Concussions are among the most common of the sports injuries people suffer. However, although concussions are most commonly linked to sports, concussions can result from other accidents, such as auto accidents or trip and fall cases. Even if you don’t play a high-impact sport like American football, you can still be at risk for a concussion. In the event that you do suffer one, should you see a chiropractor after a concussion? 

Chiropractors can help with many different types of sports injuries and issues resulting from auto accidents, after all. It stands to reason that seeing a chiropractor after a concussion would help, right? Here’s what you need to know about concussions and whether or not you should see a chiropractor after a concussion. 

What Is A Concussion?

A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury (TBI) resulting from a head injury that can manifest in a number of different symptoms and problems. Generally, concussions happen when there has been a blow to the head which violently shakes your brain and head. While concussions are generally considered “mild” brain injuries, it is still your brain that we’re talking about. Mild in regards to injury to your brain still means serious, hence why people who suffer concussions have to be watched so closely.

While not life-threatening, concussions can have serious consequences down the line. As such, it is absolutely vital that you see a doctor as soon as possible after sustaining a blow to the head. Concussions can be deceptive in that they may not show symptoms right away, leading the victim to believe that they are fine. 

In reality, they’ve suffered a trauma that affects their brain function, and can even spread down to the neck and the spine. Hence why there are people who will see a chiropractor after a concussion, after they have been properly examined by a medical doctor.

Symptoms Of Concussions

Concussions can range from mild to severe, with some symptoms showing up quickly while others may not manifest for weeks. There are many symptoms of concussions, some of which seeing a chiropractor after getting a concussion can help with. 

Some of the symptoms of concussions include:

• Headaches
• Confusion
• Dizziness
• Blurry vision
• Head pressure
• Sleep problems
• Anxiety
• Irritability
• Nausea and vomiting
• Slurring speech
• Memory loss
• Mood swings
• Personality changes
• Problems with smell and taste
• Difficulty concentrating
• Sensitivity to sound and light
• Depression
• Difficulties with smell and taste
• Ringing in the ears
• Difficulty forming verbal answers
• Inability to control fatigue
• And more

Treatment Options For Concussions

When you’ve suffered a blow to the head, your first order of business is to see a medical doctor. While there are several ways seeing a chiropractor after getting a concussion can be beneficial, when it comes to your brain, a medical doctor will be able to help diagnose you and come up with a treatment plan. This can include seeing a chiropractor after getting a concussion, especially if you’re suffering from neck and back pain. 

Unfortunately, there’s no cure for concussions as of yet. However, there are things that you can do to help your brain recover. Treatment options for concussions include:

• Rest, especially away from bright lights and noises
• Avoiding cognitively demanding activities, such as driving and work
• Medication, such as painkillers

Considering how dangerous concussions can be, it’s vital to do whatever you can to help your brain heal from the bruising it sustained after bumping against your skull. After you’ve sought out medical treatment, you may consider seeing a chiropractor after a concussion.

How Can A Chiropractor Help After A Concussion?

There’s a reason why people often see chiropractors after an auto accident or sports injury. There are many problems that can result from injuries throwing your spine out of alignment. You can see a chiropractor after a concussion in order to realign the bones which may have been misaligned during the event that caused your concussion. Since your central nervous system is in your spine, if your spine gets misaligned, this can affect the function and healing of your brain. Seeing a chiropractor after a concussion can help with alignment issues like this. Some of the ways chiropractors can help after a concussion include:

• Increase The Blood Flow To The Brain

Chiropractic adjustments are wonderful for improving blood flow. Blood flow is essential to help bruised parts of your body, such as your brain in a concussion, heal. When you see a chiropractor after a concussion, their adjustments will fix misalignments that may be impacting the blood flow to your brain.

• Speed Up The Healing Process

Your body is well equipped to heal itself, and seeing a chiropractor after a concussion enhances your body’s natural healing ability. When your spine is in alignment, it allows your body to function properly, which ensures it’s able to heal itself as best as possible. 

