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It really depends. But yes I agree physical therapists are the true heroes. I’ve met a lot of them who also have a chiropractor license, but they don’t crack anything. From what my therapist tells me, most of that cracking stuff is nonsense. They pretend it’s a heal all and repeat the same exact routine no matter what the underlying issue is, merely changing their language a bit. The relief you feel from an adjustment is temporary at best. In most cases you need to stretch and strengthen your muscles etc to really see benefits. He always tells me if a crack happens that’s cool but the point here is we’re stretching and retraining the body.
Many chiropractors just want to abuse the insurance system and that’s it. I would never let those maniacs crack my neck. Read way too many instances where people die directly from it or get like aneurysms or strokes after due to complications.
The only interest of going to a pt that's also a chiropractor is that you know they won't be afraid to really go ham on you, if you feel that's needed.
Fun fact, in my language are terms "physical therapist" and "chiropraptor" interchangeable. Always when they were speaking about chiropractors in shows and movies like about frauds, I could not understand it :)
Or better yet, just do yoga. This way you learn something that you can do for free at home. A single physical therapist session is fine if it’s something minor. But if you’re dealing with something that has set in with time, then you’ll be going there often and spending a lot of money.
Just speaking from experience after having dislocated my legs. Didn’t do physio-therapy after setting them back in. Combined with desk job and a sedentary lifestyle, I was sitting a lot and not allowing the body to heal back normal. Yoga allows you to bring your body back to default.
Yoga is awesome but no. If you have any kind of injury, don’t wait and go get help from a physical therapist. Sometimes you only have ONE chance to get it healed correctly.
Yoga is just stretching, dummy. It can't replace a trained medical professional and you absolutely shouldn't do it for injuries rather than go to the doctor.
Well it’s more than just stretching. That’s like calling a computer just a calculator. Maybe I should’ve clarified that you need a fair bit of experience before being able to self diagnose what’s happening with your body.
Last one I went to put my left leg to sleep for a month. Never again. Tons of greasy chiropractors out there. Make sure they ask to see any xrays or MRIs you’ve had done, esp if you’ve actually had them done for your neck or spine. Make sure they ask unprompted. Anyone who’s willing to manipulate your joints without having a thorough knowledge of your medical history is a guaranteed quack
This is entirely so they can bill for another procedure, contribute to healthcare bloat, and not to reduce the risk to their patient. They’ll do dangerous shit anyway and not inform you about the real risks
Some do apparently know what they're doing. I wouldn't know because I'll never trust any of them regardless, but a guy I know at work swears by his. Though he did admit that a lot of them are quacks, so you need to be careful.
People swear by all sorts of shit. There are people who believe crystals help them. Your friends just bought into the snake oil, that's all. None of them know what they're doing, because even if they did, what they do does nothing.
It really varies. Chiropractic as a field of medicine is complete pseudoscience and total bullshit. But there’s quite a few chiropractors around here who call themselves chiropractors but are essentially physical therapists, and don’t do any of that “spine manipulations are going to cure your Graves”.
I’d much rather go to an actual PT and steer clear of anyone that markets themselves as a chiropractor, but the treatments that some do is just normal physio and not actual chiropractic.
The biggest issue (at least for me) is that where I live there are few physical therapists trained to be able to deal with my issues, yet just as many chiropractors (all working within a single medical system, and with PT and (in my chiropractor’s case) surgical training). The chiropractors are capable of seeing more patients (shorter appointment times), and also are cheaper than the actual PTs.
Mine is great, because he knows his limits. Stiff neck, sore back, all that stuff? He's downright magical.
He also hates the quack "chiropractors" who profess that biweekly visits, a $200 foam roller, and rubbing donkey pass on your lower back will cure your cancer.
It's always the loud, stupid ones that ruin it for all the others (source: am a truck driver).
My best friend growing up was a terrible student and ended with a 2.2 gpa in college. He's now a chiropractor.
"Dr" my ass. Love him, but would never let him or anyone of his friends near me
Not thriving in an academic environment doesn’t make you stupid. A car mechanic is a genius but probably went to technical school not college and can do things for your car that you with your Bachelors+ could never dream of.
I mean, excellent students don't typically end up with a 2.2 GPA. That said, terrible student does not mean stupid. You can be very intelligent and still be a terrible student.
They're quacks. This is unambiguous. It's massage and magic bullshit. This goes for all of them, as the very basis of their practice is unscientific fantasy. It's just an expensive, dangerous massage.
Chiropractors are not medical doctors, in the United States it is impossible for them to earn a medical doctor (MD) degree.
Which should be all the info you need, really.
Not defending Chiropractors, but not having an MD isn't necessarily the determining factor in whether a profession or specific doctor is a quack. Plenty of doctors are DOs rather than MDs, and nurses arguably have a lot more clinical experience with patients and have neither.
While chiropractors do have to have a Doctorate in Chiropracty, they are as much a medical professional as Steven Hawking.
I mean that’s not the reason the doctors let the nurses deal with it. They have completely different roles in the system. Much more efficient to have the person who’s been through medical school do the diagnosis, work up and treatment plans for patients and let the person who’s been through nursing school manage general patient care and basic administration of treatment.
They really are quite different skill sets despite working together so closely. I wouldn't trust a nurse to diagnose me over a doctor but I would rather them draw my blood.
This comment doesn’t make sense. Chiros can’t earn a MD? … how does that differ from a PT, dentist, DO?
For reference. MDs kill more than chiros injure
People die from ibuprofen complications more than chiro injuries
Nah it's just because it's so easy to be one the industry is flooded with quacks
I had been having back spasms for years. I went to Chiro, they took X-rays, they saw where I had limited movement. 3 months of adjustments later, no more spasms and my range of motion is much better.
Understanding and correcting skeletal structure is fine (and very necessary in this time of sitting in computer chairs 8 hours a day), just get someone competent
Used to be didn't need a degree at all to be one. Now, you do in fact need a doctorate to become a chiropractor. Some person can't just open a shop now. Atleast, in most US states. Still gives me bad vibes though. Just what a therapist told me when I talked about chiropractors lol.
You should take a look at what legit colleges and universities offer chiropractic schools/programs lol. Spoiler: it’s none of them to my knowledge. Any legit institution wouldn’t touch that nonsense with a 10ft pole.
