Frequently Asked Questions

The technique I use is based on what the individual patient and their specific condition needs.

Before I specifically name the techniques, I will explain the thought process on choosing the

technique. First, I determine if the patient will do better or prefer manual (by hand) adjusting,

instrument adjusting, or a combination of both. Some patients prefer to feel the release or

“pop” created by a manual adjustment, some patients prefer not to feel the “crack”, so I would

use instrument adjustments. For most patients, I use a combination of both. For many

patients, I also incorporate drop table adjustments also. My treatment goals follow this order:

reduce pain, decrease nerve stress and tension, improve mobility, and improve posture. The

techniques I choose allow me to achieve these goals.

Specifically, I have been trained in: Torque Release Technique, Gonstead Technique, Sacro

Occipital Technique, Chiropractic Biophysics, Pettibon Technique. Thompson Technique,

Activator Technique, Diversified Technique, and multiple different extremity techniques. The

instruments that I commonly use are the Integrator instrument and Arthrostim instrument. I

am also constantly learning new approaches and techniques to deliver better care.

I use many different techniques and approaches to help people feel better and regain health. I

can do instrument assisted adjustments, where there is no “cracking” or “popping”. I also may

choose not to do adjustments, and focus on other therapies, such as massage therapy, physical

therapy, decompression traction, and class IV laser therapy. Getting out of pain and improving

health is the primary focus and goal. How we get there can be different for different patients.

The number of sessions needed is dependent on the severity of the condition and the goals of

the patient. Some patients only want pain relief, so I will recommend treatment until the pain

is resolved, or the patient is satisfied with how they feel. This could be anywhere between 2 –

8, possibly more. If the patient wants to obtain more of a correction of the underlying cause to

help prevent the condition from recurring, then treatment beyond just pain relief is usually

needed. This also will typically include more strengthening in the office and at home with

exercises.

Many patients want to experience long-term benefits and improved health

outcomes, so they may opt for wellness care. My experience and research have shown that

regular wellness care can result in better overall health, including: less stress, stronger

immunity, decreased hypertension, improved digestion, better recovery from injuries, and

improved sleep. A common wellness schedule could be an adjustment every 2-3 weeks,

possibly every 4 weeks, and continuing to do regular stretches and exercises for the spine,

posture, and core. I teach a “spinal hygiene” program that can accomplish this.

In most cases, there should be no pain from an adjustment. Some soreness can occur due to a

few reasons.

• One goal of the adjustment is to restore normal movement to the joint. If the joint has

not been moving properly and now has improved movement, there will be a period of

adaptation in the surrounding muscles, tendons, and ligaments. This can occasionally

involve some temporary mild soreness.

• When joints are misaligned (subluxated), the surrounding muscles will tighten up to

protect the joint. This tightening could be a muscle spasm. Muscle spasms typically

respond very positively and quickly to an adjustment, meaning they relax, although

occasionally severe ones may stay tight for longer and remain sore.

• Chronically painful joints can impair movement which may cause deconditioning of

muscles. When those muscles and joints begin to move better with adjustments,

occasionally mild soreness can result.

• Adjustments can help reduce stress in the nervous system (decrease sympathetic

output), improve blood and lymphatic circulation, decrease stress hormones, and

decrease stress and tension in the muscles. All these effects can result in improved

detoxification. Most detoxification happens through the liver, kidneys, and digestive

tract. The skin, lymphatic system, and lungs are also involved. Detoxification can

sometimes result in feeling soreness.

• Controlled inflammation is a natural part of the healing process. Occasionally

adjustments can cause mild inflammatory responses in the healing process. This is

usually very minimal and short lived, although could potentially cause minimal soreness.

If you do experience soreness after an adjustment, that is a normal response. The best way to

alleviate soreness is to stay hydrated, use heat, gentle stretching and movement. Often, I will

also recommend natural anti-inflammatories such as curcumin, ginger, resveratrol, magnesium,

and omega 3 oils (fish oils).