Should You See A Chiropractor After A Concussion?

While your first order of business after getting a concussion should always be to see a medical professional, seeing a chiropractor after a concussion can certainly aid in the healing process. Elite Chiropractic offers professional chiropractic care that will be able to fix any misalignments causing you pain or affecting your body’s natural healing ability. Contact us today to speed up your recovery and get back to health sooner.

Winter has come and with it, snow-capped mountains, icicles hanging off roofs, children pleading to go sledding, and hot chocolate becoming a coffee shop staple. It’s also brought with it increased risk of injury and stiffness, seasonal depression, and is begrudgingly renowned as ‘cold and flu season’. Winter chiropractic care is a must in order to help with the risks winter brings so that you can better enjoy its delights. Or, if you’re not a winter person, winter chiropractic care will still be able to benefit you in a number of ways to make getting through the season more bearable. Here are five of the ways anyone can benefit from winter chiropractic care. 

#1. Decrease Stiffness

The colder you are, the stiffer your body as it tries to maintain a consistent temperature to keep you warm. Unfortunately, your body’s natural response to the cold may be its way of trying to preserve your body heat, but it also increases the likelihood of injury because it’s harder to move if you’re stiff. Winter chiropractic care helps loosen your muscles and joints, improving your mobility and range of motion, which ergo decreases stiffness and lessens risk of injury. 

While dressing appropriately for the cold temperatures will also work to reduce stiffness, since it lessens your body’s need to stiffen up to stay warm, chiropractic care can keep your spine properly aligned, which helps keep your muscles and joints looser, easier to move, and less likely to be injured. 

#2. Help Fight Off Sickness

While winter chiropractic care isn’t a cure-all, it is very beneficial in helping your body fight off and heal from illnesses, like the dreaded cold and flu. It does this through treatments designed to help your lymphatic system drain and to reduce the stress that being sick places on your nervous system. This helps you heal quicker. Plus, winter chiropractic care can help you stave off getting sick in the first place, by improving the overall health of your body. It’s no secret that the healthier you are, the less susceptible you are to sickness. 

#3. Reduce Depression

The days are shorter, and that means less sunlight, which is nature’s mood booster. In addition to the lessened light, we typically don’t spend as much time with others during the winter months, because with the cold, unless you’re an outdoorsy person, you don’t really want to be going out and doing things. Winter chiropractic care is not the same as seeing a psychiatrist or a therapist, but it can help with depression through adjustments that reduce the tension in your body and boost your nervous system’s performance. If your body is less tense and your nervous system and your brain are able to communicate properly, this can help with depression, at least a little. 

#4. Minimize Risk Of Injury 

As mentioned above, the stiffer you are, the more likely you are to get injured. This is especially true for those of us who enjoy winter sports, making winter chiropractic care a fantastic option in order to minimize your risk of injury when you hit the slopes or the ice skating rink or what have you. Winter chiropractic care involves the typical adjustments and treatments to help your body perform at its best and stay in good condition, yes, but it also includes exercises and stretching. 

Chiropractors can work with you to advise on the best exercises and stretches for you to do before any sort of winter activity in order to reduce your risk of injury. These aren’t just for those of us who are athletically-inclined, but for those of us who would rather stick to more tame outdoor ventures, only going out when we need to, or who need to shovel snow. Did you know that winter sports injuries and back pain from shoveling snow are among the most common reasons why people see chiropractors in the winter? 

While we’re more than happy to help you with any injury you sustain to get you back to your normal self as soon as possible, we want to help you prevent that from even happening. Regular winter chiropractic care sets your body up for success, and while it won’t eliminate the risk of injury, it will help make you less likely to sustain it. 

#5. Treat Injuries

So, you’ve sustained an injury, either from a sport or shoveling snow or slipping and falling on ice or whatever other reason. With our chiropractic adjustments and other treatments such as spinal decompression therapy, we can get to the root cause of your pain so that you don’t just mask it, but actually treat it. If you’re hurt, winter chiropractic care may be an option for you. 

