If you’ve been thinking about finding a solution to your pain and aches, but are not too sure about whether chiropractic can help, you’ve come to the right page. Over the last 10 years of serving our community, these are the common questions received about chiropractic:
- What is chiropractic care about?
- Is chiropractic expensive?
- How many chiropractic sessions will I need?
- What is the difference between TCM, Physiotherapy, and chiropractic?
- Why is chiropractic care important?
- What pains do chiropractors help with?
- What is a chiropractor?
- Are chiropractors medical doctors?
- How do chiropractors detect spinal misalignments?
- What equipment do chiropractors use?
- What happens during a chiropractic adjustment?
- Why is there a cracking sound?
- Do loud cracks equate to an effective adjustment?
- Is it bad to crack myself?
- Can I get adjusted on my first check-up?
- Why are X-rays needed before adjustment?
By the end of this, we hope you will gain a better understanding of what chiropractic is all about.
What is chiropractic care about?
If you have watched YouTube videos of people getting “cracked” or experienced chiropractic care before, you might have heard of the term “subluxation” used frequently. Chiropractic care is focused on addressing subluxation.
Subluxation is a term used by chiropractors to describe a spinal vertebra that is out of position in comparison to the other vertebrae. Essentially, subluxation refers to spinal misalignment which could lead to a nervous system interference.
Our spines act as a shield for our nervous system. When our spinal bones shift out of their normal alignment, it can place pressure and irritation on the nerves. This leads to other symptoms within your body such as:
- Headaches
- Lower back pain
- Pain radiating down the leg
- Digestive problems
- Asthma
What chiropractic does is apply controlled pressure and adjust the spine back to its natural alignment.
is chiropractic expensive?
If you are looking to seek one-off, symptomatic relief, a chiropractic care program may seem like a hefty investment. However, if your goal is to improve your spinal health and general well-being, chiropractic care may even be less expensive than other long-term treatment plans that require medication, surgery, or intensive physical therapy.
More importantly, chiropractic helps to prevent degeneration that eventually requires more invasive forms of treatment.
how many chiropractic sessions will I need?
Chiropractic is not an instant fix. One adjustment will not address your problem. Like braces for teeth, physical misalignments in your body takes time to correct.
The effectiveness depends on a variety of things – your condition, how your body responds to adjustment, your daily habits, among other things.
Most of our members start to see progress after 8 to 12 months of regular adjustments.
What is the difference between TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), Physiotherapy, and chiropractic?
Fundamentally, all three treatments have different focuses.
Physiotherapy helps people who are injured or disabled to regain muscle strength and joint mobility through movements and exercise, manual therapy, or other modalities. They customize programs to restore as much as they can their functional ability and movement.
TCM has been passed down for thousands of years. Their treatments include acupuncture, cupping, bone setting (more commonly known as “Tie Da”), and “Gua Sha“. While bone setting may appear to be very similar to chiropractic, it mainly focuses on adjusting the muscles, tendons, and ligaments. On the other hand, chiropractic focuses more on the spine alignment and optimal flow of the nervous system.
All specialties have different focuses and techniques and knowing when to see who is important.
why is chiropractic care important?
Chiropractic helps to detect subluxations early and prevents further damage and degeneration to our spine.
Normal Spines
Normal spines have a natural curvature that helps to act as a shock absorber.
Phase 1
Your spine has lost its normal curvature. Patients will experience mild symptoms if any.
Phase 2
Loss of normal spinal curvature and the patient will start to experience a poorer range of motion.
Phase 3
Curvatures start to become abnormal. The disc loses its height and results in increased compression on the nerves causing pain.
Phase 4
Commonly seen with subluxations that have been uncorrected for over 65 years. Phase 4 is a grave condition and will negatively affect the patient’s quality of life.
Is detecting subluxation early really that important? Yes! That’s because subluxations are dangerous if left untreated. It compromises the integrity of our spine and hinders the function of our organs and nervous system. Beyond the negative effects mentioned above, it is important to note that once our bones are damaged, it is irreversible.
Chiropractic not only corrects misalignments within our spine, it also acts as a preventive measure to guard against illnesses and improve blood circulation.
What is a chiropractor?
Definition of Chiropractic
The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines chiropractic as a health care profession concerned with the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disorders of the neuromusculoskeletal system and the effects of these disorders on general health. There is an emphasis on manual techniques, including joint adjustment and/or manipulation, with a particular focus on the subluxation.”
