Why do we compare your leg lengths at the beginning of every adjustment? Activator Method chiropractors are not checking your leg lengths for an anatomical discrepancy of your legs (one leg bone that’s longer than the other), we’re looking for a functional leg length difference. When we find one leg that looks shorter than the other, it doesn’t always mean that you have a “real” short leg. Your brain and body are always in constant communication with each other. When your spine has misalignments (or imbalances in your joint motion), this causes a miscommunication between your brain and body (AKA: your brain senses that something’s not right), and as a result, the muscles in one leg will tighten to cause one leg to appear shorter than the other. It’s one way your body neurologically compensates for imbalances or dysfunction in your spine and nervous system.

During your adjustment, we’re able to see your legs balance as a result of addressing the areas of stress or dysfunction in the body. This is one of the ways we can see a functional change in the body right away, and we know that once we clear out these imbalances, your body and nervous system is more equipped to heal and function better!

2. How many visits will I need?
This is always a popular question! I wish I could see into the future to let each patient know exactly how many visits will help them, but everyone is different, and everyone responds to care differently! Usually when someone comes in with an issue or injury, their body has been dysfunctioning for a long time, and we initially  need to see that person more frequently within a certain period of time. As that patient gets better, we’ll see that patient less often as their body heals and stabilizes. Many of our patients chose to continue their care at our office on a regular basis (which can differ for everyone) as they learn about the benefits of chiropractic for their health in general!

The Activator Method is a chiropractic technique that incorporates a system of analysis with assessment procedures for neuroarticular (joint) function and/or dysfunction, along with a specific treatment with the Activator Instrument. This functional analysis (focusing on your  neurological compensation to imbalances in the spine ) helps me, as your chiropractor, to see exactly where the imbalances are in your spine, and shows me what joint segments need to be adjusted (and also what segments don’t need to be adjusted)!

The Activator tool is used during each adjustment. It delivers a gentle & specific mechanical force aimed at restoring motion in the spine, pelvis or extremity joints. The activator also stimulates all the nerve endings in each joint, which starts to "teach" your body better neuromuscular motion patterns over time. Because this type of care is aimed at improving your overall health & well-being (AND because everything in your body is connected), your whole spine and pelvis are always evaluated at every visit, and adjustments are applied to the areas that need to be adjusted according to our analysis!

The Activator Method is one of the most researched techniques in chiropractic. Check out some of most recent papers: https://www.activator.com/research/

It's back to school time, which means it's once again backpack time for many kids returning to school and college. Incorrect use of a proper backpack can be just as damaging as using the wrong backpack. Repetitive heavy loading, along with poor ergonomics can lead to dysfunction in your child's body and spine. This dysfunction can lead to back pain, headaches, neck pain, shoulder pain and even things like digestive problems and overall exhaustion.

It's important to remember that chiropractic is not only about pain! Every day, our brain is relying on feedback from motion of the joints throughout our body. Chiropractic adjustments help keep these important joints moving properly so our brain gets good feedback from all the movement our body is doing throughout the day. This helps to “set the stage” for better health overall.

Things that can cause problems to our movement patterns (and in turn, our health) are different types of stresses in our lives: physical stress (like sitting at a desk all day or looking down at your cell phone for long periods of time), emotional stress and chemical stress (like poor food choices). A lot of our patients use regular chiropractic care to help give their body a “reset” to counteract all of these stresses their body gets from day to day.

Check out more our article featured in the "Why Small Businesses Matter" section of HamletHub: Why Small Businesses Matter: Stamford Balance Chiropractic Studio

Is it time to start taking care of your spine? Call our office to set up an initial consultation and visit with Dr. Cristina by calling us at 203-355-2830.