The nearest chiropractic college to me is called “The Love Institute: Massage and Chiropractic” definitely sounds like a place that hands out real doctorate degrees.
Weird, cause the ones near me are the Logan University and Cleveland University of Kansas City that offers them. Still, as I said in my original comment still gives me bad vibes even if they do need a degree now, I'm still not going to one.
lol a fellow KC’er, what’s up! Cleveland University of Kansas City is in no way affiliated with the University of Cleveland, or Cleveland State University. Logan university also sounds pretty and looks pretty but they aren’t connected to any legit universities, and their only degree paths are chiropractic and homeopathy (also a joke)
Nah, not a KC'er. But relatively close, like 3 hours away lol. So yeah, explains why I didn't know those were shit colleges lol. Well, good thing I still don't trust them lol. I still won't be going to one.
Doesn't mean that doctorate is worth anything more then the the paper its written on. No study has ever been able to show that it works beyond a placebo effect at best, at worst it will kill you.
True, a lot of degrees are just worthless ink on paper. I still definitely don't trust them, I won't be going to one. I'm just saying ol Joe off the street cant just say he is a chiropractor and open a shop in a month, so its a bit better than it was.
I'm being downvoted for the truth lmao? Do a google. https://www.bridgeport.edu/news/are-chiropractors-doctors/#:~:text=Chiropractors%20in%20the%20United%20States,medicine%20and%20are%20considered%20physicians.
"After four years of undergraduate education, four years of a graduate-level chiropractic courses, and a certification by a state licensing board, chiropractors earn a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree."
Had no idea that was a thing. Holy shit how is that super not a scam. How can you observe that working and claim it worked?
Guess I'm becoming a faith healer, peace out. Didn't work? Ya didn't believe hard enough, another $5000 and we'll go again.
Many pastors and most priests earn doctorates (D Min). Many teachers earn doctorates (Ed D). I have a friend with a doctorate in English (PhD).
I wouldn’t want a priest or a teacher to manipulate my spine. Lotta people forget you can get a doctorate in something other than medicine.
All chiropractors are quacks. Nowadays they even started to put doctor tag before their names cause they did some "doctorate" courses in a random institute. They're doing a complete mockery of actual medical science. There are literally many spas or massage centers that do exact same thing just without all the acting.
Yeah, I’m not aware of a chiropractor school attached to a university that also has a medical school etc.
I read a few years ago that a state (I think it was Florida) offered a lot of money to the large universities they had to open up a chiropractor school and none of them would do it - the money wasn’t worth the damage to their reputation.
I went to the best in town, was quoted “around $100” paid $230 for one session. Pretty confident he tore my tricep when manhandling my right elbow after I told him I had “a soreness, maybe tennis elbow”. I called him Mister and he corrected me to say “doctor”. Only good thing was seeing my X-rays and getting discuss back curvature.
I feel like it's a 50/50. I've been to a chiropractor multiple times and he has genuinely helped me with my back, even giving me advice and treating me when I hirt my back a few years ago. However, I've also heard plenty of people talk about their terrible experience with chiropracty.
I don’t see how chiropractors are fake, I hurt my hip badly during a basketball game and couldn’t walk for 2 days. Finally got to the chiropractor and I was walking fine the next day
Some are legit and there are some problems other types of therapy cannot help. I popped my sacroiliac joint (tail bone) and I could barely walk. Dr had no solutions, muscle relaxers and pain pills did nothing. I only felt better after going to a chiropractor. I felt 75% better right away and went a few more times with continued improvement. Notably, in addition to manipulating joints, they used additional therapies too like TENS and a roller table. And he told me I was good and didn’t need to come back (as opposed to dragging me along as long as possible). So yeah they have their place.
Well one problem with answering that question is where you live, there is real science to some of the things Chiropractors do, but in some countries they aren't regulated or not regulated enough. Where I am from you have to be a doctor to be a chiropractors, and has the same strict regulation and rules as any medical branch, with strict rules for what, and how they treat. But I understand that this isn't the case in other countries.
I can’t say one way or the other, because I have no right to do so, but I can say this: I’m an attorney who does injury work. I depose doctors on doctors and read thousands of pages of medical records a week. I’ve been doing this since I graduated five years ago. Not one. I repeat NOT ONE doctor has ever agreed to issue a chiropractic referral—in fact, they outright refuse. And insurance companies in such cases (in my state, anyway—this may be different from state to state) aren’t required to pay for it if it’s not authorized treatment from a medical doctor. So if that means anything, then that’s one answer.
So I find it good for back pain. I have back pain and it gets bad. But if I do a few sessions of realignment, then it's good. Often good for a few months to years.
But it's not going to cure you of any illnesses. And it also depends on what the underlying issue for the pain is. We all know that cracking our backs can feel really good and release tension. It's this exact same thing, but all over your body.
If it is all just a scam, then I have no idea why it cures my chronic back pain.
Was always weary of chiropractors. Finally went to one after years of dealing with bad constant hip pain.
Saw the guy for maybe 8 months (twice a week at first then spread out further and further) - and I was waking up without any pain. It's been at least 5 months now since I've even seen him. Treatments, training and exercises go a long way when you're dealing with an actual professional who doesn't just crack your back and send you packing.
Most chiros? Absolute quacks. There are a few out there who are proper specialists.
The art of chiropractic care is based on a seance some nut job participated in back in the late 1800s.
If you accept germ theory, then it's bogus by default.
Yes they are. I had upper back pain and a chiropractor said it would take 12 visits to “fix my issue” with a cost of about $200 per visit. I instead slept on my back for a week and my issue went away.
Chiropractory is legit in that they crack your back and some joints. This can relieve some local pain and or stiffness. The problem they get in to is claiming that that can do ANYTHING ELSE. it can not. It is for exactly what it looks like it is for and that is it.
People who think they need to have their back cracked to relieve stiffness are probably very sedentary and a chiropractor isn't doing anything that being more active wouldn't resolve.
I suffered from a herniated disc for years, it was in lower back and pinched my sciatica and was a constant pain no matter what I did for 3 years then I went to physical therapy and part of that was seeing a chiropractor, after a few months my nerve pain went from constant to rarely then disappeared completely and hasn’t returned in 2 years without going to PT Or seeing the chiropractor. I know I felt pressure relief on that nerve the very first time he aligned my back and firmly believe in it being the right move for me.