I have approaches and techniques to treat all types of chronic pain, including neck pain, arm

pain, back pain, sciatica, disc problems, extremity pain (hips, knees, ankles, feet, shoulders,

elbows, wrists, and hands), and headaches. I also treat arthritis, fibromyalgia, degenerative disc

disease, migraine headaches, carpal tunnel syndrome, TMJ problems, plantar fasciitis, post-

surgical pain syndromes, and myofascial pain syndrome. Because of my training in functional

medicine and nutrition, I have also seen a lot of success with treating chronic digestive

problems and sleep problems.

Chronic pain may need a different strategy than treating acute pain. With acute pain, the pain

is typically from a recent injury or something that is being irritated now. Injury or irritation

happens, the nerves sense it and send information to the brain, and then the brain responds by

making you withdrawal or modify what you are doing or rest. Improvement in symptoms

usually is experienced relatively quickly, then treatment will continue to focus on addressing

and improving the underlying causes.

With chronic pain, the pain has been there a long time and nervous system has been re-wired

to not only continue feeling the pain, but also it gets better and more efficient at feeling the

pain. The original cause of the pain may no longer be there, although the brain and nervous

system feel the pain as if it is still there. My experience has been that chronic pain patients

often experience improvement in function and mobility first, then over time the pain will get

better.

I use nutritional approaches and lifestyle modification for treating acute and chronic pain,

however with treating chronic pain, using approaches that support reduction of inflammation,

regeneration of tissues, improvement in healing, and modification of daily behaviors and

movement patterns may be even more important.

Yes, we work with most insurance plans. Currently we are in network providers for Medicare,

the VA (Department of Veterans Affairs), Florida Blue, Cigna, United Healthcare, UMR, Golden

Rule, Humana, BCBS, and all auto insurance. We always verify the insurance benefits and

details and let you know what is and is not covered.

Yes we accept HAS and FSA cards for payment.

The type of surgery and location of the surgery will ultimately determine if you can be adjusted.

We do manual (by hand) adjustments and instrument assisted adjustments. Instrument

assisted adjustments are generally safe for most conditions and areas. We have taken care of

many patients that have had surgeries or are post-surgical. It is specific to each case as every

patient has different issues and needs. In the event an adjustment can not be used as

treatment in a certain area, then the treatment plan will have other therapies and modalities to

provide pain relief and get results.

Yes, chiropractic care is safe during pregnancy. Chiropractic care is an excellent choice during

pregnancy for pain relief, stress relief, help with sleep and helping the body function better

through the pregnancy. We have cared for many pregnant mothers who have received

excellent results, including an easier pregnancy and easier birth. We have a pregnancy pillow

that allows the pregnant mother to lay face down, comfortably, during an adjustment.

We also use the Webster technique to help if there are fetal positioning issues. The Webster

technique is very effective for helping to restore proper balance and function to the pelvis in

the situation of fetal positioning issues and intrauterine constraint. This can help with babies in

a breech position.

In most cases, you will not need a referral from your medical doctor. In the rase situation that

you do need a referral from your medical doctor; we will help you with that process.

For veterans receiving treatment covered by the VA, we do need a referral from your primary

doctor at the VA. We will also help you with that process.

Our goal is to provide you with pain relief quickly, so we typically will treat the first visit, so you

can walk out feeling better. We do take our time to thoroughly determine exactly what the

problem is and how best to treat it, so occasionally there are situations where we may choose

to wait to treat until the examination results are discussed with another provider, such as a

radiologist or until we receive the results of other testing or imaging, such as an MRI.

Our goal is to schedule you as soon as possible. If you are in severe pain or have been involved

in an accident, we will move the schedule around to make sure you can be seen that day.

Our recommendations are based on what you need and what you want. If your only goal is

quick pain relief, then we will provide that and ask you to come in when you are in pain. Most

patients choose to receive more treatment to address the underlying causes and strengthen

the involved areas, so it does not come back or continue to create pain and disability. We also

will recommend wellness care for patients, because we strongly believe that maintaining and

optimizing health is much easier and more cost effective than trying to fix a problem or restore

health once it is gone or lacking. That is always your decision, and we will always give you

excellent care with any decision that you make. We see our job as giving you our honest,

direct and best recommendation for getting the best results. Your job is to decide what you

want.