Question
Hello
I recently began seeing a chiropractor for what has turned from slight neck pain, to horrible neck pain and upper back pain over a period of about 3 years. I am in most pain while at my desk working at my laptop. I have adjusted my work station now to raise up my laptop and change chairs. However, I am still in constant pain and the chiropractic doesn't seem to be helping. I have been going now for about 1 month. As soon as I get back in my desk, my pain returns. My chiropractor has told me that my curvature in my neck is wrong and my neck is now straight instead of curved. I'm not sure what to do to help the pain. I am getting desperate.
thanks

Answer
Dear Amanda,

Thank you for your question about your neck curve and discomfort.  Your question is similar to those I have heard from others who are investigating their circumstances and how to use chiropractic to their benefit.  In order to answer you properly, I抣l first need to give you some background on the chiropractic profession and some relevant information on anatomy and physiology and how they relate to your concerns.

There are two branches or schools of thought in chiropractic.  Briefly, they are differentiated by whether they deal with the limited therapeutic approach for aches and pains (commonly termed "mixed" chiropractic because it represents a mixture of a chiropractor with a non-chiropractic matter) or a non-therapeutic approach to optimum body performance (termed "straight" chiropractic because there is no mixing of chiropractic with anything else).  My expertise is in non-therapeutic straight chiropractic.  

Therapeutic "mixed" chiropractic is the older approach based on a split from the founding principles of chiropractic about a century ago.  

Non-therapeutic "straight" chiropractic is the more modern of the two.  It deals with a particular, common situation called a vertebral subluxation. This is not the same as the matter of a neck curve, as referenced in your question, a common misconception about this field, but they may exist together.  The spine is made of many bone segments which house and protect the spinal cord and the smaller spinal nerve branches that come off the spinal cord and exit between the bones.  These nerve pathways carry information or messages between the brain and the cells of the body.  These messages are essential for the life of the cells.  Without vital brain messages, the cells immediately begin the process of dying; i.e., they can no longer function the way they should to maintain life.

Because the bones are moveable, they can misalign in such a way as to interfere with the messages and, ultimately, the ability of the person to function at their best or express their optimum potential.  People with vertebral subluxations are not able to get all they can out of life.

Vertebral subluxations can be caused by a wide variety of factors, what we'll generally call stresses.  These stresses can be physical (such as accidental trauma, sleeping posture and mattress condition, the birth process, sneezing, falling down, etc.), mental / emotional (in its many forms, probably the most familiar use of the word stress), or chemical (such as pollution, drugs, etc.), which are, unfortunately, regular parts of daily living for all age groups.  In short, a vertebral subluxation can occur for a multitude of reasons.

Tragically, vertebral subluxations are rarely obvious to the individual they affect.  They usually have no symptoms.  The reason is that most of what goes on inside you happens without your awareness.  As an example, try to "feel" your liver.  What's it doing right now?  You can't know, so you can't know if it's functioning at its best or something less.  To complicate things, nerve pathways that carry messages of control (termed "motor" nerves) have no way of transmitting ache or pain messages, so your body function may be far from perfect and you'd not have any alerting signal whatsoever.  In addition, and quite relevant to whether any complaints are related to vertebral subluxation ?including curvature of the spine or pain, as you have reported - the branching of the nerve pathways is quite complex and extensive, making it exceedingly difficult to predict or determine exactly how the person will be affected.  For this reason alone, it is impossible for anyone to give you reliable answers as to whether the straightness of the neck, as you mention (or a curvature of any kind), may be related to a vertebral subluxation.  At best, such a conclusion would be no more than a guess.  In a very real sense, the neck geometry you reported is not a valid or reliable indicator of the presence of vertebral subluxation or whether a vertebral subluxation is involved.  Let抯 look at that in a bit more detail.  

In discussing vertebral subluxation earlier in this message, I used the word misalignment.  I am not talking here about a neck curve, however, and this is interchangeable with the term vertebral subluxation.  The misalignment that I address is that of a specific segment of the spine.  Technically speaking, we have to get even a bit more advanced in what is meant by misalignment to make this clear.  The question is, Misaligned with respect to what?  It is possible to describe the body geometrically, reasoning that we are bilaterally symmetrical and concluding that there is a measurable 搈idline?or that our hips and shoulders should be 揵alanced?on a perpendicular line to this proposed 搈idline?or that the body can be presumed to take on a certain geometry in other planes as well, such as forward or backward curves.  The problem with this thinking is that it assumes we are simply machines and ignores that we are alive, capable of movement, adaptation, growth, etc.  At any given moment, there is an optimum state for us to carry out life to our best abilities.  That optimum state will vary depending upon the circumstances, both within us and of our environment.  There are many examples to illustrate this.  If you carry something heavy with one hand, you must lean away from it, putting something of a curve into the spine, to keep yourself balanced.  Does that mean the body is failing because there is imbalance or a curve, or is it instead being quite successful in adapting you to the situation?  In another example, consider that those who argue for geometric balance or symmetry would be hard-pressed to explain why the carpenter who swings a 28-ounce hammer all day with his right arm only would have certain physical adaptations that favor his right side.  Should the carpenter have some of the tissue removed from his arm, hand and back so that it is equal to that on the left?  Or is he merely adapted to his circumstances?  The point I抦 getting at is that there is an individually determined, innately normal position for the body that cannot be described by geometry.  

