Frequently Asked Questions

Chiropractic care is a health care profession based on interactions of the spine and nervous system, as well as the surrounding muscles. We are health care professionals who routinely check and evaluate the spine for subluxations, which are misalignments of the vertebrae that interfere with the body’s ability to heal, function or regulate.

When you arrive for your first appointment you will be welcomed to the office by one of our highly trained Chiropractic Assistants. They will give you the necessary forms that need to be completed before your consultation and examination with the Doctor. Once your forms are complete; you will be given a tour of our spacious facility before being shown into the exam room. You will be asked to change into an examination gown and shorts for the examination. Once you are ready, the Doctor will come into the exam room to go through a comprehensive overview of your history, and a deep dive into your chief complaint. The doctors will also review YOUR goals. Your goals and condition of your spine will determine your recommendations for care. After gathering this vital information, the Doctor will perform a detailed examination of your spine to determine whether you have any subluxation present. If necessary, the Doctor will suggest taking x-rays to further gather vital and critical information for your care. Once the examination with the doctor is complete, our Chiropractic Assistant will come in to do an EMG scan. To complete your first visit, our Chiropractic Assistant will schedule a future appointment for your Report of Findings with the Doctor.

At Ocotillo Chiropractic we have a collective team of Doctors who will all be working together to take care of you from the exam, radiology, adjustments, and progress checks.  You will have your primary Doctor plus the benefit of the collaboration of our team.

Understanding your goals, whether they are short, mid and /or long term, will help our Doctors develop an action plan. Our recommendations are based on our objective findings and YOUR goals.

One of the most important expectations/agreements we can covey is that chiropractic is done WITH you, not TO you. It is a collaboration. Early on we start the education for what is best practice, when it come to taking care of your spine. We also offer patients a foundational appointment called “better results, faster”. Ultimately patients want to know what to start doing and what to stop doing when it come to moving their health in the right direction.

The amount of time required for your recovery depends on four primary factors:

1. The severity and duration of your condition
2. Your short, middle, and long-term goals
3. The results of your exam with the Doctor
4. Your timeline for care

After patients get the relief they want, many choose to continue with periodic care. These patients schedule regular visits despite having no pain. These visits can help support the final stages of healing and help detect and resolve new problems before they become serious.

Your Nerve system Subluxations and dysfunction in our spine are often undetectable by patients for years before they begin to experience any symptoms. It is important to have your spine checked by a Chiropractor due to the demands of modern life and the stress it causes on our spine and nervous system. You can have subluxations and not even know it. Similar to the early stages of tooth decay, subluxations can be present long before any symptoms emerge. Only Chiropractors have the specific training to detect subluxation. Using special techniques like x-ray, palpation, range of motion, surface electromyography, thermal scanning, and postural analysis your Chiropractor can determine whether or not subluxations are present.

The demands of modern life trigger many spinal issues. Every patient develops symptoms for different reasons, but common culprits include:

• Automobile accidents
• Work-related injuries
• Fall-related injuries
• Pregnancy
• Birth
• Children playing/falling
• Sitting/desk work
• Frequent use of electronics or digital devices
• Heavy lifting
• Emotional stress
• Obesity
• Exercise
• Sports
• Physical activities, including house work, yard work, gardening and shoveling etc.

It’s difficult to avoid every potentially damaging activity. Some of our patients visit us after pulling a muscle while vacuuming or mopping. You can also damage your spine by sleeping on the wrong type of mattress or pillow. When you visit our office, we can evaluate your lifestyle and offer advice on how to prevent future issues.

A Chiropractic adjustment is the art of using a specific, controlled force in a precise direction that is applied to a spinal joint not moving properly, “locked up”, or subluxated. The purpose of this natural and safe procedure is to correct structural alignment and eliminate interference in the nervous system. For the patient, this means improved spinal function, reduction in pain, and an overall improvement in health and wellness. An adjustment can be delivered by hand, an instrument or special functions of the Chiropractic table.

The Chiropractic adjustment is a highly controlled procedure that rarely causes discomfort because minimal force and gentle pressure are used. In fact, most patients feel relief immediately following adjustment. Any reported soreness after an initial adjustment has been described as similar to that associated with starting a new exercise program. Drinking plenty of water, using an ice pack, and engaging in light stretching after your first visit can help ease any discomfort and promote healing.

Each patient’s care is unique and therefore customized to meet their specific condition and needs. Your Chiropractor will modify adjustments based on your size, weight, age, comfort, ability and health condition.

If you injure yourself, it is important to get in to see a Doctor of Chiropractic as soon as possible. After something like a car accident, the effects may not be felt until more than a week later and, by that time, you may have compensations more difficult to remedy. Even if you aren’t necessarily in pain, getting into you Chiropractor’s office within a couple of days post-injury can help to speed up the healing process and lessen the amount pf pain that you may eventually feel. Furthermore, by taking good care of yourself between Chiropractic visits, (i.e. eating a healthy, well-balanced diet, participating in approved exercises, and getting appropriate amounts of rest), you will help to speed up your own recovery process.

Many people fear that adjustments are a habit-forming treatment. However, evidence does not indicate that our bodies become addicted to Chiropractic adjustments. If you choose to discontinue Chiropractic care, your spine may return to its original state. This is not the result of treatment dependency; your spine typically becomes misaligned again if you do not change your lifestyle after you discontinue chiropractic care. Patients share they start feeling addicted to feeling good!

Of course! When developing a care plan, your Chiropractor considers the unique circumstances of each patient. There are many ways to adjust the spine! The method selected will be best suited to your age, size, and condition. Our rehabilitation area also includes vibration plates, vibration therapy has demonstrated an increase in bone density after continued use in some studies.

Yes!

Many pregnant women find that Chiropractic adjustments improve the pregnancy experience and make delivery easier. Adjustments are adapted to accommodate each stage of pregnancy and the unique needs of each patient. Our adjusting tables are able to accommodate a growing belly!

Yes!

The delivery process is hard on mom and baby! Misalignments and subluxations can occur during pregnancy and at birth. With the hormone relaxin still circulating through the body, it is an ideal time to correct subluxations.

Yes!

Spines development subluxations at all ages, they can even start at birth. As they become more active, learning to crawl, walk and activities like dance, soccer, hockey etc. can cause repetitive trauma to young developing bodies.

Every situation is unique, but yes, it’s generally safe to get Chiropractic adjustments after back surgery. Our Chiropractic team will carefully review your imaging reports and surgery notes to make sure you’re a good candidate for post-surgery adjustments. Surgery often weakens the surrounding joints and muscles because they overcompensate during the recovery process. Chiropractic care can tackle these issues without disturbing the area where you received surgical treatment.

Chiropractic care is increasingly becoming a lifestyle choice to increase function, longevity, and potential. Alongside Chiropractic care we provide rehabilitation, massage therapy, strengthening and stretching exercises, cervical traction, and head weight therapy.

In the event that a patient is not a candidate for care, we refer them to other practitioners we know and trust that can help. At our office we work alongside Massage Therapists, Athletic Therapists, Acupuncturists, Pro-Prep Academy providers, Psychiatrists, Functional Nutritionist’s, Naturopaths, Medical Doctors, and Radiologists, to make sure you have a great health care team working for you!