Question
QUESTION: Hi Dr. Dolan. I apologized for just returning to you. I was expecting an email to my address and did not think to go back and check here. First let me explain, I know it can be so confusing understanding me with all of the issues I have. I began having hip and knee pain  in 2004 from what I think wwere a few falls and over stretching. I had mri done and was found to have a torn labrum. I was told the knee would do better because they felt it was coming from my hip. After surgery I developed a bakers cyst that would stall my improvement to the hip. In and out of theraphy I developed groin pain on my other side. It began shooting deep down my legs.I decided to do yoga and ended up with the worse pain in my lower back. I then went to visit a chiro which is well known here. I was doing really great with the right until he decided to do a adjustment for my cocyxx. That began the chronic pain. I could not do any ab work or leg lift work. And was in constant pain when I was walking. I decided to go for an epidoral shot and facets injections which did not help. After reading The Fitness Fixer Blog, I realized a lot of my continueing issues were from over arching and pronation of the feet. After practicing I still had a lot of pain with sitting and walking. I then decided to see a new chiro who with my prodding manually checked my cocyxx bone and found it to be twisted and rotated. When I wrote you I was probable into my twelve visit. I am please to say that on feeling the bone it is straight again. I have also been to a massage therapist who does myofascia release and am now doing swimming in the pool. I am still very sore the following day in my hamstring, It band insertion and psoas. The worse now to add is that my knees hurt very bad after dancing. I went to an ortho and he told me I had a high baha groove and that my medial quad muscles are very weak. I am cnfused because I was not having issues with dancing before and had felt that my knee issues were behind me. Do you think it is hurting because I am finally getting back into alighnment? Or as my massage guy thinks that I might have a miniscus tear that was not picked up in the Mri. Since the knees started hurting again, I cannot squat or do the static lounges I was doing to strenghten the muscles. Do you think that the pool work will help with those issues? My major concern is that unless my knee heals, I will always have the si joint issues because of over compensation. Please help me ,I have lost my trust in the orthopedics doctors because they ignored my complaint earlier on. Respectfully Sloan

ANSWER: Hello Sloan.

Thanks for getting back, hope my first answer helped a little, now on to this more 'fleshed out' question....

You have many issues.  I almost do not know where to start.  Of course, I will admit my bias, I hope you find a good Doctor of Chiropractic and stay with him/her.

You have many issues.  Let's start with your intake. Your nutrition. Do you eat junk?  GIGO.  Computers used to say garbage in, garbage out.  Same for our bodies. Garbage in, many injuries and illnesses.

Get away from the standard american diet. No take out food, no fast food, cook yourself, fresh, raw, organic, plenty of clean pure water, vitamins, supplements.  Try to stay off all toxins/ pollutants- they stress your body and make you prone to breakdown.  Of course no alcohol, caffeine, tobacco.  Best exercise right now may be swimming- - - and only swimming.

Stay with the massage therapist.  But lets work slowly, conservatively- it is a cinch by the inch.

Chiropractically:  lets start with the feet.  The orthotics are a good idea- you have them, do you USE them?  how old are they now, over a year- maybe time for new; over two years old- time for new orthotics.  Have your feet, ankles, knees, hips, SI joints, L/sac spine checked and adjusted.  

If you are not happy with your progress with this Doctor of Chiropractic, look for a Chiro with additional education; Chiropractors have certifications/ diplomat status in different areas such as sports injury and fitness, orthopedics, rehab, neurology.  Look for a chiro with additional letters after the name.

You have a plethora of problems.  These problems should resolve in time with chiropractic, supported by proper nutrition.  Let your chiropractor do a chiropractic workup on you- including perhaps AK- applied Kinesiology to evaluate you, thermography, surface emg, activator analysis.  I am sure you have had the traditional medical tests, make sure your DC has analyzed you thoroughly with chiropractic analytic techniques,,, sometimes we treat after clearing the medical analysis, without doing enough chiropractic analysis.

Sloan, I do not know if this shotgun approach answers your question, but hopefully it will encourage you to keep working at it, at maybe give you a different new idea.

Keep me informed.

