Should It Hurt When My Chiropractor Treats Me?

If this is the case, then we would respectfully submit that something is just not right.

SPOILER ALERT: It should not consistently hurt after your chiropractor treats you. If it does, then make sure you let them know because that would be a sure sign that the treatment approach may need to be changed up.

Mr. Science says that it is a common side-effect to have increased discomfort for 24-48 hours following your first one or two treatments. That can happen approximately 50% of the time but it typically settles on its own and doesn’t require any special pain-relieving strategies.

The clue that the treatment may not be agreeing with you and needs to be changed up is if post-treatment continues to occur after the first couple of treatments. The normal course of care is that, after the first one or two treatments, your body gets used to the corrections the treatment that the chiro is doing for you and you actually leave the clinic feeling better than when you walked in.

Know that consistently being sore during or after the treatment means something just isn’t right. You should:

1. Let your Chiropractor know that this is happening and see what they say
2. Chances are that they should tell you that this post-treatment soreness is not normal and is an indicator that a different approach is needed. They may be able to modify their treatment approach or they may need to refer you to someone else, whose treatment approach may be more effective
3. If they blow it off or downplay it by telling you this is normal, then your spidey senses should be tingling that you may not be in the right place.

Back to Mr. Science to explore your options.

1. Do not continue to blindly accept that chiro’s opinion that it is normal to experience pain every time you get treated. The science does not support that so you need to seek out something different.
2. Don’t write off chiropractic treatment in general. The research is pretty clear that this treatment is one of the most effective ways to get rid of your back and neck pain. You may just need to seek another opinion from a different chiro.

Remember, most modern-day chiros are not one-trick ponies and have a variety of treatment approaches they can offer. If that isn’t the case and they don’t have a different treatment approach other than cracking your back or neck, then they should be willing to refer you to someone else that might be able to offer a different solution that is a better fit.

We fully appreciate this may be a controversial subject so feel free to share any experiences or opinions you may have about this below…

For more information on whether Chiropractic treatment is safe, check out this article.

If you are wondering whether Chiropractic treatment is risky for Disc Herniations and sciatica, you can check out this post.

If you are worried about whether Chiropractic care is safe for the treatment of neck pain and headaches, read this…