Upper Cervical Care is focused on the top two bones in the spine that surround the brainstem. Those two bones are called the Atlas (C1) and Axis (C2), they are the two most free moving bones in the spine, which gives you great range of motion but it also causes them to be susceptible to injury and/or subluxation (bone out of alignment putting pressure on the brainstem). The brainstem is the part of the central nervous system that runs all the vital functions in your body and is the gate keeper between all communication between the brain and the body in both directions. When these bones our subluxated even slightly (as small as a millimeter) it disrupts communication between the brain and the body which could cause anything from pain, to numbness/tingling, to organs not functioning properly, to loss of senses, body imbalance, vertigo/dizziness, headaches, functional scoliosis, etc… Having these two bones properly aligned, including vector, slope and convergence angles, is crucial for your overall health and function of your body.
Corrective Care Chiropractic is focused on locating, analyzing and correcting the spine so that it functions to its best ability with minimal corrections, so your body can hold its adjustments and position as long as possible. Corrective Care analyzes the whole spine, but understands that the upper cervical must be adjusted properly first before any corrections are made in the rest of the spine from C3 to the sacrum. Most of the compensatory misalignments in the spine will be caused by the upper cervical subluxation. Depending on how long the subluxation has been present, will determine how long and how much care will be needed. An example in variation of care would be a young child wrecking his bicycle versus a 50-year-old person getting in a high-speed motor vehicle accident, they will both need very different care plans. Corrective care is based on objective findings such as a thorough case history, physical exam, spinal exam, full spine 3D HD X-rays along with specific upper cervical series. Once all of this information is collected then the doctor will analyze your X-rays, case history, exam findings and determine exactly what your needs are based on all of that information, they will then design a custom care plan to start you on the healing path. Corrective Care will always follow up with post X-rays and post exams to guarantee your body is healing properly (not just feeling better temporally) and actually see the positive changes for yourself. This process of healing is called, Retracing, it means your body has to retrace through the healing process it never had the chance to when the nerves were blocked in the spine, this is especially true when you are healing from injuries/traumas several years old to decades old. This is how a long-lasting change and healing in your body can occur and not just temporary relief. It is important to note that most patients are able to heal under this care and hold their adjustments for a long time, but some have such significant injuries in the spine they are only patchable which means they may not hold for long periods of time, but can still have a high quality of life with continual corrections on an as needed basis recommended by the doctor, as an alternative to avoid possible surgery or pain management drugs.
