Are you dealing with joint pain, muscle tension, stress, or just low energy levels? Maybe you’ve tried things like stretching and heat for your pain but aren’t seeing results? You might benefit from chiropractic adjustments!
As one of the most popular chiropractic treatments for managing joint pain and improving your quality of life, chiropractic adjustments come with a ton of benefits for people of all ages. From improving pain to managing stress, your chiropractor can provide adjustments to meet your specific needs and get you back to doing what you love.
Keep reading to learn about what a chiropractic adjustment is, what the top 5 benefits of regular adjustments are, and whether or not you need to hear a “pop” during your adjustment.
Let’s get started!
What Are Chiropractic Adjustments?
In their most basic form, chiropractic adjustments are a special set of chiropractic treatment techniques that change or “adjust” the position of your bones to provide relief from common bone and joint symptoms, like pain and stiffness.
While there are many different types of adjustments, they all focus on the same goal, which is to help create movement in your joints that’s needed to improve joint function and health. In most cases, this involves using a quick motion to overcome normal joint restrictions - often called a “thrust” technique.
Chiropractic care techniques such as adjustments are most commonly performed for neck and back pain, but can be used all throughout the body to reap the benefits of these techniques and improve joint health.
The Top 5 Benefits of Chiropractic Adjustments
The range of benefits from chiropractic adjustments is vast, and it can vary from person to person. From curing sciatica to improving immune system function, the possibilities are nearly endless.
Although it can be hard to pick just a few benefits of chiropractic adjustments, here are five of the most important benefits you can expect with your adjustment.
Improved Pain
No matter who you are, you’ve probably experienced joint pain at some point in your life. To make matters worse, it’s normal to have joint pain that can't be fixed with common options like taking medication, using heating pads, or stretching.
When you have chiropractic treatment done, you can enjoy the benefits of pain relief from your adjustment in three ways:
- Mechanical: During an adjustment, the change in position of your bones can relieve pressure on your joints, leading to pain relief.
- Nerves: When your joint is adjusted, the way your nerves send pain signals to your brain changes slightly, also leading to pain relief.
- Endorphins: Immediately after an adjustment, your body releases multiple “feel-good chemicals” that help bring down pain levels and improve relaxation.In most cases, all of these pain relieving mechanisms are active following a chiropractic adjustment, so you can walk out of your appointment feeling better than when you walked in.
Improved Alignment
The bones and joints in your body are built to work together day after day, no matter what life throws at them. Unfortunately, over time your bones can slightly shift out of their ideal position and start to cause problems with movement, leading to joint pain and stiffness that holds you back from your favorite activities.
With regular chiropractic care, and in some cases instantly after an adjustment, the position of your bones can be restored so that your joints are in optimal alignment again. This means less pain and stiffness in your joints, more comfort during movement, and the confidence you need to perform your best.
Improved Mood
It’s no secret that people love their chiropractors, but why? One of the main reasons for this is that chiropractic adjustments can actually improve your overall mood and help you manage stress in your life.
The biggest reason for this is a combination of pain relief and the “feel-good chemicals” that are released by your body during a chiropractic adjustment. Not only do these natural chemicals make your body feel good, they also help relax your body (which brings down stress levels) and help you feel happier.
Another reason adjustments can improve your mood is because when you’re getting help for your joint pain and stiffness, and being treated by a team of experts who care about your needs, you can enjoy a more positive outlook on life that naturally leads to an improved mood.
Better Movement
When the alignment of your joints is compromised, they don’t move as efficiently and become irritated faster than with normal alignment. Although it may sound harmless, this is ultimately what leads to joint pain and stiffness for many people.
After a chiropractic adjustment, the improved alignment of your joints improves the efficiency and smoothness of motion, which means less wear and tear on joints during your everyday life. This is a major factor for improving long-term joint health and reducing the risk of common joint conditions like osteoarthritis.
Easier Exercise
When joint pain and stiffness are holding you back, it’s normal to feel unable to do the exercises that might actually help you feel better. This can lead to a cycle of feeling bad, missing out on physical activity and exercise, and then feeling worse.
Luckily, chiropractic adjustments help relieve the joint pain and stiffness that can hold you back very quickly! This means that with regular adjustments, you can perform the exercise that you need to rehabilitate injuries or build up your strength more comfortably.
Even better, chiropractic adjustments can help you perform exercise better than before by improving your range of motion and alignment, which can lead to more improvements that ultimately help you perform at the highest level possible.
Do Joints Need to Pop for Chiropractic Adjustments to Work?
Most of us are very familiar with the “pop” that happens during chiropractic adjustments. Not only is this a very satisfying sound to hear, but many people also associate this sound with a successful adjustment - is this true?
As it turns out, the “pop” that you hear during your adjustment can be a good sign of success, but it’s not the only measure of success. In fact, there are many techniques your chiropractor may use that can improve your pain and alignment without an audible popping noise.
Just like any treatment, what really matters is that you get the results that you want and feel better in the process. To find out what adjustments techniques are best for you, make sure to talk to your chiropractor and explore your different treatment options.
Key Takeaways
All things considered, chiropractic adjustments can be an essential part of your treatment plan with a wide range of potential benefits. Here are a few key things to remember from this article:
- Chiropractic adjustments involve changing the position of bones to improve joint health, and can be performed in many different ways throughout the body.
- Pain improvement is often the largest benefit of chiropractic adjustments, and can be improved with lifestyle changes.
- Alignment is often improved with regular chiropractic adjustment, which can further improve pain and physical function.
- Improvements in pain and alignment can often lead to improved mood and a better stress tolerance.
- With improved alignment, chiropractic adjustments allow for easier movement with fewer restrictions, which makes exercise easier and can further enhance your recovery.
- Although the “pop” is often very satisfying, it’s not always required to get the benefits of your chiropractic adjustment.
Don't let discomfort dictate your days any longer, explore your chiropractic adjustment options with Strive2Move and schedule a discovery appointment today.
