Complementary and Alternative Medicine Therapies
As a chiropractor, your practice is built upon the ability to help those who are in acute and chronic pain, as well as maintaining a healthy body balance for life. Along with chiropractic care, many doctors are finding that adding alternative and complementary treatments to their practice provides patient retention and whole body care that lasts a lifetime. Practitioners in many fields can bring in a level of exceptional care to add to the chiropractic program for patients, including acupuncture and magnetic field therapists, massage therapists, yoga instructors as well as treatment therapies that doctor’s staff can provide, such as cryotherapy, physical therapy and sauna therapy.
Innovative Healthcare- Which treatments are best for my patients and practice?
Consider your business space, the time you have to invest in alternative treatment, cost and benefit to the patient. What would be most effective for your clientele? Here are some options to consider when diversifying your practice and offering multiple treatment options for the whole body wellness and long term lifestyle of your patients.
Acupuncture- As an ancient Chinese health treatment, acupuncture has found its way into the mainstream health treatment options as a way to help patients with chronic pain. It is used to treat back pain, knee and other joint pains, neck pain and headaches. Although some still find it controversial as to its healing effects, more and more patients are finding that its health benefits are both effective and a non-invasive treatment for their pain. It is another avenue to offer patients a pain relief system that works very well with chiropractic care.
Cryotherapy- As another far east originating treatment, the Japanese discovered the value in the treatment of pain and the healing effects of deep cold treatments utilizing whole body cryotherapy (WBC). In its modern form, the cryotherapy chamber exposes the body to deep cold for a matter of minutes. This treatment relieves pain from chronic conditions, as well as from sports injury and other acute pain issues. Cryotherapy stimulates the blood system and endocrine system to clear toxins and flood the body with nutrients and endorphins to aid in healing injury and recover more quickly from intense sporting workouts. Many professional athletes and patients of disease like multiple sclerosis have found the cryotherapy treatment to be the most effective at pain relief, and have found it works well as a complement to chiropractic adjustment. Having a cryotherapy chamber in a chiropractic practice is a popular and healthy option.
Magnetic field therapy- This therapy is designed to use magnets to treat health issues. It is based on the idea that because the body and the earth both have electric and magnetic fields, and the body can be balanced through the body and earth connection. The belief is that the electromagnetic fields should be balanced and release the electromagnetic fields that technology creates. Magnetic therapy is believed to relieve joint and other physical pain in patients. It utilizes acupuncture needles to treat the energy paths in the body.
Massage therapy- The common complementary practice of massage therapy is a popular choice in chiropractic offices today. With many different types of massage, including Swedish, deep-tissue, reflexology, hot stone and many more, the benefits of pain relief and the improved circulation of the body are a good choice for healing, especially in between chiropractic adjustment.
Sauna- Many patients feel better after having a sauna treatment. The heat relieves symptoms and tightness of the muscles, as well as toxins being released through sweating. It has many benefits for the patient and is a relatively inexpensive and space saving treatment option for many chiropractors today. Sauna treatments have improved the overall wellbeing of thousands of people and can certainly be a complementary alternative treatment for your patients.
Yoga- With the large amount of chronic pain sufferers today, the practice of yoga has taken on a mainstream health following. More and more people are finding that yoga helps improve their chronic pain symptoms, giving them more flexibility, increased muscle strength and mental wellbeing. Yoga is an excellent choice to work alongside chiropractic care, and can substantially improve many of your patient’s lives.
Biofeedback- According to the Mayo Clinic, “Biofeedback is a technique you can use to learn to control some of your body's functions, such as your heart rate. During biofeedback, you're connected to electrical sensors that help you receive information about your body.
This feedback helps you make subtle changes in your body, such as relaxing certain muscles, to achieve the results you want, such as reducing pain. In essence, biofeedback gives you the ability to practice new ways to control your body, often to improve a health condition or physical performance.” [1]
Biofeedback takes several different forms, from brain waves, breathing, sweat glands, muscle contraction and temperature. This treatment can teach patients how to control the parts of their body that consistently have caused pain, and help them to a better outlook when living with chronic health issues.
With many alternative medicinal therapies that can be a complement to chiropractic care and help to achieve a wellness plan for life, many chiropractors are including options for their patients to find the best pathway to successfully living without pain or reduction in the pain the live with. Patients and doctors alike, are finding whole body lifestyle wellness plans are the best way to live an optimum life.
[1] https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/biofeedback/about/pac-20384664