When you're just starting a new treatment plan, it's common to make chiropractic adjustments several times a week. As your body begins to heal, that number could be reduced to just once a week. And if you're not in pain and just want to maintain your lifestyle, you may only need an adjustment once or twice a month. To achieve maximum benefits, most types of injuries and pain will need between four and twelve sessions.
Ongoing maintenance is used to prevent pain from returning and to prevent additional injuries from forming due to spinal misalignment. However, in maintenance care, patients are often committed to a long-term care plan. This means that patients regularly receive chiropractic adjustments, soft tissue therapy, stretches, and exercises even after their symptoms have disappeared. The interval between visits can be as short as one week to one month. The treatment you received will largely be based on what the chiropractor finds.
For example, the chiropractor may decide that he has some joint restrictions and proceed to perform a chiropractic adjustment. They may think you have “tight muscles” and will use soft-tissue techniques to “release” them. Maintenance care is also known as wellness care. Because you're still in care despite being well. One of the most common misunderstandings about chiropractic care that causes frustration is that it aims to “cure” a person in the same way that a treatment with antibiotics will eliminate an infection.
In addition to the fact that additional sessions are needed for maintenance, one of the main reasons people usually need several sessions in advance is that they don't seek chiropractic care until they have symptoms, meaning that they are already in pain. In total, the average person requires between 18 and 24 adjustments over approximately 9 to 14 weeks to complete all three phases of chiropractic care (pain relief, stabilization, rehabilitation).They may also refer you to a specialist to help rule out other underlying causes that cannot be addressed with chiropractic care. Your chiropractor may recommend that you wait until you heal or the inflammation has subsided before trying chiropractic care. While a chiropractor is an important part of your healthcare team, there are situations that are not suitable for chiropractic care.
Likewise, if you've been postponing chiropractic care because you've felt better after a few sessions, it's important that you take the time to visit your chiropractor before the pain starts to return. A chiropractic adjustment is a non-surgical medical treatment used to treat disorders of the musculoskeletal or nervous system, such as lower back pain, neck pain, and other ailments. A larger, higher quality article (328 patients) published just this year revealed that patients who underwent maintenance chiropractic care experienced 13 fewer days of annoying lower back pain compared to the control group. The reason that some healthcare providers don't understand what a chiropractor visit is because they are aware that the doctor's visit is an “event”, a one-time visit to treat a symptom. Preventive chiropractic care can help fix this problem before you miss three days of work because you can't sit at your desk without having severe back pain. Both highly active people and people who must sit at a desk for long hours can benefit from chiropractic care before the actual pain begins.
Each person responds differently to chiropractic treatment and the chiropractic plan and time frame mainly depend on the patient's age, level of physical condition, duration of pain, type of injury, and level of discomfort. So how far apart should chiropractic adjustments be? It depends on your individual needs and goals for treatment. If you're just starting out with treatment for an injury or chronic condition, it's likely that your doctor will recommend more frequent visits until your symptoms improve. Once your symptoms have improved or stabilized, your doctor may recommend less frequent visits for maintenance purposes. If you're looking for preventive care or just want to maintain your lifestyle without any pain or discomfort, then it's likely that your doctor will recommend visiting them once or twice a month for an adjustment.
However, if you're dealing with an injury or chronic condition then it's likely that your doctor will recommend more frequent visits until your symptoms improve. It's important to remember that everyone responds differently to treatment and there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to how far apart chiropractic adjustments should be. Your doctor will be able to provide personalized advice based on your individual needs and goals for treatment.