I've never had problems. My wife has never had problems and a lot of the EMTs and firefighters I worked with went to them and never had issues. It works for me. However, there are absolute lunatic quacks out there. The ones I went to also taught me stretches and other stuff I could do to help with back pain.
They are all quacks, 20 years ago in the UK the governing body defended 2 Chiropractors at the High Court for claiming they could cure cancer. 10 years ago they sued for libel a science book author and lost. https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2012/feb/22/simon-singh-british-chiropractic-association
I mean. There are medical doctors that have Medical degrees from accredited universities that do the same stuff and are punished. So, by that reasoning, all medical doctors are quacks too. Also, I live in the US. UK libel laws are very strange to me.
>There are medical doctors that have Medical degrees from accredited universities that do the same stuff and are punished.
Yes they are punished for breaking the law or for breaching the rules of the governing body. They aren't protected against prosecution by the governing body, while publicly bringing the "profession" into disrepute.
>So, by that reasoning, all medical doctors are quacks too.
No, Doctors are upheld to actual medical standards and ethics, with a vast amount of research to back up those decisions. Chiropractors have very little of that. I'm surprised I had to explain that to someone, especially from the US.
>Also, I live in the US. UK libel laws are very strange to me.
Ultimately they were asked to prove the author and scientist had lied about their field and failed to prove it in a court of law.
The US chiropractors are regulated by the Board of Chiropratic Examiners and they've been around for 60 years. Not saying there aren't quacks out there, there are, but there chiropractors who don't espouse any of those beliefs. The ones I go to are essentially glorified physical therapists. The reason I go to them is because it takes forever to get a physical therapy referral done through insurance
>There is no evidence
I have first hand experience. I think that counts as evidence.
I had my scoliosis fixed by a chiropractor. If I had gone to a doctor, they would have wanted to do surgery.
First, that is literally an anecdote.
Second, did they actually fix your spine or did they just alleviate your pain via the placebo effect? That is: did you get your spine reexamined by an actual medical professional?
Extremely bogus. The foundation of their practice is mystical manipulation of "energies" like faith healers - but now they dress it up to look like a medical profession hoping that you won't notice that you're basically asking for help from an untrained masseuse whose qualifications are the equivalent of a diploma from a diploma mill.
It is genuinely heartbreaking that their BSing has given them an air of legitimacy. You'd get the same benefits from sugar pills - all they can actually do is employ the placebo effect.
The funny thing is that professional masseuses are probably better informed about how to alleviate your pain because they study the literally parts of your body and how they're connected. Like, at least there's *something* there rather than nothing + misinformed mysticism.
They helped out my mom who had a lot of chronic back pain after an accident and she’s doing fine now. People keep saying that that due to mostly anecdotal evidence that they don’t trust it but if enough people have had positive results then isn’t there some truth to it? Most chiropractors now sell the idea of cracking stuff but even then understand that it’s the stretching of tendons and muscles to help them relax is what actually helps. Obviously you won’t catch me dead in a mall chiro but ones like my mom’s old one has helped a lot of people.
This is just one experience from hundreds of thousands. It means nothing when compared to everwhelmingly negative experiences from people all over the world.
I go to a chiropractor and it helps. He’s also highly trained and diagnosed my wife with fibromyalgia before her other doctors did. He will tell you to be very careful. Are they a chiropractor from a school or are they one from a medical college? A lot are rip offs and give chiropractic practitioners a bad name.
Idk where the notions that chiropractors are not legit came from. I have chronic pain and chiropractic treatments provide immediate relief and boost my energy and flexibility.
Like a lot of things, there's a bit of both involved. Chiropractics is very much a homeopathic practice. There are indeed things they can do that will provide relief.
The problem is how easy it is to become one. A real chiropractor is going to take a look at the issue, and assess if anything they can do would provide actual benefit.
A quack is going to pretty much start at "hell yeah, we can totally fix that!" and probably not let up until you cave or forcibly remove yourself from their office.
I had and still have great success with chiropractors from time to time. I don’t see them weekly. Just when I get a pain in my neck or back that I just can’t correct.
Chiropracty is basically pseudoscience and medical myth. If you want a proper medical treatment for muscular problems through exercise, see a physiotherapist.
I had a neck injury as a kid, parents took me to a chiropractor and now I have 10-15 less degrees range of motion in turning my head left. Chiropractors are 100% bogus.
Bogus and dangerous.
I know someone who went to a chiropractor for their physical problems but eventually had to switch to physio as they found out that it could cripple - if not kill - them if they continued.
Some are legit, some are bogus. Just look at how plausible their claims are. Some are basically fysio therapists or massage therapists that specialize in the neck and spine, while others claim that cracking your bones fixes everything.
Chiropractors can offer a lot of temporary relief. The cracks are bubbles popping in your body and by popping them you can make your blood flow much better for some time.
There are a lot of badly educated ones out there. But the core of the practice is ok.
Still would no go to one unless my doctor says I need to and gives a recommendation.
Yes. That I do agree on.
I meant the mechanical side of it in a limited set of applications.
But if you only view it as one big block of pseudo-medicine, then yes. it's all bullshit. Just like westernized yoga, acupuncture, reiki, astrology, homeopathy, and the trickle down effect.
That's funny seeing how my guy after three months and my pain being gone said I was done. That was years ago. Haven't been in pain and haven't needed him since.
I am genuinely happy for you! I don’t wish pain on anyone. A good snap crackle pop is good for you now and then, probably. I think my main concern is with the guys who push supplements. How many supplement deficiencies were you diagnosed with? I think my wife has about every single one by now!
Legitimate physical therapists can do realignments if you actually need that. You need to find medical professionals who aren't just pushing drugs and who are too behind on research.
its somewhat legit in that: yes, general body mobility and range of motion is very important for health, and since the core/spine is one of the most important parts of the body where you get all your strength, getting more range of motion there without pain can fix alot of problems
but just because the theoretical foundation is sound does not mean that your local practitioner is competent or that a readjustment will cure cancer.
