Question
What are your thoughts about the activator method that chiro[practors use. I have been told that i have a subluxation of my spine in the upper thoracic area. i have had muscle spasms on the left side and on the right between my shoulder blades.Can muscle spasms cause pain down the arms?
How long does it take to fix a subluxation? My chiropractor also uses laser ! How does this help with the problem

Answer
Dear Michele,

Thank you for your several questions.  Your questions are similar to those I have heard from others who are investigating chiropractic.  In order to give you a meaningful answer about the technical aspects of chiropractic, in particular, I抣l first need to give you some background on the different objectives found in the chiropractic profession.

There are two branches or schools of thought in chiropractic.  Briefly, they are differentiated by whether they deal with the limited therapeutic approach for aches and pains (commonly termed "mixed" chiropractic because it represents a mixture of a chiropractor with a non-chiropractic matter) or a non-therapeutic approach to optimum body performance (termed "straight" chiropractic because there is no mixing of chiropractic with anything else).  My expertise is in non-therapeutic straight chiropractic.

Therapeutic "mixed" chiropractic is the older approach based on a split from the founding principles of chiropractic about a century ago.

Non-therapeutic "straight" chiropractic is the more modern of the two.  It deals with a particular, common situation called a vertebral subluxation. Obviously, you have heard this term, but I抎 like to make sure we抮e using it the same way.  The spine is made of many bone segments which house and protect the spinal cord and the smaller spinal nerve branches that come off the spinal cord and exit between the bones.  These nerve pathways carry information or messages between the brain and the cells of the body.  These messages are essential for the life of the cells.  Without brain messages, the cells immediately begin the process of dying; i.e., they can no longer function the way they should to maintain life.

Because spinal bones are moveable, they can misalign in such a way as to interfere with these vital messages and, ultimately, the ability of the person to function at their best or express their optimum potential.  People with vertebral subluxations are not able to get all they can out of life.

Vertebral subluxations can be caused by a wide variety of factors, what we'll generally call stresses.  These stresses can be physical (such as accidental trauma, sleeping posture and mattress condition, the birth process, sneezing, falling down, etc.), mental / emotional (in its many forms, probably the most familiar use of the word stress), or chemical (such as pollution, drugs, etc.), which are, unfortunately, regular parts of daily living for all age groups.  In short, a vertebral subluxation can occur for a multitude of reasons.

Tragically, vertebral subluxations are rarely obvious to the individual they affect.  They usually have no symptoms.  The reason is that most of what goes on inside you happens without your awareness.  As an example, try to "feel" your liver.  What's it doing right now?  You can't know, so you can't know if it's functioning at its best or something less.  To complicate things, nerve pathways that carry messages of control (termed "motor" nerves) have no way of transmitting ache or pain messages, so your body function may be far from perfect and you'd not have any alerting signal whatsoever.  The branching of the nerve pathways is complex and extensive, making it exceedingly difficult to predict or determine exactly how the person will be affected.  This alone makes it impossible for anyone to determine reliably whether a particular symptom may be related to the spine, including the presence of spasms or whether they are responsible for further symptoms such as arm pain.  There is really only one way to know if someone has a vertebral subluxation - it is necessary to have that person抯 spine checked by a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor using a method of "analysis."  When a vertebral subluxation is detected this way, it is obviously important to correct it as soon as possible.

Since vertebral subluxations are caused by so many different things, people choose to go to a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor on a regular basis to enjoy the most time free of the life-robbing effects of vertebral subluxation. There's a saying that straight chiropractic is not about your back, it's not about your pain, it's about your life.  Each person has a unique potential in life.  With vertebral subluxation, it's impossible to realize that potential.

A key question to ask for your purposes, then, would be, Is someone with spasms or arm pain better off with vertebral subluxation / nerve interference or free of subluxation / with the nerve channels open?  It is easy to see that having all the available nerve messages getting through is better than only some of them getting through, regardless of the person's situation otherwise.

