Chiropractor is a Non-Invasive Way to Help People Naturally

In the early 1990's I made a decision that I wanted to be a Doctor of Chiropractic, and help people in a positive way naturally, without the use of drugs or surgery.  I could not be happier with my decision.  Every day I get to help people using my hands as my primary instrument of care, it is a blessing.

All Over the News Currently is the Reports of People at Risk of Meningitis - 13,000 People According to the CDC

All over the news currently is the reports of people at risk of meningitis, 13,000 people according to the CDC, who received injections of a steroid.  There is now 105 cases over 23 states linked to this one drug, including five in Maryland and 23 in Virginia, each with a death.  This type of injection is often used to help treat lower back pain.  Now I'm not saying never to get this type of treatment, I have recommended to patients in the past that this might be an appropriate next step for them, but I do feel that this should not be the first thing done for a patient in pain.  This current fungal form of meningitis is a brain infection that requires months of intravenous antibiotics to cure.  And unlike other types of meningitis the symptoms can appear gradually.  Including sensitivity to light, stiff neck, weakness, numbness, and slurred speech.  None of that sounds too fun.

Chiropractic is the Safe and Natural Approach to the Care of a Patient 

There is a time and place for drugs in the care of a patient with back pain, but I think taking a natural safe approach to the care of a patient is a logic decision, and that is exactly what Chiropractic care is, safe and natural.    

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Chiropractic is the First Choice for Anyone with Back Pain

The other night I arrived home and The NBC Evening News with Brian Williams was on our family television.  They went into a segment on "Alternative care for back pain".  I thought this could be really good or really bad.  To my surprise, it wasn't really either, but just dumbfounding.

The segment began with a woman who had an electrical devise implanted into her back so she could effectively use electrical stimulation on her back to control her pain after two failed lumbar surgeries.  

Invasive Lumbar Surgery Should Only Be Approached After All Other Forms of Treatment Have Failed 

Now I have no issue with this scenario, but as they continued to talk about this treatment, they brushed past the TWO FAILED LUMBAR SURGERIES.  This is not a treatment that someone should just jump into because their back hurts.  This therapy is after other forms of treatment have failed.  I even heard a woman at the gym talking to her personal trainer about approaching her doctor about this procedure, and she to date had only tried some medications a couple of times and one course of physical therapy.

Core Strengthening is Not Limited to Just a Particular Technique

The second part of the segment was about core strengthening.  Perfect.  The segment specifically endorsed Pilates, which is fine, but core strengthening is not limited to just that particular technique.  

The third part of the segment dealt with acupuncture, and how it can help some people.  True, it can help some people, but like everything it doesn't help everyone, and you need to make sure you are going to a licensed professional, whom hopefully you have received a personal referral too.

So at this point I though here comes the segment on Chiropractic...

Essentially Chiropractic was the Original Alternative to Medicine

Nothing.  Back to Brian Williams.  How is it possible to do a segment on "Alternative care for back pain" without Chiropractic.  Essentially  Chiropractic was the original alternative to medicine.  It was one of the largest factors in NIH establishing the Alternative Health division, and to be ignored for what it is best known for, dumbfounding.  I suppose I should try to look at it as maybe this reporter thought of Chiropractic as completely mainstream and the norm, and therefore no longer alternative, but some how I think that might be a stretch.  Chiropractic should be the first choice of anyone with back pain, whether or not it shows up on the evening news.

Chiropractic Care for Low Back Pain

After 15 years as a Chiropractor, most of those in Germantown, you quickly realize that patient's tend to come into your office in cycles.  There will be weeks that every new patient was just in a car accident, every new patient has neck pain, or every new patient has lower back pain.  

There is an Enormous Amount of Low Back Pain Cases that Visit My Office

This has been the case these past couple of weeks, everyone has low back pain.  Some have it with sudden onset, some have been nursing it for weeks and months, and a few have had it for years.  The truly amazing thing is how many have been suffering, and then a few days before their vacation they come in for care and hope that a "one and done" will take care of their problem.

Back Problems do Not Magically Disappear

Of course sometimes it does, but more often it does not.  Back problems do not tend to magically appear.  Sometimes it is something out of the ordinary that injures us, but usually it is the wear and tear we put of our bodies over the course of time that end up subjecting us to our different aches and pains. 

Even people who get better rapidly usually take a few visits at a minimum to improve fully, but sometimes it can take weeks to begin to finally make some progress.  So don't worry if you’re not instantly better, how many things in life happen instantly, give it time and you will begin to notice the improvement.  But please if you have pain, and upcoming vacations PLEASE visit the Chiropractor NOW.  Give yourself some time to get better.

by Dr. Cramer

Chiropractic Lessons Learned from a Daschund

I had an epiphany this morning.  I thought for years one of my dogs, a Daschund name Nathan, commonly called a wiener dog, was trying to kill me.  As we are the two males in our house, one of us was going to be the Alpha male, and obviously he wanted it to be him.  He would always run under my feet while I was on the stairs, attempting to get me to fall to my death.  

Tighten Your Core Muscles Before Bending Over

This morning I released he is only trying to maime me.  I bent over to pet him, and all of a sudden my back started to tighten up. It was that moment I released his diabolical plan.  Frequently, patients will come into the office as their backs "went out" feeding their dog, tying their shoes, reaching for the shampoo, but what is the common factor:  they do these things first thing in the morning.  Now I'm not going to tell you not to do these things, as they still have to be done, but proceed with more caution.  If possible try to get warmed up, get your blood flowing in the morning, definitely try to remember to tighten up your core muscles if you are going to bend over or lift anything.  But most importantly, remember that Daschund have a Napoleon Complex and want to rule the world.