Let Us Provide You With Winter Chiropractic Care

Elite Chiropractic provides exceptional winter chiropractic care no matter your needs. We personalize our treatments to you in order to best help you get or stay healthy and in good condition. Contact us today to schedule an appointment and let us help you stay happy and healthy all winter long! 

Shoveling snow isn’t something you do year round, so when winter rolls around, it’s not uncommon for people to experience back pain. This is because not only is it not something we’re generally accustomed to, but also, it’s something that we end up doing a lot of. If you’re not prepared for that, it can lead to back pain from shoveling snow. Here’s what you need to know about why shoveling snow can hurt your back. 

Why Your Back Hurts When You Shovel Snow

Back pain from shoveling snow can occur for a variety of reasons. Using an ineffective shovel can make your back muscles have to work harder than a more ergonomic one. Poor posture can contribute, as well as not lifting properly or trying to tackle too much at a time. Utilizing proper equipment and lifting techniques are surefire ways to reduce your risk of back pain this winter. 

How Chiropractors Can Help

Thankfully, back pain is something that can be treated with chiropractic care. Chiropractors will assess your back and conduct a comprehensive exam in order to ensure that they are able to know exactly what the problem is. Your back pain could be a result of injury, from muscles being strained, ligaments could be damaged from a sprain, and it could even stem from injury of one of the discs or facet joints in your spine.

Once chiropractors understand the root cause of your back pain, they’ll come up with a personalized treatment plan. This can include spinal adjustments, to realign your spine, manipulation, to increase blood flow to your muscles, as well as other therapies such as spinal decompression therapy, Class IV laser therapy, vibration plate therapy, spinal traction therapy, and more. Your chiropractor will determine what would be best for you, personally. 

Back pain is one of the most common reasons why people see chiropractors. When you see a chiropractor for your back pain, you can rest assured that you are receiving expert care that will get you healthy again.

Preventing Back Pain From Shoveling Snow

Luckily, preventing back pain from shoveling snow can be avoided through exercising proper biomechanics and following these strategies.

• Don’t Forget To Warm Up!

Shoveling snow is exercise, which means it’s important that you warm your body up before hand. Stretching and doing warm up exercises such as jumping jacks will get your blood pumping and your muscles ready for the exertion they’re about to be put under.

• Make Sure You’re Lifting Properly

Improper lifting techniques can seriously hurt your back and put your muscles under undue strain. When you shovel snow, make sure that you’re not lifting with your back, but with your leg muscles, bending from your knees and hips. You want to hold the snow close to your body and avoid twisting. Holding your shovel with one hand by the blade and one further back will make it more stable, and easier on your back.

• Take Your Time With Deep Snow

If you’re dealing with deep snow, don’t try to lift it from the ground up. Snow is heavy, so you want to work in layers, to avoid putting stress on your spine and potentially breaking your snow shovel.

• Use Proper Gear

Trying to shovel snow with improper footwear makes it a lot harder to maintain stability, which is vital for preventing back pain from shoveling snow. Make sure you’re using sturdy boots with a good tread, so that you aren’t slipping and sliding all over the place.

Strengthening your core, stretching, and working a bit at a time all make it so that you’ll be able to reduce your risk of back pain from shoveling snow this winter. If you do have back pain though, you don’t have to grin and bear it. Chiropractic treatment can help you get back to normal and prevent any issues from potential escalation. Back pain and potential back injury from snow shoveling are both preventable and treatable. Don’t be afraid to reach out for help or advice!

Are You Suffering From Back Pain From Shoveling Snow?

It’s not uncommon for back pain to increase over the winter due to shoveling snow. Elite Chiropractic can treat back pain and advise you on how you can work to prevent it. For any questions, to schedule an appointment, or for more information about our chiropractic services, please contact us today!