I once hurt my back moving a couch, and since chiropractic was covered by our insurance decided to go. I was, shall we say, less than impressed with the treatment, and it still took my back several days to heal anyway. That was my first and only ever experience with a chiropractor.

If they'd get rid of the woo, I think having your back adjusted is a good thing. It does help my wife from time to time. But the things the chiropractor did to me seemed to be along the lines of "Well let's try this and see if it helps" rather than having a particular problem, diagnosis, and course of treatment like you'd get with a doctor.

(June 3, 2013 at 12:37 pm)Faith No More Wrote:

(June 3, 2013 at 9:58 am)John V Wrote: So we're all cool with chiropractic within certain boundaries? Seemed like some people were against it altogether.

I think some people are skeptical as to whether there is any validity to the chiropractic approach at all.

Yup.

(June 3, 2013 at 7:25 am)KichigaiNeko Wrote: [...] and IF acupuncture works as a pain killer then that has got to be so much better that downing a gross amount of NSAIDS and analgesics furthering the deterioration of your liver.

Yeah, in my case NSAIDs don't do jack shit for my pain, at least not in dosages that are safe. Obviously, taking 1500-2000mg of acetaminophen/paracetamol on a regular basis is a horrible idea - and in any case, dosages that high don't provide much relief.

I take Lyrica (pregabalin), which reduces the pain marginally, and have used Neurontin (gabapentin) in high doses but unfortunately it does not work very well for me.

What works in a very excellent way is oxycodone. Unfortunately, my doc started giving my the hairy eyeball after a few months of regular use and I stopped asking for it. Probably for the better, anyways - I can see how that junk can be addictive. Anyhoo...

I've seen specialists, had every applicable test done, and there's apparently nothing more that can be done. So what's left? The prospect of living the rest of my life in pain isn't a great motivator to prolong my life.

(June 3, 2013 at 12:37 pm)Faith No More Wrote:

(June 3, 2013 at 9:58 am)John V Wrote: So we're all cool with chiropractic within certain boundaries? Seemed like some people were against it altogether.

I think some people are skeptical as to whether there is any validity to the chiropractic approach at all.

Yes. And skeptical does not necessarily equate to being against it.

(June 3, 2013 at 12:37 pm)Faith No More Wrote:

(June 3, 2013 at 9:58 am)John V Wrote: So we're all cool with chiropractic within certain boundaries? Seemed like some people were against it altogether.

I think some people are skeptical as to whether there is any validity to the chiropractic approach at all.

Then I have to ask again, what's woo about the basic concept?

(June 3, 2013 at 1:49 pm)John V Wrote:

(June 3, 2013 at 12:37 pm)Faith No More Wrote: I think some people are skeptical as to whether there is any validity to the chiropractic approach at all.

Then I have to ask again, what's woo about the basic concept?

The woo lies in the theories on which they base their practices. Chiropractors may have some valid knowledge, mixed in with all that woo and a little luck. The problem is that Chiropractic will never be joined together with real medicine, because most Chiropractors are either woo subscribers who believe that being outside the mainstream is what makes them good, or scam artists who would lose business if real doctors started moving in on their territory. Neither have any motivation to allow genuine scientists to study their techniques. If Chiropractors took a page out of the book of the Osteopaths, then they could actually be beneficial.

(June 3, 2013 at 1:27 pm)Cthulhu Dreaming Wrote: What works in a very excellent way is oxycodone. Unfortunately, my doc started giving my the hairy eyeball after a few months of regular use and I stopped asking for it. Probably for the better, anyways - I can see how that junk can be addictive. Anyhoo...

As someone who had a moderate addiction to strong opiods, I can tell you that your doctor did you a favor. It's quite common that someone who starts out using them legitimately gets severely addicted.

(June 3, 2013 at 1:49 pm)John V Wrote: Then I have to ask again, what's woo about the basic concept?

Well, aside from the fact that chiropractors believe they can fix all kinds of ailments unrelated to the spine, I believe there is no scientific basis behind what they do. Someone more well versed in the subject will have to clarify.

ETA: Like missingnocchi did.

(June 3, 2013 at 2:14 pm)Faith No More Wrote:

(June 3, 2013 at 1:27 pm)Cthulhu Dreaming Wrote: What works in a very excellent way is oxycodone. Unfortunately, my doc started giving my the hairy eyeball after a few months of regular use and I stopped asking for it. Probably for the better, anyways - I can see how that junk can be addictive. Anyhoo...

As someone who had a moderate addiction to strong opiods, I can tell you that your doctor did you a favor. It's quite common that someone who starts out using them legitimately gets severely addicted.

Yeah, I'm sure that you're right. I saw that when I spent some time in a mental health facility (most of the patients were dual-diagnosis, mental illness and drug abuse, I was the only person in the ward not there for drug treatment). Quite a few opiate addicts, all of them started with a legitimate need for prescription meds. This was after my doc cut me off.

The thing of it is - yeah, I'm not addicted, and I'm grateful for that. I still have the pain though, and it's likely to be for the rest of my life. Which I worse? I don't know.

(June 3, 2013 at 2:24 pm)Cthulhu Dreaming Wrote: The thing of it is - yeah, I'm not addicted, and I'm grateful for that. I still have the pain though, and it's likely to be for the rest of my life. Which I worse? I don't know.

Tough question, and I guess if you were certain the pain would be with you for the rest of your life, and that you would have a doctor to supply you that whole time, the addiction might be worth it. I guess it basically comes down to choice between a giant douche and a turd sandwich. Neither is a preferred option.