What is a Chiropractor?
A Doctor of Chiropractic is a highly trained Primary Healthcare professional who uses manual techniques to assess and treat the whole body. People often associate Chiropractors with neck and/or back pain, however, Chiropractic provides significantly more than just a solution for pain.
What do I need to bring?
Please be prepared to provide your previous medical and surgical history. If you have them, please bring copies of any scan images or reports and a list of any current medication you are taking.
How many sessions will I need?
What should I wear to my first appointment?
During your initial assessment, we will ask you to undress for a physical examination. You will be offered a gown with velcro fastenings at the back. It is advisable to wear modest underwear or to bring a pair of shorts.
Do I have to be referred by my GP?
No. Chiropractors assess and treat without a GP referral. Some health insurers require a GP referral letter before they authorise cover of fees. Other simply require a call from the policy holder. Please do check if you are intending to have your Chiropractic treatment covered by your health insurance.
How do I make an appointment?
To find out more about the benefits of regular chiropractic treatment, watch our video and hear directly from other patients and how we have helped them!
Some Frequently Asked Questions
“A chiropractor is a physical doctor who provides body maintenance to humans aged 0 to 100+” Dr. Ben Bullard
A Doctor of Chiropractic is a highly trained primary healthcare professional who assesses the whole body; specialising in the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and management of conditions caused by issues with the bones, joints, muscles and nerves.
Chiropractors are particularly associated with correcting back and neck issues*, and indeed we do. However, we also manage and reduce symptoms of many other conditions.
*This is because we are joint specialists and there are 144 joints in the spine. This includes 24 vertebrae between the sacrum and the skull – each with 3 joints and 24 ribs each with 3 joints.
Chiropractors can help everyone! Did you know every CELL, TISSUE and ORGAN in the body is controlled by your central nervous system? Since your spine protects the busiest section of your nervous system wouldn’t it make sense to keep it properly aligned and free of obstruction with regular chiropractic care?
Chiropractic care can help manage, improve and treat many conditions, including but not limited to:
- Headaches
- Migranes
- Shoulder issues
- Knee pain
- Injury throughout the body
- Sciatica
- Pelvic disorders
- Pain in pregnancy
- Jaw problems
We pride ourselves on finding the root of your problems that are causing you pain and discomfort.
Chiropractic treatment keeps the nervous system free flowing and working to its best ability. Every single cell, organ and system in our bodies is controlled by our nervous system – from our circulation and breathing, to our immune system and our brains.
- Adjustments: Chiropractors help restore movement to joints that have been restricted for a number of reasons. When joint isn’t moving correctly, it affects the nerves surrounding it. Chiropractors use ‘adjustments’ that are nudges to certain joints in various positions that cause the nerves of those joints to be ‘reset’, like restarting your computer. The effect is that the nerve signals to the brain from these areas are invigorated and changed which in turn changes the signals from the brain to the muscles crossing that joint.
Dr Ben explains: “When a joint isn’t moving properly, the sensors in that joint are sending a foggy picture to the brain. Without a clear picture, the brain ‘fills in the gaps’ and causes muscles to tense resulting in aches and pains. Following on from this, the obstruction this causes also makes us tired and fatigued as our entire system becomes imbalanced. All sorts of issues can arise that may not even seem to be related, such as headaches, stress, irritability, low mood, regular colds and viruses…the list goes on.”
- Natural healing: Adjustments to the neck, spine and other joints in the body re-set the picture our brain receives. When the nerves are able to carry clear messages, the brain is able to see a full picture of what is happening in our bodies. It can then react accurately, restoring movement where needed, relaxing tense muscles and allowing the body to heal itself naturally.
- Optimal function: Essentially, Chiropractic treatment turns down the background noise and allows the information highway that is our nervous system to function without interruption. This in turn allows the entire body to function at its best, keeping you as pain free and healthy as possible. It could be likened to ‘lifting a fog’, or removing the parked cars from a busy street allowing the traffic to flow freely in both directions.
Sometimes joints can be restricted below a level you are aware of (subclinical). A joint could be restricted to protect it whilst it heals, due to a sprain for example. If we sprain an ankle we can limp on it to minimise damage, and the pain helps us to not use it. If we sprain a joint in the spine we cannot limp on it to protect it, so the body tenses or spasms the muscles over it to prevent movement of the joint whilst it swells up the area to heal it.
This can happen on a low level whereby we are not aware of it, or a severe level that can be debilitating. Either way the joint can return to normal movement afterwards but sometimes it can’t and instead can be a source of problems a long way in the future.
Ask us a Question
Feel free to ask any questions you may have over the phone, or send us your question via this form below. A member of our team will answer as soon as they can.