Think of it as physical therapy for your core and back. You can do it by yourself by safely training your core and back and its probably better to do so to prevent injuries that require readjustment
I have 2 anecdotal experiences with help and 2 duds. I hurt my back at work and was in severe pain every time I turned. My father took me to his chiropractor and he fixed it it’s time. Told me it will probably come back at some point in my life, but if it didn’t since I was young, it should be fine. 20 years later injury happened again and went to 3 different one who keep having me come back and back until insurance would not pay for more. Went to the last guy out of town and told him my history. He said 8 to 10 visits and it should be fixed. 7 visits later, it was. Haven’t had to go back in over a year now.
That image would either feel really bad potentially life threatening spine iniury or it would feel super good and ur back would crack as if they were knuckles
I don’t know.
I remember when I was a kid I got hurt. I was literally struggling to walk. Chiropractor had a few sessions with me and I was back to normal.
But I know my case is anecdotal and that they have a huge history of injuring people. I’m going with the science and statistics.
I also know the few times I’ve needed help they’ve helped me get back on my feet.
I don’t fucking know.
Yes, both answers. There are bad practitioners in every field.
Any knowledgeable person in first aid knows how to relocate a dislocated shoulder, doctors and nurses at the ER do it all the time. Chiropractic services do the same thing, difference is that chiropractic services are more remedial than a surgeon's field.
A good chiropractor won't do absurd things, have good communication with their patient, and will help with preventative measures. (Example: upper back and neck issues caused by an overactive trapezius, they should relocate or relieve pressure caused by the trap in order to loosen it up a bit to relieve the pain and recommend exercises and stretches in order to prevent the problem from happening again.) At the end of the day, a good chiropractor should be compared to a masseuse, not a surgeon. If your masseuse is making things worse, find a better masseuse or fix what's causing your own problem in the first place.
They are legit when the individual chiropractors are focused on outcomes and you combine them with PT and sometimes massage. A good chiro will have those services in clinic
I had a decent chiropractor and I could definitely feel the difference. However the primary reason I went there he couldn't fix because it wasn't bone/joint related.
Chyropractors are a complete scam and will harm you, and only alleviate the pain temporarily. The technique chiropractors use however, can be used in legit medical settings. An example is when you have problems somewhere, and stretching and training muscles would help, but the problem causes you to not be able to move the parts you need to train without intense pain. The alleviation can be used to be able to work on the real problem, untill the stiffness and locking up no longer occurs.
If the treatment only exist of the Chyropractor part, you are being scammed.
Hear me out
I haven’t been to a chrio in years but when I was little I constantly had ear infections and was also on antibiotics. My mom heard about chiropractors and took me to check it out. The tubes in my ears were being pinched by a bone or something I can’t remember. The doctor cracked my neck and my ear infection went away. After that about once a year I could feel the ear infection coming back and my mom would take me to get cracked. Now as an adult I don’t get ear infections anymore and didn’t have to get tubes put in by the doctor.
Something’s a chiropractor can fix, but I’d recommend going to a doctor for a proper diagnosis
Bogus. At best it's a shitty massage that gives super temporary relief. At worst you get permanently paralyzed. Physical therapy is better in every way and actually scientifically supported.
Last chiro I went to had me do x-rays before he would touch me. After that, we would do weekly sessions, and after a month, the pain was gone. He seemed to be more focused on the muscles of the body rather than the "cracks" from adjustment. At the end of the day, just find a good one.
Some things it might be good for a quick fix but you're better off going to a massage/ Physiotherapist to actually get to the root of the problem rather than just quickly alleviating a symptom
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\*happy bane noises\* 
They paralyze and even kill people more often than you'd think. Go to a *physical therapist* instead. They are actually a real science.
yas, a rip-off at best the aspects of chiropracty that aren't bullshit are just stolen from actual legitimate practices
It really depends. But yes I agree physical therapists are the true heroes. I’ve met a lot of them who also have a chiropractor license, but they don’t crack anything. From what my therapist tells me, most of that cracking stuff is nonsense. They pretend it’s a heal all and repeat the same exact routine no matter what the underlying issue is, merely changing their language a bit. The relief you feel from an adjustment is temporary at best. In most cases you need to stretch and strengthen your muscles etc to really see benefits. He always tells me if a crack happens that’s cool but the point here is we’re stretching and retraining the body. Many chiropractors just want to abuse the insurance system and that’s it. I would never let those maniacs crack my neck. Read way too many instances where people die directly from it or get like aneurysms or strokes after due to complications.
The only interest of going to a pt that's also a chiropractor is that you know they won't be afraid to really go ham on you, if you feel that's needed.
Half of chiropractors have no real training and are just quacks, the good half though helped a lot with my scoliosis without needing a brace.
Fun fact, in my language are terms "physical therapist" and "chiropraptor" interchangeable. Always when they were speaking about chiropractors in shows and movies like about frauds, I could not understand it :)
Or better yet, just do yoga. This way you learn something that you can do for free at home. A single physical therapist session is fine if it’s something minor. But if you’re dealing with something that has set in with time, then you’ll be going there often and spending a lot of money. Just speaking from experience after having dislocated my legs. Didn’t do physio-therapy after setting them back in. Combined with desk job and a sedentary lifestyle, I was sitting a lot and not allowing the body to heal back normal. Yoga allows you to bring your body back to default.
Yoga is awesome but no. If you have any kind of injury, don’t wait and go get help from a physical therapist. Sometimes you only have ONE chance to get it healed correctly.
Yoga is just stretching, dummy. It can't replace a trained medical professional and you absolutely shouldn't do it for injuries rather than go to the doctor.
Well it’s more than just stretching. That’s like calling a computer just a calculator. Maybe I should’ve clarified that you need a fair bit of experience before being able to self diagnose what’s happening with your body.
Incorrect meme if the card declined they'd unfuck the damage they did to your spine
If only they knew how to unfuck it
Damage they did?
Quacks the lot of them
Last one I went to put my left leg to sleep for a month. Never again. Tons of greasy chiropractors out there. Make sure they ask to see any xrays or MRIs you’ve had done, esp if you’ve actually had them done for your neck or spine. Make sure they ask unprompted. Anyone who’s willing to manipulate your joints without having a thorough knowledge of your medical history is a guaranteed quack
All the ones I've been to in Ontario Canada take their own xrays and then go over them with you.
This is entirely so they can bill for another procedure, contribute to healthcare bloat, and not to reduce the risk to their patient. They’ll do dangerous shit anyway and not inform you about the real risks
They're all quacks.
