What is a Subluxation?

If you are new to chiropractic care, or even if you have been a part of it for some time, there may be terms thrown around by your chiropractor that are unfamiliar or confusing to you. Words like subluxation, adjustment, interference. So what do these words mean? What do they mean in regards to your health and wellness? Your treatment and future care? Let’s break them down starting with the most alien word: subluxation. 

Subluxation at its root simply means “less than a dislocation”. In the context of chiropractic philosophy, a subluxation is a malalignment of joints within the spine that leads to nerve interference. Interference? What kind of interference? Nerve interference is another term commonly used by chiropractors to describe the result of a subluxation and they are commonly used together. Interrupting the nerves ability to communicate with different areas of the body can lead to a menagerie of symptoms. Sore, achy muscles, headaches, low back pain, and more can be caused by spinal subluxations and nerve interference. So how do you know if you have a spinal subluxation causing nerve interference? 

The chiropractors at Cape Coral Family Chiropractic underwent many years of post-graduate study and training in understanding, locating, and correcting spinal subluxations. During your initial and daily examination, your chiropractor will assess your spine for subluxations and determine the best treatment for you. 

So what about “adjustment”. What does that mean in terms of chiropractic care? A chiropractor treats their patients using a chiropractic adjustment to help correct subluxations and restore proper nerve function. Let’s use an analogy to express how the adjustments work. Let's say your car is stuck in the mud and the wheels are spinning, but the car is not moving. Then along comes a friend who pushes the car - the wheels finally catch - and the car jumps out of its rut. Your friend supplied the right amount of force in the right direction that the car needed to dislodge itself. That’s an adjustment. A chiropractor uses the right amount of force in the right location in the right direction to achieve correction. 

Regardless of adjusting techniques, all chiropractors have the same goal – to eliminate or reduce spinal subluxations to reduce stress and interference in the nervous system, allowing you to optimize your health! Schedule an appointment with us to see how chiropractic care can help relieve stress and lead you to live a happy healthy life, free of nerve interference!