Chiropractic can be an effective treatment option for many types of musculoskeletal pain. Musculoskeletal pain means pain coming from a muscle, nerve, or joint problem. But not all pain is musculoskeletal and in the cases when it is not chiropractic would not be the best form of treatment. As a chiropractor, when a patient comes into my office this is typically the first question that must be answered: is this patient's problem something that I can help them with or should I be referring them to a different type of provider? In order to answer this question, we rely on our training, knowing what questions to ask and what tests to perform. But let's say you are someone who struggles with pain or problem and you're having trouble deciding what type of treatment you will seek. Are there things to look for that could make you more confident that chiropractic could help with your problem before you schedule your first appointment? Here are 4 such things.
1. Can you touch your pain? A great indicator that your pain is musculoskeletal in nature is whether you can affect it with touch. Muscles that are inflamed or strained can be swollen and sore to the touch.
Massage of the area may temporarily alleviate or reduce the pain that you feel. Alternatively, the area may be very tender and be worse with touch or pressure. In either case, the fact that your pain or problem is effected by touch is a strong indicator that it is musculoskeletal and could be improved with chiropractic. A chiropractic exam relies heavily on palpation (diagnostic touch), for just this reason. Pain that cannot be affected by touch could be originating from deeper in the body, such as within bones or organs.