I see a lot of people with neck and shoulder pain. Most of them have tried many different modalities with little or no success. Part of the reason why they are not having the desired outcome is because they believe these lies about why they are having pain and the cause of their pain. It frustrates me to no end when people are told lies about their health and they continue to suffer thinking there is no hope of getting better. The simple truth is once you understand how your body works you are empowered to make changes and start living the life you truly desire. Here are the most common lies told:

  1. The problem is where your pain is:

One of the reasons that people don’t get much relief from their pain is that they only focus on the area where the pain is. It seems logical that getting treatment at the location of your pain would be the best bet for a solution. This may be true for an acute injury, meaning you just tore your knee from getting slide tackled in a soccer game. But for most people their pain is a little more gradual. They woke up one day with pain in their neck or shoulder and it just kept getting worse. Our bodies are amazing entities that are always trying to adapt to keep us functioning. Therefore when we have a problem with our biomechanics (the way our bodies move) our bodies create compensation. At some point if this biomechanical problem is not fixed then you will develop a problem (pain). Most of the time the pain you feel is a compensation for a biomechanical problem somewhere else in the body.

  1. Taking Advil and Ibuprofen helps the problem and are good for you

Let me first say I am not anti-drugs at all cost. The important factor is only using drugs as a temporary solution. For example if I have a root-canal you best believe that I will have Novocain to numb the area before the dentist start to drill. That is what drugs were originally designed for. But now we hand it out like candy. Not only do anti-inflammatory drug do nothing to help the healing process, they can be dangerous if you take too many. There can be serious side effects, such as stomach bleeding, result in more than 100,000 hospitalizations and thousands of deaths each year in the U.S.

  1. Your aches and pain are just a part of normal aging

Have you ever thought of the difference between “normal” and “common”? Many times we use the word normal when we really mean common. It is common in our society that anyone over the age of 65 will have many health problems. Just because it is common does not mean that it is normal. The reason that aches and pain and all other chronic health problems are common in our society is because we do not take the responsibility for our health, and even worse we believe the lies that are told to us about our health. They default of your body is health. You are born to be healthy and happy, you just have to do things and think things that are different than the average person. You have the power inside of you to be healthy.

  1. If it hurts don’t use it

Again this may be true for an acute injury. If you just had a major car accident you will want to rest and let your body heal. Once your body has done its part with the healing process, it is very important that you get moving again. Our bodies are design to move. When we don’t move many things can go wrong. We have all heard the saying if you don’t use it you will lose it. The same holds true for any part of your body. The great thing about exercise is that it releases endorphins in your body that give you an overall “good” feeling, and these neurotransmitters can physically block the pain signals to your brain. So one of the best things you can do is get out there and get moving!

  1. You are just going to have to live with it

This statement is the most dis-empowering sentence that any health care professional can say to their patient. I hear it all the time from patients when they first come in to my office. They usually say something like this: “I would love to get rid of my shoulder and neck pain, but I was told there is nothing that can be done and I am just going to have to live with it.” The fun thing about my job is I get to say “I understand that you have been told that, but that is simply not true.”

Your default setting is health. Your body wants to be healthy.   If you or anyone you know is suffering from neck or shoulder pain and have gotten little or no relief from your current treatments please call the office or e-mail me. There is hope. You can get better. Imagine being able to live the life you truly desire.

 

About Atlas Chiropractic of Boulder
At Atlas Chiropractic of Boulder we are not only concerned about your symptoms, but also you as a person and what is important to you. We know that not everyone’s the same and not everyone has the same goals. It is important to us that we present a chiropractic care plan that works for you and is tailored to you and your health concerns.

We’re a specialty Boulder Chiropractor focused on back pain, neck pain, vertigo, and migraine headaches. Our patients visit our Boulder office from all over Northern Colorado, including, Longmont, Erie, Superior, Lafayette, Niwot, Louisville, Broomfield, and Denver, Colorado.

Contact Atlas Chiropractic of Boulder today to schedule a free evaluation. Specialized upper cervical chiropractic care is by no means a “hail Mary” solution, but if you haven’t yet seen Dr. Bremner, you’re nowhere close to running out of options.