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What is Chiropractic?
by Dr. Dawne Hennessy

hiropractic is the most natural, drug-free, healing profession in the world. Our aim is not only to restore health but to maintain it. Chiropractic teaches that within the body there are well-established "survival mechanisms" designed to maintain a state of good health.

This innate intelligence is working in your body all the time, even when you re not aware of it.

• What did you eat yesterday?

• Did you have to tell your body to digest it?

• Do you have to tell your heart to beat or your lungs to breathe?

How about mending a cut or getting rid of a cold? Did you have to think your body through it?

Your body has the ability to function and keep you well, provided it is not interfered with.

How Does It Work?

Your spine houses and protects the body's communication network—the Peripheral Nervous System. Just like the branches of a tree transfer nutrients to the leaves, the spine transfers nerves and nerve impulses to all parts of the body. Your body depends on this network of communication in order to function.

Irritations may cause a myriad of symptoms such as pain, spasms, numbness, weakness, or decreased range of motion. Conditions of indigestion, bladder problems, chest pain or breathing disorders may often be the result of malfunctioning nerves as well. Chiropractors seek to treat the cause of disease by removing nerve interference and restoring normal spinal motion.

Results You Can Feel

Nor only can chiropractic take pain out of your life, it can add life to your years! You'll feel better, have more energy and more movement.

Statistics Show...

That 85% of patients who have received chiropractic care become symptom-free or show improvement. It is possible that some conditions may have progressed to the point where the body's natural recuperative powers have become ineffective. Chiropractic care can help you stay at the optimum your body can achieve.

Who Can Benefit?

• Children, with their frequent jolts and tumbles, are often most in need of minor spinal corrections to prevent later consequences of their mishaps. 

• The elderly, with their more fragile bones and musculature, are often more vulnerable to musculoskeletal shifts and imbalance.

• Pregnant women often have lower back discomfort in the latter stages of pregnancy. Chiropractic care can offer the mother relief without the risk of taking harmful medications.

Everyday people like you…

• weekend athlete
• waitress
• over-stressed executive
• accident victim
• gardener
• computer operator
• manual laborer
• cashier

...experience relief with chiropractic care.

 Does It Hurt?

Sometimes. Most of the time however, it's like popping your knuckles. It doesn't hurt so much as it feels a little weird.

Is It Safe?

Yes. Your chiropractor will take down your history, put you through a series of orthopedic and neurological tests, and in most cases take x-rays to determine how you can be helped by chiropractic care. The New Zealand Report, which is probably the most in-depth, independent government study into the efficacy of chiropractic, found it to be "remarkably safe" and "effective."

"I've heard that once you see a chiropractor, you have to keep going forever. Is that true?"

No, you don't! You don't have to exercise regularly either, unless you want to stay healthy and feel good. The truth is, once you've recovered from your injuries, you won't need any more corrective treatments. Many people, however, in the course of everyday life, have days when they've slept wrong, lifted improperly, or suffered other minor injuries from those "acts of grace."

Once you experience the relief of living without pain, you generally want to stay that way! Regular spinal adjustments are like going to the dentist for a routine checkup. Why should you treat your spine, which protects your most valuable asset—your health—any differently?

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Dr. Dawne Hennessy had her first adjustment at the age of two weeks. Following in her father's footsteps, she became a chiropractor and is now director of the Koala Chiropractic Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona. Dr. Hennessy has over 15 years experience and is a graduate of Palmer College of Chiropractic West.