So you've had your first treatment at Peak Performance Chiropractic?
You may be mildly sore! It is very common to have some degree of soreness in the muscles or joints of the area treated. This is normal and indicates changes have been made to the area and the body is reacting to them. Much like when you work out or do a new exercise for the first time, the body changes and reacts to the new stimulation. This also indicates that a new cascade of healing chemicals is entering the area, which may serve to get the problem or injury to finally heal correctly. This soreness will feel different than the actual pain you are experiencing in the injured area, and it usually will go away the 2nd day after treatment, when you will notice the pain is actually less than before your 1st visit!
Use ice(15min on 1 hr off) if your doctor has recommended it or if you are sore after treatment, or anytime for that matter when there is pain and/or swelling in a region. Ice serves to flush out the area of excess inflammation which can cause more pain and slow healing.(Sounds like this contradicts what was stated above about healing chemicals? Well inflammation can be good when it brings healing white blood cells, and tissue mending chemicals to the area, but when there is too much inflammation, this can cause adverse effects like severe pain and blocking off the blood supply to the area because of TOO much swelling.) There could be times when Dr. Karnitsky says its ok to use heat. These times are rare, and usually only in circumstances where is arthritis as the primary culprit. He may tell you to use heat, only followed by ice directly after. If you are not sure, then use ice. As long as you dont over cool the area, you cannot hurt it. However, using too much heat or using it improperly can actually dilate the blood vessels and send more inflammation back to the area. As a side note, do not use ice directly on the skin, as you can damage the skin tisse by freezing it. Use a towel under a ziploc bag filled with ice and water, or gel pack, or even do an ice massage(freeze water in a styrofoam cup, the peel away the lower half of the cup to have a hand-held ice massager). Do not forget to keep the ice moving over the skin so you do not freeze it!
Do not try to self manipulate the spine. This may have been addressed by Dr. Karnitsky, but self manipulation may actual de-stabilize areas that are already too loose, by overstretching them time and time again. This can complicate your injury/complaint and slow recovery or cause the problem to become chronic. or even set you up for re-injury or new problems. We know it can become a habit and temporarily feel good, but unless you have a trained chiropractor adjust the CORRECT spinal level at the CORRECT angle, all you are doing is harm
Listen to your symptoms. If Dr. Karnitsky mentioned the word SPASM to you, that means your body is in a self-defense type mode, trying to tighten or stiffen the area in order to protect it or prevent you from moving too much while it is trying to heal. Your brain is trying to tell you, or actually FORCE you, to REST. Pain and spasm is how you brain forces you to allow healing of an injury. If you didnt experience these feelings, you may go back to your usual activities and injure the area more. This doesn't mean lay on the couch all day(you may tighten up more), but it DOES mean do not lift anything or strain the area while you feel this way. It is best to move around, walk, or continually change positions. If Dr. Karnitsky has instructed you to do some light stretches or pain relieving exercises, you may do those. The body will usually have a position or activity that relieves the symptoms a bit. Do these movements, or stay in these positions more, and avoid the positions or activities that increase the symptoms. Its simple!Listen to what you brain is trying to tell you!
Use ice(15min on 1 hr off) if your doctor has recommended it or if you are sore after treatment, or anytime for that matter when there is pain and/or swelling in a region. Ice serves to flush out the area of excess inflammation which can cause more pain and slow healing.(Sounds like this contradicts what was stated above about healing chemicals? Well inflammation can be good when it brings healing white blood cells, and tissue mending chemicals to the area, but when there is too much inflammation, this can cause adverse effects like severe pain and blocking off the blood supply to the area because of TOO much swelling.) There could be times when Dr. Karnitsky says its ok to use heat. These times are rare, and usually only in circumstances where is arthritis as the primary culprit. He may tell you to use heat, only followed by ice directly after. If you are not sure, then use ice. As long as you dont over cool the area, you cannot hurt it. However, using too much heat or using it improperly can actually dilate the blood vessels and send more inflammation back to the area. As a side note, do not use ice directly on the skin, as you can damage the skin tisse by freezing it. Use a towel under a ziploc bag filled with ice and water, or gel pack, or even do an ice massage(freeze water in a styrofoam cup, the peel away the lower half of the cup to have a hand-held ice massager). Do not forget to keep the ice moving over the skin so you do not freeze it!
Do not try to self manipulate the spine. This may have been addressed by Dr. Karnitsky, but self manipulation may actual de-stabilize areas that are already too loose, by overstretching them time and time again. This can complicate your injury/complaint and slow recovery or cause the problem to become chronic. or even set you up for re-injury or new problems. We know it can become a habit and temporarily feel good, but unless you have a trained chiropractor adjust the CORRECT spinal level at the CORRECT angle, all you are doing is harm
Listen to your symptoms. If Dr. Karnitsky mentioned the word SPASM to you, that means your body is in a self-defense type mode, trying to tighten or stiffen the area in order to protect it or prevent you from moving too much while it is trying to heal. Your brain is trying to tell you, or actually FORCE you, to REST. Pain and spasm is how you brain forces you to allow healing of an injury. If you didnt experience these feelings, you may go back to your usual activities and injure the area more. This doesn't mean lay on the couch all day(you may tighten up more), but it DOES mean do not lift anything or strain the area while you feel this way. It is best to move around, walk, or continually change positions. If Dr. Karnitsky has instructed you to do some light stretches or pain relieving exercises, you may do those. The body will usually have a position or activity that relieves the symptoms a bit. Do these movements, or stay in these positions more, and avoid the positions or activities that increase the symptoms. Its simple!Listen to what you brain is trying to tell you!
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Follow your care plan! Dr. Karnitsky probably instructed you to return to the office for the 2nd treatment soon after. Please return as scheduled, as the second visit is even more important than the first. This is when we can evaluate how you responded to the first treatment and know how to follow it up. The body will usually let us know how to treat it, and if you fail to return soon, it will be more difficult to figure out a proper course of care. Don't wait too long to come back in for the 2nd visit! After a 3-4 days the body may adjust back to its pre-treatment state, and it will be like starting over from the beginning. The treatments are cumulative, and the results build exponentially until the body is in a stable position. When it is finally stable, then it will "hold" the treatment longer, until you are coming in only for maintenance or for follow-ups. This is much like taking too much time off from exercising. You lose momentum and lose muscle. |