There’s an old joke about what is written on a hypochondriac’s tombstone, “I told you I was sick”! Well as humorous as that may sound, there is a very dangerous saying used by folks that put off necessary spinal treatment. It goes like this…”maybe it will go away”.

Each week I invariable meet one or two patients that have thought this way, making excuses for putting off the help they need. What finally brings them into the office is that their pain is now so bad that they can no longer do the very basic activities required of them: work, raise a family, or even play at their favorite sport or hobby.

Now the pain is constant, or the pain is traveling down their arms or legs, or their headaches are 4-5 times a week! The symptoms may vary but the end result is frustration. “I have no quality of life, doctor!” This pain is killing me. I’m afraid to do anything anymore. I can barely make it through the workday”. You get the point.

Now, many times, I am able to get this individual functioning to the point that they can start enjoying their life again. It takes hard work and commitment. No one can magically turn back the hands of time when the spine has suffered years of neglect. It takes mutual hard work between chiropractor and a motivated patient.

Some times, they’ve waited to long. The problem is not responding. Now, they may need surgery, which may or may not provide the desired result. It’s at a greater expense and may require some lost working time. More often than not, these are the “maybe it will go away” folks. It’s unfortunate, but true. And the reality of it is that many times it’s not their fault. They’ve never been taught the importance of good spinal health.

When we work with a patient, we are not using pain killing drugs that mask the problem. That’s because it allows the individual to keep doing the very activities that continue to irritate the inflamed nerves and joints, sometimes causing irreversible damage. We don’t use invasive surgical procedures either. So if injections or incisions don’t appeal to you, Chiropractic is a very wise choice.

So if you want to take advantage of safe, non-invasive treatment, your best bet is to do it early on, rather than wait and put it off. As I celebrate our 11th year in the Cleveland community and my 26th year in practice, I hope to see less of the “maybe it will go away” patients and more of the “proactive” patients. Come join us! Call 661-2225 for a healthier you! Schneider Chiropractic.