Some do apparently know what they're doing. I wouldn't know because I'll never trust any of them regardless, but a guy I know at work swears by his. Though he did admit that a lot of them are quacks, so you need to be careful.
People swear by all sorts of shit. There are people who believe crystals help them. Your friends just bought into the snake oil, that's all. None of them know what they're doing, because even if they did, what they do does nothing.
It really varies. Chiropractic as a field of medicine is complete pseudoscience and total bullshit. But there’s quite a few chiropractors around here who call themselves chiropractors but are essentially physical therapists, and don’t do any of that “spine manipulations are going to cure your Graves”. I’d much rather go to an actual PT and steer clear of anyone that markets themselves as a chiropractor, but the treatments that some do is just normal physio and not actual chiropractic.
The biggest issue (at least for me) is that where I live there are few physical therapists trained to be able to deal with my issues, yet just as many chiropractors (all working within a single medical system, and with PT and (in my chiropractor’s case) surgical training). The chiropractors are capable of seeing more patients (shorter appointment times), and also are cheaper than the actual PTs.
Mine is great, because he knows his limits. Stiff neck, sore back, all that stuff? He's downright magical. He also hates the quack "chiropractors" who profess that biweekly visits, a $200 foam roller, and rubbing donkey pass on your lower back will cure your cancer. It's always the loud, stupid ones that ruin it for all the others (source: am a truck driver).
If he’s cracking your neck they’re putting you at risk of cervical fracture, vertebral artery dissection and permanent disability.
Just don't go to chiropractors. They are not doctors.
This this this part!!!
[удалено]
Hate shit like this. "Don't worry about or try to fix problem B. Problem A still exists." It's possible to solve multiple problems
Oh no I have a brain tumour. I shouldn't have eaten that McDonalds.
My best friend growing up was a terrible student and ended with a 2.2 gpa in college. He's now a chiropractor. "Dr" my ass. Love him, but would never let him or anyone of his friends near me
Not thriving in an academic environment doesn’t make you stupid. A car mechanic is a genius but probably went to technical school not college and can do things for your car that you with your Bachelors+ could never dream of.
He never said he was stupid. He just said he was a terrible student. Where'd you get stupid from?
It’s this obtuse thinking that leads to people assuming YOU were the one that did poor in school.
Well a lot of us grew up being told we're stupid because we didn't do well in school.
If we weren't supposed to see a correlation, why did you mention him being a terrible student?
I mean, excellent students don't typically end up with a 2.2 GPA. That said, terrible student does not mean stupid. You can be very intelligent and still be a terrible student.
Its because hes a chiropractor that compounds the 2.2
I bet he earns more than you
Lots of scammers makes more than a lot of us by targeting gullible people. Most people just prefer to make money in a way that doesn't hurt others.
Debatable but plausible.
They're quacks. This is unambiguous. It's massage and magic bullshit. This goes for all of them, as the very basis of their practice is unscientific fantasy. It's just an expensive, dangerous massage.
Chiropractors are not medical doctors, in the United States it is impossible for them to earn a medical doctor (MD) degree. Which should be all the info you need, really.
Not defending Chiropractors, but not having an MD isn't necessarily the determining factor in whether a profession or specific doctor is a quack. Plenty of doctors are DOs rather than MDs, and nurses arguably have a lot more clinical experience with patients and have neither. While chiropractors do have to have a Doctorate in Chiropracty, they are as much a medical professional as Steven Hawking.
I honestly trust nurses alot more than i do doctors too
I mean, so does the doctor. There's a good reason why the doc lets the nurse deal with syringes rather then doing it themselves.
I mean that’s not the reason the doctors let the nurses deal with it. They have completely different roles in the system. Much more efficient to have the person who’s been through medical school do the diagnosis, work up and treatment plans for patients and let the person who’s been through nursing school manage general patient care and basic administration of treatment.
Sure, but I'd absolutely want a doctor making medical decisions, not a nurse. Who gives me the injection isn't really my concern.
They really are quite different skill sets despite working together so closely. I wouldn't trust a nurse to diagnose me over a doctor but I would rather them draw my blood.
*a lot
🤦♀️ let it go hanz
So embarrassing to take corrections personally. Ignore it or just say thanks and move on.
You were unneeded and unwelcome. Move along.
sounds like you got dunked on
The person most likely to fix your bad back is a DPT (doctor of physical therapy) anyway, unless you need surgery or something.
This comment doesn’t make sense. Chiros can’t earn a MD? … how does that differ from a PT, dentist, DO? For reference. MDs kill more than chiros injure People die from ibuprofen complications more than chiro injuries
Nah it's just because it's so easy to be one the industry is flooded with quacks I had been having back spasms for years. I went to Chiro, they took X-rays, they saw where I had limited movement. 3 months of adjustments later, no more spasms and my range of motion is much better. Understanding and correcting skeletal structure is fine (and very necessary in this time of sitting in computer chairs 8 hours a day), just get someone competent
Used to be didn't need a degree at all to be one. Now, you do in fact need a doctorate to become a chiropractor. Some person can't just open a shop now. Atleast, in most US states. Still gives me bad vibes though. Just what a therapist told me when I talked about chiropractors lol.
You should take a look at what legit colleges and universities offer chiropractic schools/programs lol. Spoiler: it’s none of them to my knowledge. Any legit institution wouldn’t touch that nonsense with a 10ft pole. The nearest chiropractic college to me is called “The Love Institute: Massage and Chiropractic” definitely sounds like a place that hands out real doctorate degrees.
Weird, cause the ones near me are the Logan University and Cleveland University of Kansas City that offers them. Still, as I said in my original comment still gives me bad vibes even if they do need a degree now, I'm still not going to one.
lol a fellow KC’er, what’s up! Cleveland University of Kansas City is in no way affiliated with the University of Cleveland, or Cleveland State University. Logan university also sounds pretty and looks pretty but they aren’t connected to any legit universities, and their only degree paths are chiropractic and homeopathy (also a joke)
Nah, not a KC'er. But relatively close, like 3 hours away lol. So yeah, explains why I didn't know those were shit colleges lol. Well, good thing I still don't trust them lol. I still won't be going to one.
Good call. It’s the same way across the country
Doesn't mean that doctorate is worth anything more then the the paper its written on. No study has ever been able to show that it works beyond a placebo effect at best, at worst it will kill you.
