Chiropractic adjustments are an effective way to relieve pain and improve mobility. But how long will the results of your chiropractic adjustment last?
The answer varies from person to person, but several factors can influence how long you’ll experience relief.
Your Body’s Ability to Hold a Chiropractic Adjustment
How well your body maintains a chiropractic adjustment depends on your muscle function, connective tissue health, and stress levels. Here’s how these factors contribute:
Your Muscle Function
Strong, balanced muscles act as natural stabilizers for your spine, reducing the strain on joints and supporting the adjustments.
Meanwhile, tight muscles can pull vertebrae out of alignment, making adjustments less effective.
There are two main ways to ensure that your muscles support your spinal health as best they can:
Neurological Integration System (NIS)
Neurological Integration System (NIS) can help your body hold chiropractic adjustments by enhancing your muscle strength, and releasing excess muscle tension. For example, if you have neck pain, we can make sure that the muscles in your neck are at their maximum strength because they are under full neurologic control by your brain. No amount of exercise can replace the benefits of NIS, because NIS works with the neurologic communication within the brain to control your muscles.
Exercise
Exercise can help your adjustments last longer by supporting your overall structure. For example, many patients who have chronic low back pain benefit from core strengthening, which supports the spinal column.
Consult with Dr. Lerner-Powers or your local chiropractor to determine what the best approach is for you.
Your Connective Tissue
Healthy connective tissues (fascia, ligaments, tendons) allow for proper joint movement and help maintain adjustments. Your connective tissue should have flexibility and resilience to support your joint motion, which is improved by chiropractic care.
But if your connective tissue is too flexible, such as is often the case if you have Ehler’s-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD), then you will need to rely more on other stabilizing factors such as muscle strength and good ergonomics to maintain your adjustments. This is because your connective tissue provides less structural support than normal.
By contrast, if you have tight or restricted connective tissue, such as from unresolved adhesions or spasms, the tension could pull you back out of alignment.
Again, Dr. Lerner-Powers or whoever is your chiropractor will assess what your needs are and recommend a plan to address them.
Your Stress Levels
Stress triggers muscle tension, which can pull joints out of alignment and make adjustments less likely to hold. It can also affect your posture, most commonly contributing to slouching. One of the easiest ways to quickly relieve stress is to use First-Aid Stress-Tool (FAST), a mind-body stress and pain relief exercise.
You may also want to schedule a Neuro-Emotional Technique (NET) session, which can help you release stress you didn’t even realize you were carrying.
Your Activities
Your activities have a lot to do with how long your chiropractic adjustment will last. Ergonomics, fitness, and exercise are key factors.
Ergonomics
Poor posture and repetitive strain at work or home can pull your spine out of alignment, so that you need a chiropractic visit more often than if you maintain good posture.
Ergonomic improvements (ergonomic furniture, lifting techniques) help maintain proper alignment and extend adjustment benefits.
Fitness and Exercise
Regular exercise strengthens muscles that support your spine, reducing stress on joints and promoting alignment.
Certain activities that involve heavy lifting, twisting, or impact can strain your spine, potentially shortening the holding power of adjustments. Athletes often seek chiropractic care more frequently due to the physical demands of their sports, especially if they involve twisting or impact.
Your Nutrition
A healthy diet provides essential nutrients for bones, muscles, and tissues, which can lengthen the holding power of chiropractic adjustments.
For example, ensuring that you have enough energy from your diet helps you maintain good posture, which helps your adjustments last longer by promoting normal biomechanics, or movement.
Dr. Lerner-Powers uses functional nutrition to ensure that you have the nutritional foundation that you need to get the best results from your chiropractic care.
The Chiropractic Adjustment Itself
In DNFT Chiropractic, we expect your chiropractic adjustment to last about 6 months or longer.
This is in contrast to chiropractic techniques that call for adjusting the same vertebrae, or spinal level, week after week. DNFT chiropractic adjustments are highly detailed adjustments that restore proper alignment of both bones and soft tissues–such as discs and ligaments–for the most enduring results.
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