Good luck.

As always, only your treating doctor(s) can give you specific advice.  This is meant for informative, educational, discussion purposes only.

Wishing you Good Health, Naturally!

Victor Dolan, DC, DACBSP
Staten Island Chiropractor
http://www.DocDolan.net

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks Dr. Dolan. My nutrition is very good. I do have a cup to two of coffee in the morning. I also enjoy a couple glasses of wine on the weekends. It helps me to deal with my pain when I am in a social setting. I do not take pain killers and once in a while I may take an Aleve. The chiro I am seeing now is pretty good. My cocyxx is now straight. But still keep having a leg length issue each time I go in. It is getting smaller and smaller though. I am still concern with my left knee because it still hurts after over a month. My chiro said it is because of my pelvis rotation which is getting better and better. So keep up the swimming? Even if I still have muscle issues the following day? I guess that will get better? How about the recumbant bike? Also he gave me some back strenghtner exercises. I was doing them in theraphy for the back which cuased even more tightness and spasm. But that was before ssing him. I know that sometimes I have to go back to something that did not work because of what I was doing then. I will ask him about the appled kiesiology. I did have him do a laser sort of checkup on me. It is a computer with a mouse like object that he ran from the base of my neck to the bottom of my spine. One thing that he has not done yet is traction. The kind that buckles the ankle and it moves in different position? Should I be getting that or maybe he is waiting for me to be more in line? I live in South Florida and if this does not work, can you please give me someone in Florida for me to see? As I sit here typing I feel a burning electrical pain deep in my abdomen. It just never seems to cease with the pain. After everything physical I get these pain. Hopefully being deligent with the pool will help. Thanks so much. Sloan

ANSWER: Hello Sloan.

I think from this answer it does sound like you are making progress.

Yes, I really like the pool, keep that up.  You do not have to be vigorous or swim a lot of laps.  Walking around in a pool, floating, even simple things can be therapeutic.  While in the pool, if you can get to the water return, let the water coming back in give you a massage on the sore spots- ie your knee. Keep up the pool.

"...traction. The kind that buckles the ankle and it moves in different position? Should I be getting that or maybe he is waiting for me to be more in line?..."  I do not know the type of traction you are describing here, but depending upon your findings, traction could be used at any time during your care regimen.

Continued knee pain.  Your nutrition is good.  Do you take enough Glucosamine/ chondroitin, MSM, SAMe, Calcium, Magnesium, Vit D; to rebuild th bones/ joints.  Make sure you get enough for your weight.
And anti-inflammatory nutrients could be helpful: proteolytic enzymes, bromelain, organic raw pineapple every day.

I think this question shows that you are making some progress.  Just keep it up and good luck.  If for some reason you do want names for referral, I will try to look some up.

Please remember only your treating doctors can make specific recommendation.  This article is for discussion, information, education purposes.

Wishing you Good Health, Naturally!

Victor Dolan, DC
http://www.DocDolan.net



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Wow. Thanks. I will follow your direction. May I ask what is water return? And one last question, thinking of buying a apparatus table for hanging up side down. Any advice on that. Once again thank you. Sloan

Answer
Hello Sloan.

"Water return", is just the water inlet, where the pool filter returns the water back into the pool.  Sometimes- ie an above ground backyard pool, you can position your body to get 'massaged' by the returning water.

Up north here, this Staten Island Chiropractor often recommends to patients to get into the pool and stand with the sore low back, or neck pain, or whatever sore/ pain part is the complaint- against the water inlet.  The massage helps. Unfortunately this is backyard pool therapy is only available during the warmer months.

Inversion.  I would ask youd DC to find an inversion device where you hang from your hips.  You would be upside down, but in a sitting type position, hanging from the hips: not placing inversion spinal decompressive traction forces also upon your ankles, knees (which could aggravate your knee) and hips.

If you were to try an inversion device where you hang from your ankles, I would certainly look for one that is variable/ adjustable- where you could slowly progress on the angle of inversion, and not just hang directly upside down as the one option.

Good luck, and good health- naturally!

Victor Dolan, DC
http://www.DocDolan.net