From the non-therapeutic standpoint, then, the method of the non-therapeutic straight chiropractor is not for the goal of altering or placing a curve in the neck.  Adjustments are made if and when a subluxation is detected ?and only then.  Geometric positioning is not within the realm of non-therapeutic straight chiropractic.  There are no procedures that are used within non-therapeutic straight chiropractic for the purpose of altering or inducing curves.  It is simply not proper non-therapeutic straight chiropractic practice to attempt to alter or control the alignment spinal bones or the geometry of the spine, in general.  

The only way to know if someone has a vertebral subluxation is to have that person抯 spine checked by a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor using a method of "analysis."  This is the only valid determinant of vertebral subluxation.  When a vertebral subluxation is detected this way, it is obviously important to correct it as soon as possible.  The term for this is 揳djustment,?and can be accomplished in a variety of ways, depending upon the unique vertebral subluxation and the individual person.  It is important to clarify that an adjustment is a procedure uniquely and specifically for the purpose of bringing about the correction of a vertebral subluxation because, in and of itself, it is detrimental to the expression of one抯 optimum potential.  It抯 not intended as a treatment for discomfort or for effecting a particular alignment geometry.  

Since vertebral subluxations are caused by so many different things, people choose to go to a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor on a regular basis to enjoy the most time free of the life-robbing effects of vertebral subluxation. There's a saying that non-therpaeutic straight chiropractic is not about your back, it's not about your pain, it's about your life.  Each person has a unique potential in life.  With vertebral subluxation, it's impossible to realize that potential.

A key question to ask for your purposes, then, would be, Is someone with no neck curve or with pain issues better off with vertebral subluxation / nerve interference or free of subluxation / with the nerve channels open?  It is easy to see that having all the available nerve messages getting through is better than only some of them getting through, regardless of the person's situation otherwise.  So, having your spine checked for vertebral subluxation will be of tremendous value, but it抯 not for the purpose of dealing with the things you mentioned.  It抯 about something much larger.  In other words, non-therapeutic straight chiropractic can be of benefit to you (or any spine-owner, for that matter), but perhaps in ways that you may not have considered.  It抯 not that you should visit a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor FOR your neck curve or pain or finger numbness ?you should visit one in an effort to be free of vertebral subluxations, even WITH such things.  Non-therapeutic straight chiropractic is not about diagnosing and/or treating these or any therapeutic-model or medical condition.  It is entirely separate in its goal.  

As I mentioned earlier, not all chiropractors adhere to this and it is important that you be able to distinguish which ones do if you're going to seek this type of service.  Unfortunately, for the public, it抯 not as easy as just looking for the word 揷hiropractor?in the phone book or on a sign on an office building.  Please understand very clearly that the practice objectives of therapeutic mixed chiropractic and non-therapeutic straight chiropractic are quite different, as described above.  What I can tell you must not be interpreted from the mixed viewpoint.  

Realize that the goal in a non-therapeutic straight chiropractic model is not for the purpose of forcing geometric patterns into your spine.  This is not the type of objective that would be used in the proper delivery of non-therapeutic straight chiropractic.  This doesn抰 mean it is impossible to do so, it just means it is entirely different than what I would advise you on.  

Consider, too, that an important question for you to ask is not just IF a curve may be changed, but whether it SHOULD be changed.  There are many proposed methods of changing curves, however, none of them consider the matter of whether it is actually innately normal or optimal for that particular person to have that curve in place and the possible absurdity, then, of changing it or attempting to do so, as we spoke about earlier.  

All that said, it would certainly be wise to have your spine checked for subluxations by a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor, even if you still elect to have therapeutic attention for geometrically changing your spine or addressing your pain concerns, regardless of whether that is done with a therapeutic mixed chiropractor or someone else who outwardly offers exactly that type of service.  Remember, the two objectives are not the same.  If you are interested in finding out how to locate a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor in your area, please contact me at this site again or at [email protected].  

Amanda, I wish you the best and hope you may have a clearer understanding of chiropractic.  It has been my pleasure to provide you with some information.

Sincerely,
James W. Healey, D.C.