Are headaches part of your normal life in Elmhurst? This is common, but you can’t have a “normal” headache. You were designed to feel amazing - don’t settle for anything less. Here are some frequently asked questions about how chiropractic can help your body naturally.

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What kinds of headaches does chiropractic help in Elmhurst?

Headaches can have all kinds of triggers. We want to address the cause, not the symptom. So first check your foundational health habits.

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Here are a few questions to get you started:

• Are you dehydrated?
• Have you been using screens for a long period of time today? How was your posture?
• How is your emotional/mental health?
• What are you regularly eating nutritious foods?
• Do you need to address allergies or a sinus infection?

While all of those things can be very helpful, we want to help your body to adapt to any physical, chemical, or emotional stressors. We do this by optimizing the nervous system. In this way, we can really help the entire body, no matter the trigger of the headache.

When a patient mentions headaches, I like to ask follow-up questions about their location, frequency, etc. Because even if you do everything possible to avoid triggers if your nerves are under pressure, your function will be decreased and may result in a headache or another warning signal.

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Is there a special chiropractic adjustment for headaches?

There’s no special “headache adjustment.” Through scans and examination, I find where there is pressure on the nerves, and adjust accordingly. Let’s break this down.

I use full spine x-rays to get the best view of what is happening in your spine. Because the spine is composed of individual moveable joints, a vertebra can shift and twist out of alignment in many directions.

With headaches, I may find issues in the neck (cervical vertebrae) or down lower in the spine in the thoracic region, depending on the individual.

Misalignment creates inflammation and pressure on the nerve roots, which exit the spinal cord between the vertebrae. This reduces the function of the nerves going out to the body. This is called a subluxation - literally meaning a state of less life.

Chiropractors are the only medical professionals trained to specifically move the joints back into place, relieving this pressure. Chiropractic means “done by hand” so I palpate to feel exactly where the problem is and where I need to adjust.

This restores the nerve’s flow of communication, which decreases discomfort, encourages healing, and even improves the flow of blood and cerebrospinal fluid.

This not only helps with headaches but any other dysfunction causing problems inside the body.

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How soon will I feel better after an adjustment?

We often say, "Chiropractic isn’t designed to make you feel instantly better. It is designed to make you instantly heal better."

This means this discomfort may not instantly disappear, however, we can guarantee that your nervous system will be functioning better post adjustment.

Studies show that specific chiropractic adjustments help the nervous system resume a balance of the peaceful parasympathetic state, also known as “rest and digest” state.

This is the opposite of a tension headache or stress-triggered migraine, right? This is also an optimal state for healing from a headache due to a sinus infection or cold.

As with any time we want to improve our bodies, it may take time and repetition for you to experience the full benefits of being subluxation free. We don’t eat one healthy meal or go to the gym once and think we’re set. So we often recommend a care plan to help your body, step by step, on the journey to wellness, particularly if you’ve been dealing with chronic issues like headaches!

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What our patients say…

“I am super happy with the results I have experienced after seeing Dr. DeClark. My initial visits to him were to alleviate the pain caused by major neck, shoulder, and back problems. However, I have also seen a decrease in migraines and sinus issues.

He also treats both of my teenage daughters who struggle with lower back discomfort, growing pains, and sensory issues. He is professional, caring, and accommodating.” Lisa S.

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Ready to have your nervous system optimized? Dr. DeClark is the only chiropractor in the Elmhurst area who focuses on structural chiropractic. We get to the cause issues by looking at the foundation of the body, with the goal of bringing the whole person back to a healthy state.

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References:

1. J Chiropr Med. 2008 Sep; 7(3): 86–93. Published online 2008 Sep 2. doi: 10.1016/j.jcm.2008.04.001 PMCID: PMC2686395 PMID: 19646369 Sympathetic and parasympathetic responses to specific diversified adjustments to chiropractic vertebral subluxations of the cervical and thoracic spine https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2686395/