Chiropractic healing is a kind of healing that taps the body’s ‘inner intelligence’ that innate sense of balance the body has when a person is physically, emotionally and mentally healthy. A healing art that was developed in the United States , chiropractic healing operates on the belief that the body can heal itself if there is an uninterrupted flow of energy or nerve impulses from the brain to the rest of the body.
It’s interesting to note that chiropractic healing came to the fore when David Palmer was able to cure deafness by manipulating a misaligned vertebra. This miraculous healing led more and more researches into the field of chiropractic healing. Modern chiropractors trace the beginnings of this art of healing to Hippocrates, who said, “Get knowledge of the spine, this is the requisite for many diseases”.
Chiropractors work primarily with the joints that lie along the spinal column. They believe that when the vertebrae and adjoining bones are misaligned in relation to the joints, the flow of impulses from the nerve is impeded or blocked. This in turn drains the body of its ability to stay healthy. What chiropractic healing does is quite evident from the name itself; ‘cheir’ means “hand” and ‘practikos’ means “done by” – healing manipulations that seek to correctly align the bones of the vertebra to restore total health. Chiropractic philosophy grew out of a ‘wholism’ which considers the body to be a single unified organ.
During therapy, a patient may hear his joints crack however the sessions are pain-free and quite refreshing too. This ‘crack’ is actually a vacuum-created nitrogen bubble that is bursting within the joint. The actual manipulations are often very gentle, and make use of a technique called ‘non-force’. Depending upon the nature of the problem and its longevity, multiple sessions may be needed. These techniques have been found to be very effective not only in restoring strength to the spine and vertebra, but also in restoring good health so that there is vigorous flow of energy throughout the body.
Chiropractic healing is an effective treatment for muscle, joint and bone problems. It is very effective when used to treat conditions such as headaches and carpal tunnel syndrome. It is the single most effective treatment for lower back pain. In fact, it has been so effective that it is the third largest health care profession after medicine and dentistry. Of the 36+ million Americans visiting chiropractors every year, 70% are treated for back pain, 20% for head and neck disorders and the rest are treated for other disorders. Chiropractic healing even soothes colicky babies, thereby giving harassed mothers a well-deserved break.
Chiropractic healing may also help people who are partially paralyzed. Therapy is not contained to the paralyzed parts of the body. Many confined individuals suffer from excessive shoulder and arm related injuries that come from the stress of using a wheelchair. Strengthening exercises help to prevent future injuries and harden the areas that are prone to over-use.
While one branch of Chiropractic healing keeps itself strictly within the parameters of hand-manipulation, another branch called Osteopathy actively uses heat, massage, nutrition and other therapies to achieve the same results. Chiropractic healing coaxes the body to heal itself, thus it is a great adjunct to traditional medicine.
