I've learned.  If they want you to come more than once a week for anything other than an accute problem, they aren't good. If they don't mention exercise or at least stretching in the first or second visit (unless you are having an accute problem that can't handle anything yet), they aren't good. If they tell you that you are worse off than you feared, they aren't good.

But if they say "Let's fix the problem, then call me if something happens," then they might be good. If they actually fix the problem, and yes, my second and current chiros have solved problems for me, then they are probably good.

Some of them are fruity - they want you to cut out x, y, and z, for your digestion, saying that's what's causing your pain. Or they want you to take a farm of probiotics. But try to look past that, because the real stuff they do might really help.

Wow- again- thanks guys for your responses.  I have a better idea of what needs to happen when I go in.  I have an appointment today with a chiro.  I will try and let you know what he says.   

Original Post by lorime:

Wow- again- thanks guys for your responses.  I have a better idea of what needs to happen when I go in.  I have an appointment today with a chiro.  I will try and let you know what he says.   

 Please email me if you get any relief this way. I've talked to my chiro about it but never got any results for that (he's great with the occasional crick-in-the-neck kind of thing, however).

I have an excellent massage therapist who thinks my chronic pain--right where you describe--is actually from swelling/injury to the sacro-ischial ligament (not sure about the spelling). I'm going to try a weight lifting program to strengthen the surrounding muscles and ones that I use in punting/kicking (soccer) to see if that helps. I'll let you know if that helps. Generally, once I "trigger" the pain, I have to back off for at least a month from ANYTHING that aggravates it, and then resume very carefully. I find it's much more helpful to avoid triggering the problem than to deal with it once it has been re-triggered, but sometimes I make mistakes.

I went to the chiro and he thought we could have this under control in a few visits (2-4).  I thought that was great.  He used the Active Release Technique that I had heard about and that Kaffwynn talked about.  He really got in and massaged- stretched the area.  It felt better after he was done but he gave me more stretches to do and I will visit him again on Wednesday.  He explained the ART process and that it basically breaks up the scar tissue that has formed from overuse injuries and lets things heal.  We'll see!!  

I'm glad to hear you had a good experience.  It sounds like you found someone that will help you out.  I hope you feel some relief soon!

Hi!  I could not get by without my chiropractor!  The important thing is that he studied the Palmer Method, which is non-invasive, painless, fast.  I'm a cancer survivor, and my team consists of my primary, 2 surgeons, 4 oncologists, 1 gynocologist, and my chiropractor.  Everyone works together to make sure I stay well and strong, and I'm 7 years cancer free, so something must be going right.

I definitely had some success with a chiropractor. I don't buy that it can cure everything from allergies to depression, and I just ignored him and all his literature on those matters, but my back and neck felt better after visiting, rather than hurting all the time. Unfortunately, once I stopped going, I do have back and neck pain again. It was not for an acute injury and it didn't permanently solve the problem, though I do still have less pain now than I did before. I also have not been very good about keeping on top of doing stretches. My father goes every few weeks still and he swears by it, but he also does tai chi, so he's strengthening and stretching his body on his own anyway.

I think chiropracters can be very helpful, but you should definitely keep your wits about you when you go.  The ones I've gone to have taken x-rays and been able to show me where my back is out of alignment and which nerves are being pinched.  Basically, if the misalignment is causing you problems then realigning your spine will allow your nerves to grow back and your problems will be better.  If your problems are not caused by the misalignment, then having more nerve supply may help or it may not. 

I have been to one and had great success - I've seen a physical therapist with not so much success.  Like all medical professons there are some good some bad so I would only go to one recommended by a person I know

My husband went to one who also did accupuncture and he was able to go off his pain meds completely after a few visits.

I have hip issues that cause pains and find when they realign my hips the back and legs feel better quickly.

I just went to a chiropractor b/c I was having a lot of hip pain, perhaps hip pointer syndrome according to my excellent massage therapist who knows a lot oabout how the muscles work together (i.e., kinesiology). I also had a history of periformis pain and sciatia, particularly when pregnant.

I was impressed with the chiropractor. he took X-rays and actually measured whether my hips were even with a device that had a level on it. LEt me tell you, my hips were totally off and after one visit, my hips are now even. He has also been very good about inquiring about my lifestyle and when I ask questions about whether I should keep to low impact, what to expect, etc. he answers them clearly. he also took X-rays and showed me differences in the curvature of the spine and that one of my lower back discs was a little scrunched. So I'm going to go for the next 3 weeks or so and see if that continues to help. I like that he gives full information/explanation and recommendations but also doesn't pressure.

I had also been to a PT, so I also do exercises that help strengthen various muscles. he thought massage and exercise were both good complements to his care.

I was recommended to this chiro by a friend, so definitely ask around and if they can't provide good information and are too high pressure, I might go elsewhere. Good luck. I know what you have is a pain in the you know where, literally!

I've gone thru back and hip pain recently too.  My PT is using IMS (inter-Muscular stimulation)  to ease the tightness and pain in my back and hip.  I have slight scholiosis (one leg definately longer than the other) and my hip was out.  I left it for a few months because i couldn't really afford the treatments.  After 2 session of IMS and her showing me very basic core exercises my hip is back in place and has stayed that way for at least a month.  She is now working on the other areas....

The IMS is like accupuncture - just that the needle goes into the irritated muscle.  I had this done to my shoulder (i injured it at work an ended off for 7 months) and within 3 treatments the issues I was repeatedly having with my shoulder were gone.

I've been to several chiropractors and found one that I absolutely loved and one that was okay for monthly adjustments.  I found that I had fewer headaches and low back problems when I got regular adjustments and went for ultrasound treatments when I had muscle or ligament injuries.  I don't know it a good chiro would help you or not, but it does take effort to find a good one.  My experience is that you should probably feel some discomfort or mild pain during adjustments but you should start feeling better after wards.  Most people I know complained that they felt better right away but it didn't last.  When I recommended them to my chiro, they had the opposite experience and started getting lasting relief. 

BTW, a lot of chiros can go totally overboard on naturopathic medicine, but that doesn't mean they are poor chiropractors.  My best chiro would totally go off on other things I couldn't get behind, but he was a great chiropractor.