Question
Yesterday, I was told by my chiropractor (Charleston, SC) that I have a military neck. They tell me that 40 visits of adjustments plus cervical traction plus exercises will change my curvature of my neck.  Is that true?

Answer
Dear Kelly,

Thank you for your question about your military neck and the proposal you received from a local office to change the curvature in your neck.  The short answer to your question is, maybe.  It may be possible to force change into the curves in some people抯 spines.  In others, it may not happen.  Each person is unique.  Perhaps a better question to ask, though, is, should it be attempted, either way?   You may get more out of this if we first consider aspects of anatomy and physiology and how they relate to the spine and chiropractic.  

Know that your question is similar to those I have heard from others who are investigating chiropractic.  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, quite common situation called a vertebral subluxation. This is not specifically the same as the findings of curves in the neck - or lack of a curve, as referenced in your question - but they may exist together.  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 vital 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 the bones are moveable, they can misalign in such a way as to interfere with the 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, 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.  In order 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 non-therapeutic straight chiropractic is not about your back, it's not about 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 a military neck 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 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.  

In discussing vertebral subluxation earlier in this message, I used the word misalignment.  I am not talking here about the degree of spinal curvature, however, even if it is diminished to near-zero, and it is not interchangeable with the term vertebral subluxation.  The misalignment that I address is that of a specific segment of the spine.  Technically speaking, we have to get even a bit more advanced in what is meant by misalignment to make this clear.  The question is, Misaligned with respect to what?  It is possible to describe the body geometrically, reasoning that we are bilaterally symmetrical and concluding that there is a measurable 搈idline?or that our hips and shoulders should be 揵alanced?on a perpendicular line to this proposed 搈idline,?or that there are certain model curves or geometry in other planes.  The problem with this thinking is that it assumes we are simply machines and ignores that we are alive, capable of movement, adaptation, growth, etc.  At any given moment, there is an optimum state for us to carry out life to our best abilities.  That optimum state will vary depending upon the circumstances, both within us and of our environment.  There are many examples to illustrate this.  If you carry something heavy with one hand, you must lean away from it, putting something of a curve into the spine, to keep yourself balanced.  Does that mean the body is failing because there is imbalance or a curve, or is it instead being quite successful in adapting you to the situation?  In another example, consider that those who argue for geometric balance or symmetry would be hard-pressed to explain why the carpenter who swings a 28-ounce hammer all day with his right arm only would have certain physical adaptations that favor his right side.  Should the carpenter have some of the tissue removed from his arm, hand and back?  Or is he merely adapted to his circumstances?  You mention a situation dealing with the amount of curve in the forward-backward plane instead of sideways, yet the point I抦 getting at is that there is an individually determined, innately normal position for the body that cannot be described by geometry in any plane.

With that said, I will not comment on the therapeutic goal of restoring curves to your neck or any other part of your spine.  It is not pertinent to whether you would benefit from being free of vertebral subluxation.  

It would certainly be wise to have your spine checked for subluxations by a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor, even if you also elect to have therapeutic attention for restoring neck curves.  Remember, the two objectives are not the same.  I cannot tell you anything specific about whether you currently have any vertebral subluxations, the nature of those that may exist in your spine, the type of adjusting procedures or scheduling that would be appropriate for you, etc.  I抳e never met you!  The chiropractor you choose will have to give you those answers.  It is not a process that takes place over a series of 40 visits or any other prescribed number.  The number of things which may cause vertebral subluxations is huge and they are common elements of daily living.  Choosing to live free of vertebral subluxations is not a numerical sequence of 40 office visits.  People who understand vertebral subluxation have their spines checked regularly until they die, trying to minimize the time they are living with this interference to their lives.  

It may be that the chiropractor you have chosen does not practice within this objective.  Realize that I have only limited information on which to base this.  A focus on restoring neck curves and the therapeutic use of traction and exercise modalities typically indicates a therapeutic mixed chiropractic approach.  You may wish to discuss this directly with the chiropractor to confirm this.  If such is the case and you are interested in finding out how to locate a non-therapeutic straight chiropractor in your area, please contact me at this site again or at [email protected].  

Kelly, I wish you the best in exploring and understanding the world of chiropractic.  It has been my pleasure to provide you with some information.

Sincerely,
James W. Healey, D.C.