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Help your Children Have a Healthy Back

In my last blog I was talking about your kids back packs, and today I want to talk a little more about that....

Health Problems are Not Spontaneous

The manifestation of any health problem is not spontaneous.  There are factors that contribute to these problems, and often with spinal problems those factors have to do with adaptations.  The body will to adapt to the stress put on it, but when its ability to respond is exceeded then the symptoms will begin to occur.

There are Numerous Causes of Poor Back Posture

Poor posture is not a medical condition that has a diagnosis, but it is easily visible, and its causes can be numerous.  There can be in some instances congenital, but more often external forces, such as backpacks, unlevel shoes, development in puberty, sitting poorly at a desk, all these and more can essentially lead to micro-traumas to the spine.

Have Your Child Checked When the Problem First Arises

It is important that at the first sign of a problem arising to have your child checked out by a Chiropractor so that these adaptations do not become permanent and lead to bigger problems down the road.

Don't Crack Your Own Back! Seek Chiropractic Help

The Long Term Effects of Cracking your Own Spine

At least once a week at my office in Germantown, a new patient will come for their initial chiropractic visit and relay to me how they can't understand why they have the pain they do, when they have been cracking their own neck and/or back for years, and often decades.  Typically, the person is in their early to mid 40s, and tells me they have been doing this since they were a teenager.  If they bring along x-rays, their spines look like they are 75 years old.

Why You Don’t Want to Crack Your Own Spine

I'm not the type to lecture patients.  If you smoke, eat poorly, drink too much, or whatever less then healthy behavior you engage in, odds are you realize it is not healthy, and you have probably already been lectured to by your primary care physician.  So... the only mini-lecture I give is about why you don't want to crack your own spine.

A “Stuck” Vertebrae is the Area of Most Resistance

Let's start with the basics.  The reason a person has the desire to "crack" their own neck or back is that one or more of the vertebrae are likely not moving properly, they are stuck.  Now when you apply force or speed into an area indiscriminately, the laws of nature state the energy is going to find the area of least resistance.  A "stuck" vertebrae is the area of most resistance.  Ultimately what the person is doing is creating a loose vertebrae along with the stuck one, and now they have two problems.  Often cracking the area multiple times a day.  This is not normal.

The Neck is a Bit More Complicated because it has Two Arteries That Run Inside the Vertebrae to Nourish the Brain

In the neck specifically it gets more complicated, because of two arteries the run inside the vertebrae to nourish your brain.  Repeatedly cracking your neck can injure these arteries and may lead to a deficit of blood to the brain.  Definitely not a good idea.  And if you are a woman, your arteries are even thinner then a man's, as hormones make them thinner, and if you take birth control, thinner again, and if you smoke, increases the likely hood of damage.  Just don't do it would seem easy enough to say, but let's deal with reality.  Your spine is not right.  Go see a Chiropractor.  We are are here to make sure your spine functions correctly.  We will move the vertebrae that need to be moved, not just randomly move things.  Think of it this way if you are cracking your own neck, right now you are using a shotgun approach, just blasting everything.  I am a marksman. 

Dr. Michael Cramer graduated Magna Cum Laude from Cleveland Chiropractic College in Los Angeles.  His undergraduate degree in Communications Studies from the University of California at Santa Barbara helps him effectively communicate to his patients in a way that they can easily understand.  He specializes in neuromusculoskeletal disorders and injuries by utilizing the latest advances in chiropractic and physical rehabilitation for prompt recoveries.  His pragmatic approach to health and well-being has helped countless patients to improve their health.   He prides himself on providing quality principled care in a warm friendly environment.  He is a member of the Maryland Chiropractic Association. 

Cramer Chiropractic Rehab maintains an active presence on many popular search and social media websites. Select your favorite website below to stay connected or review us.

       

Chiropractic Care for Your Posture!

Chiropractic Care Can Help Improve Posture

Often a patient will come into my office in Germantown, and besides the pain that they are complaining about, they also state that they have bad posture.  Luckily, besides improving their pain, an often side effect of being under the care of a Chiropractor is improved posture.  

Our Daily Sitting Positions has a Great Impact on Our Posture

As a society we sit, and sit in front of computers, and then go home and sit in front of the TV.  How many hours a day do we do this, often it is quite a bit of our waking hours.  All of this time in these positions has trained our musculature that this is normal, but it is not.  Imagine if you spent that many hours a day fine tuning your golf game, or any other sport you play, you could go pro!

Getting adjusted by a Chiropractor is The First Step in Improving Your Posture!

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Look around your office, and you will see people with forward head carriage, essentially their shoulders are rounded forward and their heads are sticking out in front of their torsos.  When you look at a person from the side, their shoulders should not be forward and the hole in their ear should be aligned with their AC joint of the shoulder.  Now obviously from my perspective, I feel getting adjusted, making sure all of your vertebrae are aligned is the first step to improving your posture, but there are things you can do for yourself.  I have never liked the idea of simply telling someone to pull their shoulders back and stick out their chest.  This is not the most comfortable way to walk around.  But what I recommend is imagining that you are a marionette and you have a string attached to your head pulling you straight up, elongating your spine.  This is easier to maintain, and you will actually appear taller.

Dr. Michael Cramer graduated Magna Cum Laude from Cleveland Chiropractic College in Los Angeles.  His undergraduate degree in Communications Studies from the University of California at Santa Barbara helps him effectively communicate to his patients in a way that they can easily understand.  He specializes in neuromusculoskeletal disorders and injuries by utilizing the latest advances in chiropractic and physical rehabilitation for prompt recoveries.  His pragmatic approach to health and well-being has helped countless patients to improve their health.   He prides himself on providing quality principled care in a warm friendly environment.  He is a member of the Maryland Chiropractic Association.