In this article I want to tell you the story of a current patient of mine to illustrate a few of the challenges you might experience in finding a solution to chronic neck or back pain. Some of the challenges standing in the way of you finding relief are:
- Where it hurts is often not the cause of the problem and when it is there are almost always contributing causes.
- Medicine’s focus is almost always on the location of the pain without considering other factors.
- Medical treatment is almost always focused solely on short term pain relief.
Let’s get started. This is the true story of a current patient of mine, an otherwise healthy, active, fit woman in her latter 50’s. Here is a synopsis of why she came into my office and what she had done prior to chiropractic.
Primary Complaint
Her pain was primarily in her right hip. She experienced an increase in pain if she sat more than 45 minutes and if she was active and on her feet for long. For instance, in the first few weeks of her care she did a day of yard work and suffered with significant hip pain.
Medical Treatment
Before coming to my office she had been to her primary care MD who told her she had hip arthritis. X-rays were taken of her hip which showed some relatively mild arthritic changes. The MD referred her to an orthopedic surgeon who ordered an MRI that was unremarkable. He offered to give her a cortisone injection into her hip and told her the best he could offer was short term relief.
She was frustrated, having been in pain for 10 years and wasn’t satisfied with what she was hearing from her MD and the orthopedist. This prompted her to come into my office for another opinion.
My approach is to always try to look beyond what other doctors have done. I did that and here is what I found:
Chiropractic Examination
I found postural imbalances in her pelvis. One of the joints in her pelvis, her sacroiliac joint was not not moving. There was also imbalance in the last 2 vertebrae in her lower back, L4 and L5.
There was some tightness and discomfort in her hip that the other doctors were focusing on but the big thing I found was…..
Weakness in a muscle in her ankle that indicated nerve irritation in her lower back. This nerve is the S1 nerve and corresponds with the imbalance at L5 and her pelvis.
Lumbar X-rays
The other doctors focused solely on the hip where the pain was but my exam pointed more to the lower back so I sent her for low back lumbar x-rays and guess what they found.
There was significant misalignment and disc thinning at those last 2 vertebrae in her lower back.
Based on this I put together a treatment plan to see if we could relieve her pain. Here is what it consisted of:
Chiropractic Care
- Treat the misalignment of the hip. While it wasn’t the cause of the problem it had been going on for so long it needed to be treated. This consisted of gentle hip adjustments, stretching of a key hip muscle and home exercise.
- Chiropractic Adjustments to the pelvis and lower lumbar spine as needed. The pelvis only needed a couple of adjustments and it stayed balanced. The L4 and L5 were the primary culprits, needing more attention.
- Home Care Instructions to help her avoid continually aggravating this chronic condition as we worked to correct it.
She was seen twice a week in the office over the first month or so and then we progressively reduced her down to once a week and now she comes in every few weeks.
The Results
Within a week or two she began to experience significant relief of her hip and pelvis pain. In the beginning it was easy for her to experience a mild aggravation if she did too much or sat too long.
Over time she experienced a progressive improvement and stabilization of this long standing chronic condition. She was just in earlier this week and related that she only experiences mild intermittent discomfort but is able to relieve it with the strategies I taught her. She continues to do her home stretches and right now comes in every two weeks.
The Lesson
The most important thing with any health challenge or pain is to explore and research for the cause. In this case it was her lower back more than her hip that was causing the problem. The 2 Medical Doctors didn’t look past where she was experiencing her pain, in her hip.
By helping the body come back to more balance we can often eliminate or greatly reduce the pain, even when there is permanent damage like arthritis.
Corrective chiropractic care seeks to help restore spinal alignment and motion with the goal of removing irritation from the nervous system.
If you are suffering from chronic neck pain, arm pain or numbness, headaches, lower back pain, sciatica or other problems and you’re tired of taking medications that only cover up the pain….consider corrective chiropractic care.
About Dr. Berkowitz
Bringing more than 3 decades of practice experience, Dr. Bill Berkowitz focuses on balancing and corrective care, applying his expertise to provide patients with predictable, repeatable and measurable results.
Dr. Bill consistently strives to enhance the well-being of his patients by addressing the root imbalances of their problems and promoting optimal balance, alignment, and function of the spine and nervous system.
Bill’s wealth of knowledge and experience has allowed him to develop a nuanced understanding of the human body and its intricate connections. With each adjustment, he supports the body in returning to a state of balance that goes beyond mere symptom relief, focusing instead on long-term correction for his patients’ well-being.
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