How to tell if your chiropractor is good
Trying to decide whether to stick with your chiropractor, or try someone new? What makes a good chiropractor for some people is not what makes a chiropractor good for another, but here are some things to consider.
- Results. Most people don’t feel much after one chiropractic session, but after six sessions or so most people should be noticing the benefits. There are exceptions to this (very long term problems, significant degeneration, spinal deformities, or congenital anomalies etc.)
- Does the treatment hurt, or feel too forceful? When a chiropractor adjusts you, it may feel a little squishy, or stretchy, sometimes even a little uncomfortable, but if it actually hurts, you are at risk of irritating things. If it feels sore during or after a session, tell your chiropractor and they should adjust the treatment. Does your chiropractor ask for feedback on how the treatment feels? Ask if you are comfortable with the techniques? A good chiropractor will check in with you and ask how the treatment feels and alter his/her treatment accordingly. If they don’t, tell them, and if they don’t change the techniques to suit you better, it’s time to look for a new chiropractor.
- Does the chiropractic office feel like a conveyor belt in a factory? Chiropractic does not necessarily need to take a lot of time, but if it feels impersonal, rushed, you don’t feel like the chiropractor has the time for anything new that crops up, you may not be in the right office.
- Did the chiropractor explain what they found in your spine and explain it in a way that makes common sense? Does the treatment seem rational, or just downright weird?
- Is the only option, on beginning in care with a chiropractor, to sign up for the same 3, 6, or 12 month package of care as every other client, on the first day? While a prepaid packages can offer cheaper sessions overall, the same package for every client makes little rational sense. Some people need a lot of work (especially if the problem has been there for years, or if there are changes in the shape of the vertebrae due to degeneration, congenital anomalies etc) but others respond more quickly.
- Do they seem like they really care? In a way, we’re all transparent, we can usually see the real intent of people. Trust your intuition.
When NOT to visit a chiropractor
Stefan Becker
Chiropractor in Barcelona, Spain