Chiropractors - hooey or not?

I always use an osteopath. I tend to become unbalanced where my pelvis and spine meet (giving the appearance & pain of having different length legs) I litterally become wonky & in agony. My osteopath has got me from being housebound/sofa bound/crawling across the room to fully mobile in just 3 sessions before. I fully recommend them though it took me a while to find a good one.

Just saw the update. I'm glad it has helped. It sounds like a similar problem to mine and you really do need to keep it in check.

Going by the number of people with "unbalanced pelvises" evolution didn't seem to do a great job!

Not that I'm a cynic ?

In general, the more unrelated the things people claim to be able to "cure" by spinal manipulation are, the less I am inclined to believe them.

Glad you've found it helpful Soph.

But evolution didn't account for a sedentary lifestyle, the loss of squatting (both as as a sitting position and for defecation), constantly rounding into the lower back (on sofas, in cars, at desks) etc.

esp in women, the sacral area is quite 'moveable' isn't it? so if you don't take extra care with posture, lengthening the spine regularly, sitting in a very 'balanced' stable way it can send the whole spine off whack.

i've never seen either an osteopath or a chiro so can't comment on those, but the majority of people who attend yoga classes have back or pelvis problems of some kind. it's quite shocking.

That's a fair point, although still the vast majority of the population manage to not be crippled by back pain despite not paying £££ to "stretch their spines".

I am not aware of any evidence of the sacrum being bendy.

It's not my area of expertise (although I do know a fair amount about pelvises) but I don't think having pain, or even having bad posture, necessarily means you are "misaligned" - I'm not even sure what that means tbh. The wrong joint attached to the wrong joint?!

Certainly anything that increases your movement (so yoga as well as osteopathy/chiropracter etc) will help, as with most musculoskeletal problems.

I'd also argue that people who seek out yoga might be a self selecting group of people who are more likely to have back pain.

I would be doing alot more research into the training and accrediation of practitioners if I was thinking about paying lots of money to go to one. I'd also probably try just improving my posture and taking appropriate exercise. The reason I trust physios is we did our first term of training together so I know their training encompasses thorough anatomical knowledge (not just of the spine!). I have no idea what the training is for chiropracters/osteopaths (not saying it's not robust, I just know they are not trained in mainstream medical schools cf physios). I'm dubious of any group of people who profess to be able to cure just about every medical condition by spinal manipulation tbh. In addition, cranial osteopathy put me off mainstream osteopathy by association I'm afraid.

Anyway, like all complemetary therapies, I think if it makes people feel better then go for it. Not bothered enough to argue about it!

Well, I have one foot longer than the other - the osteo has suggested this may be what send my pelvis out of alignment, and that made sense in my head.

Anyway, if you're in large amounts of pain and go and have a therapy that means you aren't, I make it a good thing

L
xx

There are about 5 million work days lost to back pain in the UK alone every year.