The Natural Alternative to Prescription Painkillers

May 17, 2017

In less than two decades, the number of deaths in the U.S. caused by opioid drug abuse has increased four-fold, whether it be the result of addiction to heroin or black market prescription drugs.  Even at the height of the crack epidemic in the 1980s, deaths were nowhere near the massive number taking place today. 

The solution to this epidemic is three-fold. First, doctors and the medical community need to be much more cognizant of the high potential for addiction when it comes to prescribing opioid painkillers (oxycontin, hydrocodone, etc.), and thus write fewer prescriptions for these medications.  Second, awareness must be raised among the general population regarding alternative ways to treat pain; and third, these alternative pain treatment methods need to be made accessible to patients. 

Patients’ primary concern is pain treatment.  No one wants to be in pain.  Low back pain is the number one complaint that my patients present. Low back pain results in the most lost work hours each year in the U.S.; low back pain and injury are the number one reason that employees are forced to retire or claim disability.  So what’s an alternative to prescription drugs for people who suffer from chronic or acute low back pain?  Chiropractic adjustments are the only alternative health care treatment clinically proven to help relieve low back and other types of pain.  Numerous studies reveal that exercise alone doesn’t cut it for pain relief, nor does physical therapy alone.  But chiropractic adjustments have shown significant success in pain relief. 

Low back pain is a difficult problem to treat, yet chiropractic has been proven effective. And if chiropractic can help with low back pain, it more than likely can help with any type of musculoskeletal problem (meaning problems with muscles, joints and soft tissue).

If you are injured, I recommend seeking chiropractic treatment immediately.  Often, patients wait a week, two weeks, or longer to seek treatment, under the mistaken impression that they should wait awhile after the injury takes place, or that adjustments will be easier/more effective if they hold off rather than seek treatment right away.  But chiropractic care should be your first line of defense and pain relief.

Sometimes pain seems to simply appear out of nowhere, without any known major injury or cause.  But the reality is that this “unexplained” pain is likely the result of an old or forgotten injury, or of a repetitive movement done at work (such as sitting all day at a computer using improper form) or during leisure activities (like jogging or playing golf).  Sometimes the cause is simply poor posture and poor movement habits.  These pains respond remarkably well to chiropractic; chiropractic is effective at treating not only new injuries, but also gradual-onset or seemingly inexplicable pains. 

If you’ve never received chiropractic care, what can you expect at your first visit?  If you’ve never called to set up a chiropractic appointment, you might wonder what you should say.  Simply call Reinecke Chiropractic, and Kristy will get you scheduled.  When you arrive, you’ll fill out some paperwork, and then we’ll assess the problem you have.  We might take x-rays, and once we’ve determined the cause of your pain, we’ll explain the source and a plan for treatment.  We use a team approach at Reinecke Chiropractic, and will work together to diagnose, explain and treat your pain/discomfort. 

If you’re taking pain medication, you may be concerned about side effects or the risk of dependence/addiction.  Because chiropractic works with the body, it enables your body’s own natural ability to heal, which may be inhibited by a subluxation (which occurs when the bones of the spine are restricting nerve flow).  Because chiropractic treats each patient individually and allows each body to perform its own unique healing process, there are no side effects like there are with drugs.  You should feel relief within two weeks of beginning chiropractic care, and if not, we’ll re-evaluate your situation. Quite often, our patients feel better after the first or second visit, and they know they’ve come to the right place. 

People often live with spinal or musculoskeletal problems unnecessarily and just “get through” the pain on a day-to-day basis.  But you don’t have to live with pain!  Chiropractic can determine the source of the problem and then correct it naturally. 

Finally, you don’t need to wait until you’re in pain to seek chiropractic care; people of all ages benefit from chiropractic, from infancy on.   We treat children for problems ranging from earaches to colic, teenagers who are involved in sports, and adults experiencing all types of discomfort.  People have busy lives, and tend to put off chiropractic treatment until pain or discomfort become unbearable.  It’s somewhat ironic: we take our pets to the vet, we have our cars serviced – and yet we neglect our own bodies!  We need to do a better job of taking care of ourselves.  Regular chiropractic care can prevent problems and pain from developing in the first place.  It’s never too soon to begin chiropractic care - now is the time to start.