As I mentioned earlier, not all chiropractors adhere to this and it is important that you be able to distinguish which ones do if you're going to seek this type of service.  Please understand very clearly that the practice objectives of therapeutic mixed chiropractic and non-therapeutic straight chiropractic are quite different, as described above.  What I can tell you must not be interpreted from the mixed viewpoint.  

You had asked about activator method.  That term alone does not help me to know fully what it is you抳e experienced.  Often, this refers to a particular piece of equipment, commonly referred to as an activator instrument.  By its design, a device that can assist in delivering a force which can be applied to a spinal bone at a particular angle and location, it may be used to effect correction of vertebral subluxations, but it may be used in other ways, as well.  It depends entirely on whether the chiropractor is of the non-therapeutic straight viewpoint or that of therapeutic mixing.  Sometimes the term refers more broadly to an entire regimen, typically relating to general body mechanics but not necessarily vertebral subluxation, again, completely dependent on the chiropractor抯 school of thought.  Rather than tell you what I think of this technique, consider this: it is more important what you think about it.  If you wish to receive non-therapeutic straight chiropractic services and believe that the activator instrument is best suited to helping your body be free of vertebral subluxations, then so be it!  The actual technical considerations inherent in its use are of less importance than whether it is being used in the correction of vertebral subluxations.  I would ask the chiropractor, then, more questions about why he/she uses it rather than questions about how it works, though that may be a concern for you as well.  

Your question is analogous to asking what I think of baseball bats ?in the hands of a major league player, they make great 搕ools of the trade?to launch a thrown baseball.  In the hands of a thug, they are destructive and deadly weapons.  For these two, it is clearly a matter of intent that determines how the item is used and how its success is measured.  In the hands of a carpenter wanting to drive a nail into the finish moulding, it抯 nowhere near as good as a hammer and, if he were trying to use it to cut a board to length, well, it抯 a very poor choice.  For this example, it抯 a matter of suitability of the item for the proposed use.  Likewise, an activator instrument can be used for different purposes or it can be misused.  The distinction lies in the user, not the device.  

From the non-therapeutic standpoint, then, an adjustment is effected by any of a number of techniques, but is solely and uniquely for the correction of vertebral subluxations because they, in and of themselves, are detrimental to the expression of life.  The exact technique used, including the use of an activator instrument, is not the determining factor in whether someone is providing straight or mixed chiropractic services.  In fact, because no two people are the same, many who are practicing non-therapeutic straight chiropractic and focusing solely on the correction of vertebral subluxations will rely on a variety of adjusting techniques.  They will employ the one best suited to the particular individual in the office at that particular moment.  

Regarding laser, there is no evidence to suggest that it is of use in the analysis or adjustment of vertebral subluxations.  It is intended as a therapeutic modality.  

You also asked about the time required to correct vertebral subluxations.  From the non-therapeutic standpoint, an adjustment is not a process that requires a series of visits; it is a procedure that is accomplished immediately.  Repeat adjustments are made if and when a subluxation is detected ?and only then.  There is no schedule of adjustments involved nor is there a specific amount of time that must pass.  It would require prophetic powers to know with any certainty when and where someone would be subluxated in the future, even though the causes are very common and, therefore, being subluxated is certainly a likely event.

With that said, it would certainly be wise to have your spine checked for subluxations by a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor on an ongoing basis if it is your desire to have an opportunity to realize your full potential.  It may be that the chiropractor you visited fits this model, but that seems unlikely based on what you抳e told me.  Based on the limited information available, it seems he/she is focusing on treating your complaints, substantially supported by the therapeutic use of laser but even if it is being attempted through manipulative therapy, achieving movement of spinal bones by way of an activator device.  

If you are interested in finding out how to locate a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor in your area or determine if the one you visited recently is a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor, please contact me at this site again or at [email protected].  You may also visit www.gschiro.com, a site that represents non-therapeutic straight chiropractic organizations on a state level.

Michele, I wish you the best in understanding non-therapeutic straight chiropractic.  It has been my pleasure to provide you with some information.

Sincerely,
James W. Healey, D.C.