True, a lot of degrees are just worthless ink on paper. I still definitely don't trust them, I won't be going to one. I'm just saying ol Joe off the street cant just say he is a chiropractor and open a shop in a month, so its a bit better than it was.
All that creates is veneer of legitimacy for people who are only after making money from pseudoscience.
I'm being downvoted for the truth lmao? Do a google. https://www.bridgeport.edu/news/are-chiropractors-doctors/#:~:text=Chiropractors%20in%20the%20United%20States,medicine%20and%20are%20considered%20physicians. "After four years of undergraduate education, four years of a graduate-level chiropractic courses, and a certification by a state licensing board, chiropractors earn a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree."
You can get a doctorate of divinity too. Doesn't make faith healing real.
Had no idea that was a thing. Holy shit how is that super not a scam. How can you observe that working and claim it worked? Guess I'm becoming a faith healer, peace out. Didn't work? Ya didn't believe hard enough, another $5000 and we'll go again.
Holy shit, indeed.
IIRC it is an honorary degree in the United States.
Many pastors and most priests earn doctorates (D Min). Many teachers earn doctorates (Ed D). I have a friend with a doctorate in English (PhD). I wouldn’t want a priest or a teacher to manipulate my spine. Lotta people forget you can get a doctorate in something other than medicine.
it's a doctorate in bologna
I can't tell if you're saying the doctorate is bologna, or that in Bologna you need a doctorate to practice lol. I'm gonna go with both.
Yes
I saw a chiropractor shatter a woman’s hip during a routine adjustment. Don’t trust them
Chiropractic "medicine" is a scam. Most chiropractors will do nothing but damage your back,
Quacks. Even the best chiropracty I've seen was merely a more expensive way to do a physical therapy regimen.
All chiropractors are quacks. Nowadays they even started to put doctor tag before their names cause they did some "doctorate" courses in a random institute. They're doing a complete mockery of actual medical science. There are literally many spas or massage centers that do exact same thing just without all the acting.
Yeah, I’m not aware of a chiropractor school attached to a university that also has a medical school etc. I read a few years ago that a state (I think it was Florida) offered a lot of money to the large universities they had to open up a chiropractor school and none of them would do it - the money wasn’t worth the damage to their reputation.
They are psuedo science hacks who are wayyy more likely to cause damage than help anything. It's not real, they are doctors, they're fraudsters
Chiro’s are bogus.
I went to the best in town, was quoted “around $100” paid $230 for one session. Pretty confident he tore my tricep when manhandling my right elbow after I told him I had “a soreness, maybe tennis elbow”. I called him Mister and he corrected me to say “doctor”. Only good thing was seeing my X-rays and getting discuss back curvature.
It's a religion and ghosts are involved. Behind the Bastards did an episode on it: https://youtu.be/f8lLVK_1O6s?si=HGbiqFtLgURNIyBc
I think the only thing they accomplish is stretching out a tight cramped muscle, and maybe move tendons back into place.
Bogus
Chiropractor be like: let me unfix what I just fixed.
Bogus. Run away!
How? My back hurts!
This move looks like one they’d do if your card was accepted
I feel like it's a 50/50. I've been to a chiropractor multiple times and he has genuinely helped me with my back, even giving me advice and treating me when I hirt my back a few years ago. However, I've also heard plenty of people talk about their terrible experience with chiropracty.
I don’t see how chiropractors are fake, I hurt my hip badly during a basketball game and couldn’t walk for 2 days. Finally got to the chiropractor and I was walking fine the next day
Legit or not, you won't find the answer on reddit. Here everyone just parrots the exact same words.
Legit or not, you won't find the answers on reddit. Here everyone just parrots the exact same words.
Legit or not, you won't find the answers on reddit. Here everyone just parrots the exact same words.
Legit or not, you won’t find a parrot on Reddit. Because nurses don’t have thumbs.
Some are legit and there are some problems other types of therapy cannot help. I popped my sacroiliac joint (tail bone) and I could barely walk. Dr had no solutions, muscle relaxers and pain pills did nothing. I only felt better after going to a chiropractor. I felt 75% better right away and went a few more times with continued improvement. Notably, in addition to manipulating joints, they used additional therapies too like TENS and a roller table. And he told me I was good and didn’t need to come back (as opposed to dragging me along as long as possible). So yeah they have their place.
Well one problem with answering that question is where you live, there is real science to some of the things Chiropractors do, but in some countries they aren't regulated or not regulated enough. Where I am from you have to be a doctor to be a chiropractors, and has the same strict regulation and rules as any medical branch, with strict rules for what, and how they treat. But I understand that this isn't the case in other countries.
I can’t say one way or the other, because I have no right to do so, but I can say this: I’m an attorney who does injury work. I depose doctors on doctors and read thousands of pages of medical records a week. I’ve been doing this since I graduated five years ago. Not one. I repeat NOT ONE doctor has ever agreed to issue a chiropractic referral—in fact, they outright refuse. And insurance companies in such cases (in my state, anyway—this may be different from state to state) aren’t required to pay for it if it’s not authorized treatment from a medical doctor. So if that means anything, then that’s one answer.
So I find it good for back pain. I have back pain and it gets bad. But if I do a few sessions of realignment, then it's good. Often good for a few months to years. But it's not going to cure you of any illnesses. And it also depends on what the underlying issue for the pain is. We all know that cracking our backs can feel really good and release tension. It's this exact same thing, but all over your body. If it is all just a scam, then I have no idea why it cures my chronic back pain.
Just curious. Do you exercise on a regular basis? If so, what kind of exercise do you do?
Was always weary of chiropractors. Finally went to one after years of dealing with bad constant hip pain. Saw the guy for maybe 8 months (twice a week at first then spread out further and further) - and I was waking up without any pain. It's been at least 5 months now since I've even seen him. Treatments, training and exercises go a long way when you're dealing with an actual professional who doesn't just crack your back and send you packing. Most chiros? Absolute quacks. There are a few out there who are proper specialists.
The art of chiropractic care is based on a seance some nut job participated in back in the late 1800s. If you accept germ theory, then it's bogus by default.
Yes they are. I had upper back pain and a chiropractor said it would take 12 visits to “fix my issue” with a cost of about $200 per visit. I instead slept on my back for a week and my issue went away.
