Frequently Asked Questions

There are many different types of doctors, for example, Dentists, Podiatrists, Osteopaths, Medical doctors. A chiropractor is a licensed practitioner. Chiropractors complete undergraduate studies which include all the necessary pre-requisite courses such as general chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, biology and typically enter professional Chiropractic school to obtain a four-year Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree, which is considered a professional or doctorate degree.

Chiropractic Physicians look at their patients symptoms and attempt to correct the cause of that symptom. Chiropractic care at Etheredge Chiropractic is a hands-on approach to healing the body which involves the Chiropractic adjustment, physiotherapies, exercise, and diet.

Chiropractic physicians analyze through various means including but limited to X-ay, MRI, Orthopedic and Neurological testing a assess a patients need for care. The Chiropractic adjustment is based on the treatment of misalignments within the structures of the musculoskeletal system, called subluxations. These subluxations of the vertebra that make up the spinal column can occur in the neck (cervical), mid back (thoracic), low back (lumbar-sacral-pelvic). If there is a Chiropractic subluxation at any of these levels that can affect the nerves, muscles, and organs.

A Chiropractor, uses a specific Chiropractic spinal adjustment-spinal manipulation-joint manipulation to correct a misalignment of a vertebra and restore that segment to proper spinal alignment. The Chiropractic adjustment can be done manually using their hands or a device or instrument.

Chiropractors treat mainly musculoskeletal injuries and imbalances that include neck pain, mid back pain, low back pain, sciatica and other injuries that radiate down the arms or legs, disc injuries, headaches, bursitis, tendonitis, knee pain, shoulder pain and much more!

Chiropractors under many plans are considered specialists which typically do not need a referral to receive treatment. Always check with your specific insurance plan for their referral requirements.

Chiropractic care is covered by many health insurance plans including Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance companies. You can check your specific plan for coverage details.

Every injury is different and every person's body responds differently to treatment for a variety of reasons (severity of injury, duration of pain, level of degeneration) for this reason your chiropractor will form a care plan specifically tailored to your injuries and needs. Rest assured that our goal is to get you back to doing the things you love pain-free as quickly as possible!

Chiropractic adjustments should not be painful. That being said, everyone has a different threshold for pain. For this reason, Chiropractors at Etheredge Chiropractic utilize a variety of adjustment techniques including traditional manual adjustments performed by hand as well as light force impulse and drop adjustments to tailor treatment to each patient's needs.

As with all medical treatment, there are risks associated with chiropractic care. The most common side effect is temporary soreness after the first few treatments.

As long as there are no medical contraindications, most people will benefit from chiropractic care. Chiropractic care at Etheredge Chiropractic is beneficial to those who suffer from many painful conditions, such as but not limited to:

• headache
• neck pain
• mid back pain
• low back pain
• radicular symptoms that shoot down the arms or legs.

Regular Chiropractic care, or maintenance care, serves to keep the spinal vertebra in proper alignment. This concept is familiar to most people as they have regular dental, vision, and medical Care.

Of course, we routinely treat pregnant women until their eighth month of term pregnancy. In fact, prominent local Obstetricians refer patients to our clinic. 

Yes, all Chiropractors in our office have received training in low force adjustments tailored to young children.

The only thing addictive about chiropractic care is how well patients feel after chiropractic care. Patients will routinely use their chiropractor as a primary source of information about their health as they are disheartened by the medical approach of pharmaceutical medications.

The “crack” that you hear during an adjustment is called cavitation. This is simply gasses escaping a joint as it is mobilized. The majority of spinal vertebrae have four limiting joints called “facet joints” located in the posterior part of the spine. These are normally the joints that are targeted with a traditional spinal adjustment. As your chiropractor moves the facet joint with enough force to cause cavitation it produces a small release of gas which causes a small pop. This is actually a positive outcome as the release of the joint causes better flexibility and function.

A chiropractic adjustment is a very specific treatment focused on mobilizing restricted spinal segments. When someone forcefully twists their neck or back it can lead to injury and hypermobility of joints that are normal while leaving the restricted joint segments fixated.

Absolutely, there is a reason that the majority of professional sports teams including all 32 teams in the NFL have a chiropractor on staff specifically to address injuries related to playing the games.

Posture is a very large component to Chiropractic evaluation and treatment. We always evaluate the patient’s posture. We start with posture photos of the patient and can immediately spot deficiencies in posture. Forward head posture is an increasing problem in the United States population and is in part caused by our continued use of electronic devices. Look around you and all you see is an iPhone with the head down.