Put simply, chiropractors are holistic health care providers who specialize in improving the health and integrity of your spine and nervous system through spinal manipulation, without the use of drugs nor invasive treatment methods.
Are chiropractors medical doctors?
Chiropractors are not medical doctors.
In contrast to using drugs and surgery to treat illness and disease, chiropractic treatment is less invasive and utilizes a drug-free approach to help your body function as it was designed by addressing spinal misalignments.
We fully understand the need for a qualified professional for your health needs. While there are no chiropractic schools in Singapore, our team has been trained by schools with accredited programs either from Council on Chiropractic Education Australasia, or European Council on Chiropractic Education, or The Council on Chiropractic Education. Besides their formal education, our team has undergone intensive internships in clinics and on-the-job training to maintain a high level of standard for our members.
how do chiropractors detect subluxation?
At Chiropractic Singapore, we pride ourselves on the comprehensiveness of our spinal check-up. There are a total of 7 different tests that will help us gain a holistic understanding of your condition. The test includes:
- Posture Photo Analysis
- Range of motion measurement
- Bilateral weight distribution
- Grip strength test
- Surface Electro-Myography Scan (SEMG)
Posture Photo Analysis
This test measures the posture distortion. Our posture is the window to our spine and nervous system. An off-balanced posture indicates a subluxation.
Range of Motion Measurement
Each joint has a different range of motion. We often use an inclinometer to measure the axis and range of motion of our member’s joints. At the same time, we will look for any signs of discomfort, resistance and compensation in the joints.
Bilateral Weight Distribution
This test determines how your body is carrying and distributing weight through your legs. If there is an imbalance of more than three kilograms, this could potentially mean uneven hips or shoulders. To further confirm this, usually an x-ray examination will be required.
Grip Strength Test
This test is a relative measure of the strength of your nervous system. When there’s increased compression on our nerves, our muscles cannot function as it was intended.
Surface Electro-Myography (sEMG) Scan
This test measures muscular stress along both sides of our spine. Areas of increased and unbalanced electrical activity indicate muscular stress.
Why are x-rays important?
However, even with the tests mentioned above, we normally require a spinal X-ray to add that layer of assurance and safety for our valued members. This helps us determine the most effective treatment for their condition.
What equipment do chiropractors use?
Often, our members come in different shapes and sizes. Everyone is different!
To make an adjustment effective and safe for all, we use different types of equipment to help us control the amount of pressure we apply during an adjustment. Commonly used in our centers, we have the drop table and activator.
What actually happens during a chiropractic adjustment?
During an adjustment, our chiropractor will palpate your spine to look for any muscle tensions and subluxation. At the same time, they will do a visual assessment to make sure that your body is in balance. Take, for example, people with scoliosis may have uneven shoulders or hips. Following this, our chiropractors will adjust the spine back into its proper alignment with the aid of a drop table.
An effective chiropractic adjustment allows the body to move without restriction and restores your natural range of motion.
Why is there a cracking sound?
Understandably, people have a common misconception that chiropractors crack bones. We do not. The “popping” or “cracking” sounds you hear during an adjustment are actually gas bubbles that are released due to a change in pressure.
Do loud cracks equate to an effective adjustment?
It’s a common misconception that the cracking, clicking, popping sounds you might hear during an adjustment is the best indication of whether the adjustment was a “good adjustment” or not.
And that is not true. The sound that you may or may not hear really depends on the person and also on the chiropractic technique that is used. There are many different kinds of chiropractic techniques so depending on the one that was used, it can produce different sounds.
Is it bad to crack myself?
Potentially! When we have stress or misalignment on our spine, it limits our range of motion. In order to compensate for this, some of the other areas along the spine will start to move more.
Essentially, when we do the quick twisting motions, it can possibly cause hyper flexibility in those other parts of the spine that moves more to compensate. This can lead to potential problems in the future. We recommend doing simple, basic stretches for the long-term health of your spine.
what pains do chiropractors help with?
can i get adjusted on my first check-up?
Before getting adjusted, it is important to get a full spinal check-up. After getting a full understanding of your spinal health, our chiropractors will advise if chiropractic is the right treatment. It is unsafe to be adjusted before without having the full picture.
If the root cause of your symptoms is spinal misalignments, our chiropractors will want to get you adjusted after the check-up and start the healing process.
I would like to sign up for my spinal check-up!
Please provide a valid email address and
submit to select your centre location
“Our mission is to enable you to live life at its fullest.”
