Will I need treatment forever?
Every Chiropractor works differently, and every patient is different, but after almost a decade of treating patients here is a rough idea of how many treatments you might need.*
*SPOILER: no I will not sign you up to treatments for the rest of your life or treat you 3x a week for months on end!
Acute Neck/back strain:
That feeling when you move a little awkwardly and all of a sudden BOOM. “OHMYGOD I CAN’T MOVE!”
As awful as this pain is (I’ve had it myself!), it does pass quickly. Without treatment, you’re normally over the worst of the pain within a few days, then it can take a couple of weeks on top of that to feel like you’ve got back to normal.
We can speed things up with treatment, for most people I estimate 2-4 treatments - although sometimes 1 or 2 will do, and you can manage the rest at home with exercises.
Nerve pain:
Pain radiating from the neck into the arm, or back into the leg takes a little longer than a sprain, depending on how long you’ve been suffering for. That’s why its good to get treatment early if you start to get radiating pain, numbness, pins and needles, etc.
If you’ve only had the pain for days/weeks, then you’ll usually be pain free within 4-6 treatments, if you’ve been suffering more many months or years then it can take 6-12.
Chronic pain:
E.g. chronic low back pain, headaches/migraines
If you’ve been suffering for a long time, then it can take a bit longer to undo things (don’t get me wrong, I’ve had people get better within 1-2 treatments, but they are the exception, not the rule). Some people will get better within 6-12 treatments, and some people may need ongoing treatment to manage their pain. We call this maintenance care - the most popular frequency choice is a treatment every 4-6 weeks, but I also have patients that come every 8-12 weeks.
Maintenance care is most popular with headache/migraine sufferers. Don’t get me wrong, you can absolutely self-manage some headaches with lifestyle changes and exercises, but most people choose to keep up treatment to keep headaches at bay - myself included! I have monthly treatments to manage mine, otherwise I’d be popping pain killers all the time. That being said, my head was at it’s best when I was doing targeted exercises… I’m just too lazy/forgetful to keep it up so would rather have maintenance care for now!
The take home message…
…The above examples are a guideline. My recommendations are tailored to each patient, and I will support you in whatever choice you make. Want maintenance? Great! Want to pop in once every year or two when you hurt yourself? Amazing! I’ll never nag you to do your exercises, or pressure you to commit to months of treatment. I will equip you with the knowledge I have and the decision is yours.