FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS IN Lincoln NE

• They are doctors of chiropractic care — professionals who care about people and are devoted to providing non-invasive, personalized care and treatment.
• Chiropractors study many of the same subjects and M.D.s, such as anatomy, physiology, microbiology, radiology, orthopedics, etc. The number of contact hours (classes, labs, patient experience time) for chiropractic students is similar to medical school students, more than 4,500 hours.

Medical doctors and doctors of chiropractic are also similar because graduates in both M.D. and D.C. schools have:

• Earned an undergraduate degree with a focus on the sciences or a “pre-med” emphasis. Typical undergrad degrees are human biology, biology, exercise science, or kinesiology.
• Received a four-year healthcare degree from an accredited healthcare college or university. However, some chiropractic colleges have combined B.S./D.C. programs to shorten the total time in college by up to a year.
• Proved their competence in working with patients, which often begins in year one.
• Obtained the required state license to practice.
• Continuing education requirements.

Chiropractors use what are known as spinal adjustments to address issues of the musculoskeletal and nervous system. Even the slightest disruption can impact your brain's ability to effectively communicate with the rest of your body and heal properly. When your spine is out of alignment, it can cause pain, discomfort, tightness in muscles, and disruption to nearby nerves. Chiropractic care can reduce this inflammation, swelling and restore proper function to the joints. Therefore, helping your body heal naturally without the use of drugs and surgery.

After an injury or accident, your spine can become misaligned and soft tissue can become inflamed and swollen. This can cause pain, discomfort, weakened nearby muscles, and disruption to nearby nerves. Chiropractic care can reduce this inflammation, swelling, and restore proper function to the joints. Therefore, helping your body heal naturally without the use of drugs and surgery.

• For many pregnant women, aches and pains in the lower back and hips are part of the experience. In fact, approximately 50% of pregnant women will experience back pain at some point before they deliver.
• Chiropractic care is a safe, effective practice during pregnancy. Not only can routine chiropractic care help manage pain in your back, hips, and joints, it can also establish pelvic balance. Pelvic balance can provide your baby with as much space as possible over the course of your pregnancy. This may lead to a faster, easier labor and delivery.

A pelvis that's out of alignment can restrict the amount of space available to your developing baby. Another complication that a misaligned pelvis may pose relates to delivery. When the pelvis is out of alignment, it can make it hard for your baby to move into the best position to be born, which is rear- facing, head down.

In some cases, this could affect a woman's ability to have a natural and noninvasive birth. A balanced pelvis also means your baby has a lower chance of moving into a breech or posterior position. When your baby is in a nonoptimal birthing position, it can lead to a longer, more complicated delivery.

Other evidence points to improved outcomes in labor and delivery for women who've received chiropractic care during their pregnancy. In fact, it may help reduce the length of time you're in labor.

In addition, regular chiropractic care while you're pregnant can offer the following benefits:

• Help you maintain a healthier, more comfortable pregnancy.
• Relieving pain in the back, neck, hips, and joints.
• Help to control symptoms of nausea.

• Nearly everyone suffers from back pain at some point. One treatment option is chiropractic care, which often includes spinal manipulation (also called manual manipulation), exercise advice, and self-care recommendations.
• Chiropractors help with lower back pain by identifying the source of your lower back pain and restoring proper alignment in your whole spine. The most positive research on chiropractic therapy has focused on spinal manipulation for low back pain. As one of the alternatives to pain-relieving drugs, the American College of Physicians low back pain guideline recommends spinal manipulation along with heat, massage, and acupuncture.

• A neck chiropractic adjustment is a chiropractic treatment that is used to restore proper joint motion and alignment in the neck area (cervical spine).
• Neck pain is one of the most common types of musculoskeletal problems, affecting almost 50% of the population annually. Mild neck pain can be a minor annoyance, but if neck pain becomes chronic and is left untreated, it may progress to debilitating pain, headaches, arm pain, and eventually numbness, tingling, and weakness.
• Numerous studies show that chiropractic is a safe and effective treatment for neck pain. It is a holistic form of complementary and alternative medicine that focuses on the spine and its effect on the musculoskeletal and nervous system, and the body's ability to heal itself.

Lower back adjustments, and chiropractic adjustment in general, are often seen as great alternatives to surgery and pharmaceuticals for certain patients. Chiropractors are highly-trained professionals who understand the anatomy and biomechanics of the human body. When a person experiences lower back pain or sciatica pain, it is often because there is a misalignment in their spine that is causing tension and inflammation. A chiropractor can restore proper alignment and decrease inflammation. Relieving sciatica pain quickly and effectively without drugs or surgery. Spinal manipulation is both safe and effective for sciatica. Researchers actually advise using chiropractic manipulation before resorting to painkillers, muscle relaxants, opioids, injections, and surgery to treat lower back pain.

A chiropractor treats many conditions affecting the nervous system and musculoskeletal system. Think of a chiropractor as a doctor who cares for any kind of muscle, bone or joint pain or dysfunction. The most common reasons for a chiropractic adjustment include:

• Lower Back Pain
• Neck Pain
• Muscle Pain
• Headaches / Migraines
• Sciatica
• Arthritis
• Whiplash
• Pinched Nerves
• Herniated Disks

A chiropractic adjustment is a safe therapeutic treatment where a licensed chiropractor uses their hands or special instruments to treat different joints in your body. This treatment is also called spinal manipulation or joint manipulation. A chiropractic adjustment can help reduce pain, and correct your body’s alignment and how your body functions physically.

Chiropractic care is a drug-free, non-invasive, and affordable form of therapy that may treat musculoskeletal problems.

The pop you may hear when a chiropractor performs an adjustment is sometimes referred to as a “cavitation.” No, your bones are definitely not cracking. That noise comes from a joint that is suddenly opened. It's like taking a piece of paper, folding it in half, and then pulling at both ends. You hear a pop. The “synovial” fluids that lubricate your joints release gas—oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide. Think of the pop you hear when you uncork a bottle of sparkling wine— that's carbon dioxide making its escape.

Once the fluids around the joints can move and do their job, you feel so much better. The bottom line is this—don't be concerned about the sounds you hear during an adjustment. If anything, adjustments are followed by your own sighs of relief from pain.

Electroacupuncture uses two needles in each meridian point, or acupuncture point, and then connects to a machine that passes a small electric current through the needle.

Electroacupuncture helps to block your pain by activating bioactive chemicals in your body. This process may decrease your sensitivity to the pain you're feeling. It's also been shown to help reduce inflammation in your body.

When you get electroacupuncture, it activates your sympathetic nerve fibers. By activating these fibers, your body releases endogenous opioids such as endorphins, which help to reduce inflammation. The activated nerve fibers may also help to reduce feelings of persistent pain. This makes it a good treatment for chronic pain and stress.

• Acupuncture may stimulate the release of endorphins, the body's natural pain-relieving chemicals.
• Acupuncture may influence the autonomic nervous system, and needle placement may impact breathing, blood pressure, and heart rate.