When will I stop hurting?
Questions about pain are a daily thing in chiropractic offices, and honestly, are very difficult to answer. Pain manifests in everyone differently; numbness, tingling, radiating, sharp, dull, debilitating, headaches, hot, cold, cramping, weakness. There are A LOT of different ways that we can be uncomfortable. Some people have higher tolerance to pain than others, but no one, absolutely no one, wants to be in pain.
Almost all people who walk through the door at chiropractic offices are there because they have something that hurts, so the question always gets asked, “how long is this going to last?” It is a difficult question to answer, and most of the time, the answer is, “I don’t know.” No one wants to hear that their doctor doesn’t know how long they will be in pain, but it is the truth. Everybody is different, and everyone’s healing potential is different. The 18 year old athlete recovers much faster than the 75 year old obese arthritic grandmother. Disc bulges respond almost always the same while plantar fasciitis and tennis elbow never recover the way the text books would tell you. You adjust one person expecting that it will take weeks for them to feel better, and they come in on their next visit raving that they feel like a million bucks. Then the next person that you expect is going to do great takes triple the time to recover. Then there are the people that you know will never be fully out of pain because of how much permanent damage they have done to their body through injuries, trauma, and arthritic changes. These people you are trying to maximize whatever percentage of improvement their bodies are still capable of achieving.
Everyone is different, but the goal is always the same behind your adjustment. If we can open up the communication from your brain to your body and free up nervous system function, your body is going to start to heal. The amount of time that it takes to heal is often an unknown, but just like you, I want everyone to get better as fast as possible.
Doing your part as the patient makes a HUGE difference when it comes to recovery. Follow your visit frequency that your doctor recommends. Eat a clean, anti-inflammatory diet (decrease or eliminate grains/breads/pasta, dairy, and highly processed foods). Exercise 4-5 times per week (yoga, cardiovascular exercise, and weight training that is appropriate for your goals). Avoid sitting for long periods of time. Heat or ice to the area of complaint depending on what your doctor recommends. Get enough rest. All of these things are important for recovery from acute situations as well as keeping our bodies functioning how they were designed to.