Questions Many People Ask About Spinal Decompression Treatment

Statistics show that 8 out of every 10 people will eventually succumb to the adverse effects of gravity and suffer from back pains. Back pain is a symptom of herniated disc syndrome, a disorder which is caused when two vertebrae put too much pressure on the tissue between them. In turn, this is caused by bad posture, age, genetic factors and poor eating habits. To correct this problem there are two approaches: surgery and spinal decompression treatment.

Spinal decompression treatments vary and they are growing in popularity, due to the fact that it’s a cheaper, non-invasive alternative to surgery. Here are some of the questions people ask about this treatment. 

How long does it take to see results?

This depends on many factors. However, a lot of patients report pain reduction after only a few sessions. More significant results are observed after 2 weeks of treatment.

Do I qualify for decompression spinal treatment?

Though spinal decompression is perfect for people who suffer from herniated disc syndrome or chronic back pain, not everyone is entitled to it. Before you seek this form of treatment, it’s important that you consult your physician or chiropractor first. Generally, these are the people who are excluded from the treatment:

• Pregnant women
• Those who suffer from severe osteoporosis or scoliosis
• Those who suffer from pelvic or abdominal cancer
• Those who have recently suffered from bone fractures, especially those involving the spine
• Patients below 18 years old

Can I go through spinal decompression treatment even after I’ve had surgery?

Definitely. As a matter of fact, people who have undergone failed spinal surgery have found success with spinal decompression. Having had spinal surgery doesn’t disqualify you from decompress spine treatment.
What is the different between spinal decompression and spinal traction?

Spinal traction is used to treat conditions that are caused by herniated disc disorder and degeneration. It does not address the actual source of the problem. Spinal decompression, on other hand, is a process which involves creating space or negative vacuum inside the disc itself.

This “fixes” the disc itself. It literally pulls itself back into position and restoring its ability to absorb nutrients and receive blood. With this treatment, it is the disc’s natural fibroblastic response that heals and rehydrates itself.

Traction, through the use of inversion tables and other devices, is also effective against herniated discs but spinal decompression treatment has been observed to be more successful in delivering permanent positive results.

If you are suffering form chronic lower back pain or sciatica due to a disc herniation or a bulge, contact our office for a complementary spinal decompression evaluation by calling 604-984-4601 or visit us at www.vanspinaldecompression.com

Pain Trigger: Couch Potato Syndrome

Even down time can be a source of aches and pains. Do you often lie across the couch with your head turned toward the television? You’re setting yourself up for a sore neck – especially if you fall asleep in that position.

Solution: Maintain good posture even when you’re relaxing. Sit up straight on your couch by sitting all the way back on the couch and make sure your TV is not positioned too high.

Back to School Backpack Safety tips
 
As students are getting ready to head back to school in just a few weeks, it’s important for parents to realize the importance of backpack safety. Low quality backpacks and/or improper backpack techniques can cause serious short-term and potentially long-term back and spinal problems.

For this reason, the Canadian Chiropractic Association has generated a backpack safety checklist for parents:

1.  Is the backpack the correct size for your child – The backpack should never be wider or longer than your child’s torso, and the pack should not hang more than 4 inches below the waistline. A backpack that hangs too low increases the weight on the shoulders, causing your child to lean forward when walking. Also, a bigger bag is not necessarily better. The more room there is in a backpack, the more your child will carry and the heavier the backpack will be.

2.  Does the backpack have two wide, padded shoulder straps – Non-padded straps are uncomfortable and can dig into your childís shoulders. Also, two shoulder straps are better than one. Lugging a heavy backpack by one strap can cause a disproportionate shift of weight to one side, leading to neck and muscle spasms, as well as low-back pain.

3.  Are the shoulder straps adjustable – The shoulder straps should be adjustable so the backpack can be fitted to your child’s body. Straps that are too loose can cause the backpack to dangle uncomfortably and cause spinal misalignment and pain.

4.  Does the backpack have a padded back – A padded back not only provides increased comfort, but also protects your child from being poked by sharp edges on school supplies (pencils, rulers, notebooks, etc.) inside the pack.

