Joint pain can be a frustrating feeling, taking over daily activities and range of motion. It’s never fun to deal with and it seems as if it only gets worse with time in most cases. Joint pain can come in many forms and there are a plethora of causes including but not limited to arthritis, sprains or fractures/broken bones (present or past), fibromyalgia, lupus, lyme disease, over exercising, etc. Though chiropractic care primarily focuses on spinal health, doctors can also work the joints in the extremities (such as the elbow and knees) to get you feeling in tip top shape.
You use your joints for just about everything. The purpose of them is to connect muscles and bones (that don’t move on their own) giving structure to the body and allowing for movements, so obviously you use them each and every day. We often neglect to acknowledge how much we use our joints and what they do for our bodies so when they become stiff or hurt, we are confused and frustrated. When parts of the body ache, it’s telling you something is wrong. When they joints hurt, they are telling you that they are being overused with little to no love and care. Joints can be awkward places to give love to. They are difficult to ice and heat (because of frequent movement), weird places to massage (because the pain is usually internal and not accessible directly with hands), and pain relief creams generally help the outside muscles and skin (rather that getting directly to the source of pain). Relying on pain medication is generally the answer for joint pain but it’s not always healthy, especially long-term, to take pain killers.
Chiropractic care for the joints gives your body just what it needs to spring back into shape without depending on unhealthy medication. Doctors can adjust the extremities through the activation technique, targeting tensions within the joints. This will help relieve built up pressure and keep the joints in the correct positioning. Getting the extremities adjusted will reduce pain associated with working out, walking, and everyday movements. It will also prevent pain in the future through making the joints stronger and more resistant to abnormal movements and placement.
Joint pain is one of those things that people often feel and expect it to go away until it becomes a “normal pain”. No pain is normal and living with the irritation isn’t what you need should have to feel. With how often we use our joints, it’s only a matter of time that there will be some sort of pain or discomfort. Reduce the amount of that you feel in the joints and put some pep back into your step through chiropractic care!