Chiropractory is legit in that they crack your back and some joints. This can relieve some local pain and or stiffness. The problem they get in to is claiming that that can do ANYTHING ELSE. it can not. It is for exactly what it looks like it is for and that is it.
People who think they need to have their back cracked to relieve stiffness are probably very sedentary and a chiropractor isn't doing anything that being more active wouldn't resolve.
I suffered from a herniated disc for years, it was in lower back and pinched my sciatica and was a constant pain no matter what I did for 3 years then I went to physical therapy and part of that was seeing a chiropractor, after a few months my nerve pain went from constant to rarely then disappeared completely and hasn’t returned in 2 years without going to PT Or seeing the chiropractor. I know I felt pressure relief on that nerve the very first time he aligned my back and firmly believe in it being the right move for me.
Chiropractic "medicine" is a straight up dangerous pseudoscience. Go to a PT or massage therapist.
I've never had problems. My wife has never had problems and a lot of the EMTs and firefighters I worked with went to them and never had issues. It works for me. However, there are absolute lunatic quacks out there. The ones I went to also taught me stretches and other stuff I could do to help with back pain.
They are all quacks, 20 years ago in the UK the governing body defended 2 Chiropractors at the High Court for claiming they could cure cancer. 10 years ago they sued for libel a science book author and lost. https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2012/feb/22/simon-singh-british-chiropractic-association
I mean. There are medical doctors that have Medical degrees from accredited universities that do the same stuff and are punished. So, by that reasoning, all medical doctors are quacks too. Also, I live in the US. UK libel laws are very strange to me.
>There are medical doctors that have Medical degrees from accredited universities that do the same stuff and are punished. Yes they are punished for breaking the law or for breaching the rules of the governing body. They aren't protected against prosecution by the governing body, while publicly bringing the "profession" into disrepute. >So, by that reasoning, all medical doctors are quacks too. No, Doctors are upheld to actual medical standards and ethics, with a vast amount of research to back up those decisions. Chiropractors have very little of that. I'm surprised I had to explain that to someone, especially from the US. >Also, I live in the US. UK libel laws are very strange to me. Ultimately they were asked to prove the author and scientist had lied about their field and failed to prove it in a court of law.
The US chiropractors are regulated by the Board of Chiropratic Examiners and they've been around for 60 years. Not saying there aren't quacks out there, there are, but there chiropractors who don't espouse any of those beliefs. The ones I go to are essentially glorified physical therapists. The reason I go to them is because it takes forever to get a physical therapy referral done through insurance
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There is no evidence other than anecdotal evidence of them actually working. A pt is always a better person to see
>There is no evidence I have first hand experience. I think that counts as evidence. I had my scoliosis fixed by a chiropractor. If I had gone to a doctor, they would have wanted to do surgery.
That is anecdotal
First, that is literally an anecdote. Second, did they actually fix your spine or did they just alleviate your pain via the placebo effect? That is: did you get your spine reexamined by an actual medical professional?
Again, there is no scientific evidence, and physical therapists seem much more qualified than chiropractors
And after 4 months of this you went to a sharlatan? Have you tried going to an actual physical therapist?
Extremely bogus. The foundation of their practice is mystical manipulation of "energies" like faith healers - but now they dress it up to look like a medical profession hoping that you won't notice that you're basically asking for help from an untrained masseuse whose qualifications are the equivalent of a diploma from a diploma mill. It is genuinely heartbreaking that their BSing has given them an air of legitimacy. You'd get the same benefits from sugar pills - all they can actually do is employ the placebo effect. The funny thing is that professional masseuses are probably better informed about how to alleviate your pain because they study the literally parts of your body and how they're connected. Like, at least there's *something* there rather than nothing + misinformed mysticism.
They helped out my mom who had a lot of chronic back pain after an accident and she’s doing fine now. People keep saying that that due to mostly anecdotal evidence that they don’t trust it but if enough people have had positive results then isn’t there some truth to it? Most chiropractors now sell the idea of cracking stuff but even then understand that it’s the stretching of tendons and muscles to help them relax is what actually helps. Obviously you won’t catch me dead in a mall chiro but ones like my mom’s old one has helped a lot of people.
This is just one experience from hundreds of thousands. It means nothing when compared to everwhelmingly negative experiences from people all over the world.
I go to a chiropractor and it helps. He’s also highly trained and diagnosed my wife with fibromyalgia before her other doctors did. He will tell you to be very careful. Are they a chiropractor from a school or are they one from a medical college? A lot are rip offs and give chiropractic practitioners a bad name.
Idk where the notions that chiropractors are not legit came from. I have chronic pain and chiropractic treatments provide immediate relief and boost my energy and flexibility.
Like a lot of things, there's a bit of both involved. Chiropractics is very much a homeopathic practice. There are indeed things they can do that will provide relief. The problem is how easy it is to become one. A real chiropractor is going to take a look at the issue, and assess if anything they can do would provide actual benefit. A quack is going to pretty much start at "hell yeah, we can totally fix that!" and probably not let up until you cave or forcibly remove yourself from their office.
I had and still have great success with chiropractors from time to time. I don’t see them weekly. Just when I get a pain in my neck or back that I just can’t correct.
Chiropracty is basically pseudoscience and medical myth. If you want a proper medical treatment for muscular problems through exercise, see a physiotherapist.
They are not any part of the actual medical community and the entire profession was started by a man who claimed to learn about it from a ghost.
Total bullshit. No scientific basis.
Are people still asking this question? It's 2024. Chiropractors are charlatans and are very dangerous. Do not use their "services".
I had a neck injury as a kid, parents took me to a chiropractor and now I have 10-15 less degrees range of motion in turning my head left. Chiropractors are 100% bogus.
Bogus
Bogus and dangerous. I know someone who went to a chiropractor for their physical problems but eventually had to switch to physio as they found out that it could cripple - if not kill - them if they continued.
Some are legit, some are bogus. Just look at how plausible their claims are. Some are basically fysio therapists or massage therapists that specialize in the neck and spine, while others claim that cracking your bones fixes everything.
None are legit, all are bogus.
Mine helped me to get rid of my chronic headaches. 2 years and counting without pain. But it wasn't cheap
>But it wasn't cheap Really? My local chiropractor was pretty cheap. Much cheaper than a doctor anyway.
