Number one reason a person won’t go to a chiropractor?

Because they don’t discharge their patients. If your chiropractor recommends any more than 2-3 weeks of care up front, run the other way.

Chiropractic perception can vary across the country. In St. Louis, if you ask the average person about going to the chiropractor, there are typically three types of responses.

• One group “swears” by chiropractors and goon a regular basis.
• The second group go “a couple times a year, whenever I throw my back out.”
• And the last group has never been to a chiropractor and has no intentions of starting chiropractic care, ever!

If you’re one of those who fall into the first two categories, you may ask “why would someone NOT go to a chiropractor,” especially knowing how much it has helped you. The biggest reason why people do not seek chiropractic care is because chiropractors have a reputation of not discharging their patients. Unfortunately, this idea can be both totally accurate, or a complete misconception.

Here is the accurate part. There are some chiropractors who over treat. It’s the truth. They try to sign you up for a year long treatment plan, costing thousands of dollars and claim to treat conditions chiropractors have no business treating. For some people who like to go to the chiropractor every week, this might actually work. However, most often, one does not need this much active treatment. If your chiropractor recommends any more than 2-3 weeks of care up front, run the other way.

There are those in the chiropractic profession who have a long history of over treating, this I admit. But in the last few decades there have been a lot of advancements regarding the profession’s philosophy. Today, schools teach an “Evidence Based” curriculum, much like medical schools do. In addition, chiropractic is covered under virtually all health insurance plans and is even integrated into many hospital settings. (1,2)

Now for the misconception that chiropractors do not discharge. This misconception comes from your friends and family members who go to the chiropractor for every ache and pain that arises. (The group who “swears” by chiropractors.) It may seem like they continue chiropractic care “for-ev-errr.” And some patients do. They CHOOSE to go to a chiropractor on a regular basis because they generally feel better and wish to maintain good health with intermittent treatment. This is usually a personal choice after being properly educated and effectively treated.

Misconceptions and negative views about the chiropractic profession run deep. There are a lot of falsehoods out there. Did you know that there was an active campaign by the AMA (yes, I am talking about the American Medical Association) in the 60s and 70s to disparage and discredit the chiropractic profession? It’s true, the case was called Wilk v. American Medical Association and the chiropractors won!(3) These court battles lasted into the late 80’s, however the damage was done. There are still some in the medical profession who instinctively call chiropractors quacks.

Here’s what you need to know…

When talking about musculoskeletal complaints (neck pain and low back), there are generally two types of injuries/conditions, acute and chronic. Acute meaning, it is a new issue that began suddenly. Chronic is a long-developing issue that builds up over time and lasts for weeks to months, even years. Both types of pain can respond well to chiropractic care. Acute conditions usually respond quicker and considerable progress is typically noticed in the first couple of visits. Chronic and more complicated cases may take a little longer to get lasting results under conservative care, but also respond well to treatment. Again, within a week or two, a person should know if conservative care is helping. Even the Mayo Clinic agrees, if absolutely no progress has been made within the first two weeks of treatment, a competent (ethical) physician should try something new or make the appropriate referral.(4)

Treating you another hundred times is probably not the answer.

Long story short, if you are choosing a chiropractor who honestly wants to get you better as quickly as possible, you will be discharged at some point. However, after seeing the results of chiropractic care and feeling the best you’ve felt in years, you may choose to continue chiropractic care “whenever YOU need it.” The choice should be yours.

If you are looking for a good chiropractor who you can trust and you are not located near St. Louis, MO, we recommend using a FTCA approved office. FTCA stands for Forward Thinking Chiropractic Alliance. Each chiropractor is vetted prior to acceptance and follows the same philosophy as the chiropractic physicians at Smart Pain Solutions. Click on the link above to find one near you.

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3716373/
2. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0161475417301367
3. https://www.nytimes.com/1987/08/29/us/us-judge-finds-medical-group-conspired-against-chiropractors.html
4. https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/chiropractic-adjustment/about/pac-20393513