Free Report - The 10 questions to ask yourself before you go to a chiropractor
Posted: May 14,2008
The 10 questions to ask yourself before you go to the Chiropractor
(And ways to know if they are trustworthy!)
Currently only about 8 percent of the US population goes to the chiropractor on a regular basis. Chiropractic has been around for more than 100 years, why aren’t more people using their services? If chiropractic is so great, everybody would be going right?
I believe the numbers are so low because of the poor job chiropractors have done in explaining what they do and how they do it. This report is designed to give you a better understanding of what chiropractic is and how it can be used to benefit you.
Only you can decide if you need a chiropractor. Read this report. See if it makes sense to you. If it does take the next step and make an appointment. If it doesn’t, then you haven’t wasted any of your valuable time.
So Let’s Get Started!!
1. How do you know if you need a chiropractor?
The most common reason people go to the chiropractor is for back pain. Low back pain, neck pain, chronic pain and headaches are the most common complaints chiropractors see in practice. Many times people come in saying, “I thought it would go away on its own.” Or “The pain comes and goes, but this time it isn’t going away like it has in the past.”
A second common reason people seek chiropractic care is disability due to their pain. In other words, they can’t do what they used to do. Examples like, inability to walk, cook, golf, enjoy their family and relax have all been used over the past few weeks during consultations in our office.
Another phrase we commonly hear during consultations is “there was nothing else the medical doctor could do for me.” This is actually a welcomed statement in our office. Because this usually means a significant number of tests have been performed to rule out many nasty things, like cancer. Therefore, we can focus on issues not normally addressed in the medical model of healthcare to give you better results.
2. What is a chiropractor going to do to me?
During the consultation, the chiropractor should ask you a series of questions to find out exactly what is going on with you. Things like, “What has helped you in the past?” Or “Tell me how this problem has affected your life?” These types of questions will give the chiropractor a better idea of what to do to help you.
Next, the chiropractor should explain back to you what you have told them and then give you a reasonable explanation of what they think the problem is. This explanation should be given to you in words you understand and are comfortable with.
Next, an examination should be performed to rule in or rule out what the chiropractor believes is going on with you. They should also give you a brief explanation of what kind of treatment they will provide for your condition and a reasonable length of time for you to expect results from care.Then you decide if the explanation makes sense to you before anything else is done.
3. How much is chiropractic care going to cost me?
Most insurance are accepted for chiropractic care. Co-pays can range from $10 to $40. As an example, a regular cash office visit in the Tuscola Pain & Wellness Center is $45. There is a discount for paying at the time of service and cash plans are available upon request. Most offices accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover and insurance is usually submitted at the time of service in most offices.
4. What kind of results should I expect to have?
Our #1 goal at the Tuscola Pain & Wellness Center is to provide at least 50 percent or more decrease in pain within 2 weeks or we will find out why!!
Once you begin to feel better, we will dig deeper into your problem and work on underlying issues that have allowed this pain to begin in the first place.Next, we’ll create a plan that might include exercise, stretching, massage or whole food nutritional supplements to keep you healthy for life.
5. How long do you have to go to the chiropractor?
That’s totally up to you! Nobody is going to hold a gun to your head. The number of treatments you receive should make sense to you. If during the report of findings the chiropractor uses scare tactics, fear or guilt to attempt to commit you to a certain number of treatments up front that seems unreasonable, be careful.
Our office has people who come in for a few visits, feel better, and get on with their lives. We also have people who come in for a few months to complete a rehabilitation protocol. And finally, we have people who see the benefit of ongoing chiropractic care and make it part of their lifestyle. We like to call it getting a “tune-up” to prevent future problems.
6. How do you know how good your chiropractor is?
Ask your friends and family who have gone to the chiropractor for their recommendation. You can also go to the Dept. of Professional Regulation website to check them out.
But mostly, trust your gut instinct during the consultation. Do you connect with the doctor? Do they understand your condition? Do they really seem to care about what you’re saying? If they fail your gut test, say thanks but no thanks.
7. What red flags should you look for during your consultation?
The biggest red flags are the use of high pressure sales tactics. If the doctor tries to scare, guilt or shame you into accepting their treatment recommendations be very careful.
The second red flag is the presentation of an unreasonable number of visits in your opinion, during the report of findings. Again, use your gut instinct, if it sounds unreasonable call them on it and make them explain why.
8. What should you expect on the first visit? And then regular visits?
On the first visit, you should expect it to take about an hour of your time. After you fill out the paperwork you should then have your consultation with the doctor. Then you should be examined. Finally, treatment should be provided to your area of complaint.
On regular visits, you should expect it to take about 30 minutes. First, you should be taken to the treatment room, then, if physical therapy is being used, it will be applied. After your therapy is over, you will receive your adjustment from the doctor.
9. What is an adjustment and does it hurt?
The easiest way to explain what an adjustment does is to compare it to a computer. When your computer runs slow or locks up, the first thing I’ll do is turn it off then turn it back on again. By rebooting your computer many times the problem will fix itself. Your spine acts in much the same way.
When your spine locks up or has pain, it is usually because you have lost the range of motion in your spinal joints. An adjustment is designed to “reboot” your spine into a better range of motion. When you adjust the spine, you affect not only the joints but also the nerves around that joint. Each spinal nerve affects specific organs and tissues. So when your spine works better, you help your nerves work better.
Adjustments shouldn’t hurt most of the time. Physical therapy, like electrical stimulation, massage, ultrasound and hot or cold packs can be used to loosen up tight muscles around the joint to make the joints move easier.
Sometimes, however, a brief pain can be experienced immediately after an adjustment is given. Usually it is not really pain, but a feeling of being startled. Since you have never experienced this type of feeling before, it can feel a little weird.
Many times you can have muscle soreness after receiving adjustments for awhile. This is comparable to starting an exercising routine. Once your body gets used to it, the soreness goes away and is replaced by less pain and improved range of motion.
If you experience pain consistently with adjustments, make sure you tell your doctor about it. There are always other techniques that can be used to minimize or stop the pain after your adjustment.
10. Do you always have to go to the chiropractor once you start going?
That is totally up to you. If you feel you are receiving huge benefits from your continuing chiropractic care keep it up. But nobody is going to hold a gun to your head and force you to come in.
It has been our experience that once you discover how good you can feel, you have a tendency to keep coming back for adjustments to feel that good on a regular basis. The question you need to ask yourself is, “How long do you want to feel good?” Of course the answer is forever. Continued chiropractic care can keep you feeling good long into the future. Feeling good is addicting.
Why should you believe me?
Well, you shouldn’t. You have just taken the first step to see if a chiropractor is right for you. The next step is to think about the information in this report and make sure it makes sense to you.
If you feel comfortable with this information call 253-2370 to schedule your no obligation FREE consultation to talk about your problem further. This consultation can be done at your convenience. If you are still unsure if chiropractic care can help you, call 253-2370 anyway. Then request a free phone consultation with Dr. Hemmer. This way you can get your questions answered before you make a time commitment you are unsure about.
As an Added Bonus:
If you take action and call 253-2370 today, I will give you a copy of my book, Your Body, Your Way (a 25.00 value) for your commitment of helping yourself.
So call 253-2370 and decrease your pain. Also learn how to increase the energy in your life and live the way you want to live. All you have to lose is some time, but you could truly get your life back by making this call.
There are a very limited number of FREE consultations available for this offer (15 to be exact) and they will go very quickly. So don’t wait. Call 253-2370 today and schedule your consultation and receive your FREE book today.