An Asheville Chiropractor on Back Pain & Acupuncture
In this series I will discuss acupuncture and how it relates to back pain, migraines and even weight loss.
Back Pain – Causes & Goals for Relief
As an Asheville Chiropractor, you can imagine I see my fair share of back problems. So many people lead active lifestyles enjoying the surrounding wilderness. If you are the typical patient, you may have an old injury that is starting to get worse now that you are older, or maybe your back is complaining because you sit at a desk in front of your computer too long at work (and then again at home), or maybe you took your mountain bike out on one of our beautiful Asheville trails and took a spill. My primary goal with patients is to alleviate their pain and return each patient to a full, healthy range of motion.
Avoiding Surgery
For the patients with the most severe pain, I help them avoid surgery in instances where it is not required. I am by no means against surgery, and in life-threatening situations, or situations where your major organs are compromised, I highly recommend it. However, I see far too many patients who are considering the extreme route of surgery, when there are more conservative options to be considered first. I often tell patients: “Schedule your surgery and give me two weeks” – if your pain has been alleviated, you can always cancel the surgery!
Pharmaceuticals
Another situation we see here at our Asheville office is patients who feel they are on too many pharmaceuticals. I don’t think anyone would disagree that too many pharmaceuticals are almost always not good for the body. If you have a herniated disc, is it better to stay on pain medicine your whole life or try spinal decompression, acupunture and chiropractic adjustment to resolve the underlying issues so pain medication is no longer needed? Personally, I would take pain medicine if I was hurt – but I would look to do a short course and then try these other methods.
Blending Chiropractic & Acupuncture for Relief
If you have back pain radiating down into the hip, you are a great candidate for a combination of the services a chiropractor and a diplomate in acupuncture can provide. On the other hand, if you cannot move your back well, but have no pain, you may only need a chiropractic solution. Each patient is different, and we make sure to approach each patient as the unique individual they are.
Join us for our next blog where an Asheville Chiropractor talks about Migraines and Acupuncture.
Questions or comments? Put them here, email me at drbart@bellsouth.net or post on our Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/RiverRidgeChiro
