I made this discussion to /vent some...
My plight is simply that chiropractors do more harm than good. One of my girlfriends says she swears by hers and I am sure you all have friends that say the same thing.
My problem with my girlfriend is that she has been going for over 6 years and still complains about the same back problems.
I got into an argument with her about it and finished with,
"Cracking your bones to cure your ailments is ridiculous!"
I then hung up on her.
I am just worried about my girlfriend as she is actually doing irreparable harm to her body.
Ever time I hear the world, "spinal adjustments"… it just makes me angry!
/ventoff
Tags:
1. Quacks.
2. Hell the fuck no.
3. No, but then again, I would never see one.
4. Quite right. A white lab coat or pretty much any uniform of authority can make you kill people (Milgram experiments).
5. There's no deceit like self deceit. Especially if you get a receipt.
On one hand, I would really like if quack medicine was banned, but on the other hand it does actually help a lot of idiots people. Not because they are cured or anything like it, but through the strength of triggering the placebo effect.
It can be of some use in some circumstances. Obviously not in your friend's case. But I've had chiropractors successfully get rid of chronic problems with my sacrum and also with my neck.
There are far too many chiropractors who oversell what it can do but in some cases you really do have a musculoskeletal issue and that's what they can do assuming they are competent.
The mandatory 4200 hours of of combined classroom, laboratory, and clinical experience before receiving a DC seems to lend some legitimacy to the profession.
If a client receives real or perceived relief from their discomfort/pain is of little concern if only when they lay their head on that pillow at night they are actually able to sleep.
They may be good for a massage as temporary relief from aches and minor pain. However if you have a medical problem then seek medical advice from a proper medical expert. A friend of mine recently brought her MRI spinal scan to one that was “highly recommended”. He admitted than he had no facility read it. He did hold it up to the light and give his opinion that “nothing was out of place”. When I asked what qualifications he had I was told something like how “a little bit of paper with his name on it would not make up for years of experience”. So we left immediately. When the official appointment with the “real” specialist happens she was told exactly was wrong with her back from reading the MRI within 5 minutes. The recommend treatment is working. Is it possible in the US to call oneself a Chiropractor and open an office without formal qualifications? I would not be bending over backwards to see one if it was me in pain.
However I do not wish to paint everyone with the same brush. I am sure that there are plenty of “good” ones out there. It is important to check out all their qualifications and maybe even talk to others that used the service for their opinion. Ask first if it if ok to exercise. Yoga and swimming are the best. I agree with Sarah’s points above and would also like to suggest that improper footwear, especially when exercising is only going to make things worse. Get your shoe size properly assessed and get insoles if necessary. Bad posture can cause a lot of the damage but remember bad medical advice will make it worse.
It's been many years since I went to a chiropractor, but at the time, I felt it helped to temporarily relieve my back/leg/nerve pain. I never looked at it as a cure for anything and saw medical doctors for the same problem, with more long term & better results (but no "cure" from either). I looked at chiropractic like a very brief, intense physical therapy session. I don't agree with the tendency of many of the DC's to expand into homeopathy and other quackery, like their claims of curing diseases through spinal manipulation. I also wouldn't let one touch my neck after having had the experience of a neck adjustment causing considerable pain with no "gain". It seems that the MD community is less opposed to the practice than in years past. My current pain management MD has no problems with chiropractic as long as it's part of an overall plan of medical treatment. I see your point with your friend's long term reliance on DC; maybe she's afraid of her condition getting worse if she quits the treatments. It's her choice, either way. I would never consider a DC or a DO as my "primary care" physician. I don't follow your "irreparable harm" comment; certainly a chiropractor could break bones or pinch nerves, but I don't see where a typical session, even over years, necessarily would lead to permanent damage. I would think the long term problems would result from failure to get timely treatment from MDs because of reliance on the DCs.
Hi Sophie
We are all I think, in agreement that certain muscle and bone manipulation can have a beneficial effect, if it addresses the right areas. I think the issue for your friend is that she has accepted the Chiro-practitioner of her choice as being the one who can heal her. You're trying to show her that it isn't working. I think sometimes when someone defends their viewpoint with anger, its because they are quashing their own doubts by trying to quash yours. Your technique doesn't seem to work, so it's probably time to re-think your strategy.
I'm sure you are aware that certain pains delivered in certain ways can release endorphins and make someone feel happy and in a good place. This might be what the person she is visiting is doing. So when your friend comes away from a visit, she feels good. Because the actual problem isn't going away, you feel that she is being duped, but she still feels the endorphin high.
Telling her that she is wrong clearly isn't doing the trick. So rather than pressing that point, you need to produce an alternative, even better solution. Have you considered acupuncture? It may help, but I think it will certainly replicate the endorphin expectation, and that may convince her that it is even better.
I have personal experience of effective acupuncture, but I am not saying it works every time, or indeed that every practitioner is good. But I do think there is far less room for damage to be done, whereas wrongful cracks and stretches do carry a risk of harm.
So maybe if you came up with that as an alternate solution, and persuade her at least to give it a try with an open mind, you might move her from the defensive position to a more open-minded ability to consider alternatives. If she is lucky, it might even work.
According to this website you're 368,379 out in your estimate of 'never killed anyone'. http://whatstheharm.net/chiropractic.html
1. not a fan
2. nope.....see 1 above
3. no, but I did try it once. it was an incredibly creepy experience that I hope to never repeat.
4. most people are just not that smart. it's sad but true.
5. im guessing it's because they don't actually kill people
6. does'nt it bug the shit out of you when a chiropractor tries to have people address them as "Dr. -"?? it's insulting to actual doctors!
1) Most chiropractors (subluxationists) are despicable charalatans pretending to have some knowledge of medicine. The few good ones (non-subluxationists) are no more effective than massage therapists.
2) I would NEVER go to a chiropractor.
3) Not I; but my father did. He went to one for a couple of years before discovering, too late, what his REAL ailment was. As a consequence, he died at age 52. As far as I’m concerned, his chiropractor should be in prison.
4) People - Americans particularly - will believe ANYTHING, especially if it’s advertised on TV.
5. Quackery is WAY too pofitable, and Americans WAY too gullible for it to ever be stopped.
6. What is your opinion of homeopathy?
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