5.  Is there a waist belt – Many backpacks have a waist belt that can be snugly buckled around the childís waist. These belts can distribute the weight of a heavy load from the back and shoulders to the hips and torso.

6.  Does the pack have several compartments – A backpack with individualized compartments helps position the contents most effectively. Make sure that pointy or bulky objects are packed away from the area that will rest on your child’s back, and try to place the heaviest items closet to the body.

We encourage parents to contact our office should their child or teen report any discomfort, especially one related to backpack use. Early treatment and prevention is key.  You can reach us at 604-990-6676 or www.grandechiro.com

Understanding why you are feeling pain

Famous Southern author William Faulkner once said, “Given the choice between the experience of pain and nothing, I would choose pain.”

Although pain is a part of life, few of us would choose it. In fact, most of us do whatever we can to be as pain-free as possible. Although “No pain, no gain!” was a mantra in the 1980s, it doesn’t seem to be now.

Quite often I hear people say that they don’t exercise (or that they stopped) because “It hurts!” When they have pain from activity, they believe exercise is actually making things worse and they quit. Ironically, many studies show that movement is one of the most effective methods to reduce, eliminate, and manage pain. The evidence is clear that exercise IS medicine and that, in fact, the lack of movement, activity, and exercise is the cause of many of the aches and pains that people have.

The key is knowing what to do — and what not to do. The right kind or exercise can make you feel better — and the wrong kind can make you worse.  We need to start with a basic understanding of physical pain. With some minor overlap, physical pain can grouped into some basic types.

Acute Pain is new pain and it typically results from an injury. Pain is our body’s messenger. It gets our attention so we take care of the problem. Acute pain is part of the natural healing process that the body goes through — much as it does when we cut a finger and bleed. When the bleeding stops, the blood clots, then a scab is formed over the cut. Underneath the scab, scaring and new tissue are laid down. (The same healing process occurs on the inside.) When you take care of a cut correctly, it heals quickly and with minimal long-term scaring. If you don’t care for the cut properly, it takes longer to heal and you may end up with a ugly mark.

Chemical Pain is created as a part of the inflammation process that comes with injury. Again, it’s part of the healing process. Along with bleeding on the inside, the body releases chemicals that irritate the surrounding structures and receptors in surrounding tissues. Bleeding and swelling make it worse — adding a mechanical element to chemical pain. This is the kind of pain that responds to certain medications designed to control this reaction within the body. Chemical pain is evident when a pain is acute — and this type of pain is less responsive to treatment as it becomes more chronic in nature.

Mechanical Pain is response pain. Bend your finger back, it hurts. Stub your toe and it hurts, too. When we put pressure against something, the receptors in the skin and other structures transmit the information back to brain as pain. It’s a protective response that’s critical to our survival. Otherwise, we would go around bending our fingers back and stubbing our toes and without being aware of it — and, pretty soon, our fingers and toes wouldn’t work very well! The tricky part of mechanical pain is that “pressure” is always there. Gravity is a constant force pushing down on us and all our muscles and joints in our postures and positions at rest, work, and play. Most physical pain is mechanical in nature.

Chronic Pain is old pain that’s been around for at least three months. Quite often, chronic pain is related to an event or to acute pain that did not heal completely. Chronic pain can also develop over time when an underlying issue is not addressed. Once pain is chronic, it may never go away completely. Here’s why. The longer a pain persists, the more “hard wired” into the nervous system it becomes. This communication link is so effective that even when the original physical problem has been resolved, the pain pathways continue to transmit pain signals they had been. In our practice, the clients that are the hardest to help are those who have let something linger too long before trying to address the problem. Often, we are still able to help them, but not as quickly and easily as if they’d received proper attention when the initial systems occurred.


Bottom line. There are several very different types of pain — and each one an important messenger. Did you know that research indicates that “knowledge” or education is one of the most effective treatments we have in health care? Studies show that patients feel better and get better — just knowing what the problem is and having someone to take the time to explain it to them.

If you or someone you know suffers from chronic low back pain or sciatica, contact our office for a complementary assessment of their condition to see if they qualify as a candidate for the spinal decompression Therapy. Contact us at 604-984-4601 or visit www.vanspinaldecompression.com