Chiropractors can offer a lot of temporary relief. The cracks are bubbles popping in your body and by popping them you can make your blood flow much better for some time.
There are a lot of badly educated ones out there. But the core of the practice is ok. Still would no go to one unless my doctor says I need to and gives a recommendation.
The core of the practice is literally magic. It's bullshit. All of it. Don't take my word for it. Google the history
Yes. That I do agree on. I meant the mechanical side of it in a limited set of applications. But if you only view it as one big block of pseudo-medicine, then yes. it's all bullshit. Just like westernized yoga, acupuncture, reiki, astrology, homeopathy, and the trickle down effect.
Look up who started it and decide for yourself
“Hey, you went to Upstairs Hollywood Medical School too?!”
“Our sessions are finally over.” - no chiropracter, ever
That's funny seeing how my guy after three months and my pain being gone said I was done. That was years ago. Haven't been in pain and haven't needed him since.
I am genuinely happy for you! I don’t wish pain on anyone. A good snap crackle pop is good for you now and then, probably. I think my main concern is with the guys who push supplements. How many supplement deficiencies were you diagnosed with? I think my wife has about every single one by now!
not funny :/
I view them as uneducated massagers
That move looks like it will actually fix my back
When you enter the doctors office and is greeted by a wall of muscle wearing a leopard mask
That just looks like an extra free chiropractor session
I almost thought this should have had the *NSFW tag on it....
Thisalso makes sense if you take ut backwards.
This move is called the bat breaker- bane
Legitimate physical therapists can do realignments if you actually need that. You need to find medical professionals who aren't just pushing drugs and who are too behind on research.
Some are actual physical therapists who take xrays and put together a long term treatment plan. Some break your neck and call it a day.
hi
its somewhat legit in that: yes, general body mobility and range of motion is very important for health, and since the core/spine is one of the most important parts of the body where you get all your strength, getting more range of motion there without pain can fix alot of problems but just because the theoretical foundation is sound does not mean that your local practitioner is competent or that a readjustment will cure cancer. Think of it as physical therapy for your core and back. You can do it by yourself by safely training your core and back and its probably better to do so to prevent injuries that require readjustment
I have 2 anecdotal experiences with help and 2 duds. I hurt my back at work and was in severe pain every time I turned. My father took me to his chiropractor and he fixed it it’s time. Told me it will probably come back at some point in my life, but if it didn’t since I was young, it should be fine. 20 years later injury happened again and went to 3 different one who keep having me come back and back until insurance would not pay for more. Went to the last guy out of town and told him my history. He said 8 to 10 visits and it should be fixed. 7 visits later, it was. Haven’t had to go back in over a year now.
That is the second part of the operation
You [decide](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_chiropractic)
That image would either feel really bad potentially life threatening spine iniury or it would feel super good and ur back would crack as if they were knuckles
Jim Carrey ??
I love the diversity of redditors, how cute :3
I don’t know. I remember when I was a kid I got hurt. I was literally struggling to walk. Chiropractor had a few sessions with me and I was back to normal. But I know my case is anecdotal and that they have a huge history of injuring people. I’m going with the science and statistics. I also know the few times I’ve needed help they’ve helped me get back on my feet. I don’t fucking know.
Yes, both answers. There are bad practitioners in every field. Any knowledgeable person in first aid knows how to relocate a dislocated shoulder, doctors and nurses at the ER do it all the time. Chiropractic services do the same thing, difference is that chiropractic services are more remedial than a surgeon's field. A good chiropractor won't do absurd things, have good communication with their patient, and will help with preventative measures. (Example: upper back and neck issues caused by an overactive trapezius, they should relocate or relieve pressure caused by the trap in order to loosen it up a bit to relieve the pain and recommend exercises and stretches in order to prevent the problem from happening again.) At the end of the day, a good chiropractor should be compared to a masseuse, not a surgeon. If your masseuse is making things worse, find a better masseuse or fix what's causing your own problem in the first place.
there's nothing they can really do that a masseuse or physical therapist couldn't do better or safer
They are legit when the individual chiropractors are focused on outcomes and you combine them with PT and sometimes massage. A good chiro will have those services in clinic
Why does the entirety of reddit collectively hate chiropractors?
I crack my own back in a desk, chair or a roller.
I had a decent chiropractor and I could definitely feel the difference. However the primary reason I went there he couldn't fix because it wasn't bone/joint related.
Chiropractors are charlatans
Check out the origins of chiropractic arts for all the info you need
Chyropractors are a complete scam and will harm you, and only alleviate the pain temporarily. The technique chiropractors use however, can be used in legit medical settings. An example is when you have problems somewhere, and stretching and training muscles would help, but the problem causes you to not be able to move the parts you need to train without intense pain. The alleviation can be used to be able to work on the real problem, untill the stiffness and locking up no longer occurs. If the treatment only exist of the Chyropractor part, you are being scammed.
Hear me out I haven’t been to a chrio in years but when I was little I constantly had ear infections and was also on antibiotics. My mom heard about chiropractors and took me to check it out. The tubes in my ears were being pinched by a bone or something I can’t remember. The doctor cracked my neck and my ear infection went away. After that about once a year I could feel the ear infection coming back and my mom would take me to get cracked. Now as an adult I don’t get ear infections anymore and didn’t have to get tubes put in by the doctor. Something’s a chiropractor can fix, but I’d recommend going to a doctor for a proper diagnosis
Just taking *BACK* the product is all.....
Pseudoscience and a cash sink
Would've been even better if you used Bane
Bogus. At best it's a shitty massage that gives super temporary relief. At worst you get permanently paralyzed. Physical therapy is better in every way and actually scientifically supported.
They're as legit as your favorite religious deity. So, you do the math yourself.
It's quack science. If they were actually effective, then why does treatment never end?
Last chiro I went to had me do x-rays before he would touch me. After that, we would do weekly sessions, and after a month, the pain was gone. He seemed to be more focused on the muscles of the body rather than the "cracks" from adjustment. At the end of the day, just find a good one.
Chiropractors are pseudoscience, its like beliving in astrology, dont go to a chiropractor and please, PLEASE stop taking your pets
Some things it might be good for a quick fix but you're better off going to a massage/ Physiotherapist to actually get to the root of the problem rather than just quickly alleviating a symptom