But we’re not just backs. We’re not just backs and necks. We’re not just backs, necks; head shoulders knees and toes. We are everything in between. If you have something weird going on, or know somebody with something weird going on, chances are I’m your guy.
While the popular image you see in your head when you think chiropractor is cracking the neck and back. We do more than just adjusting or “cracking” backs. Our main focus is making the joints work right again. And like a home shopping network commercial but wait there is more.
We do more than just make the joints work right again; we make the whole muscular and skeletal system work right again. But wait…. We make the nervous system work right again.
When it comes to baby problems, we also do more than pinched nerves. We have also helped: new moms and their babies with nursing problems, post baby stomach and core damage and other pain associated with being a new mom. We’ve helped infertility issues; scaring, pelvic floor and more. Don’t forget treatment for baby too. Many new babies have issues with digestion, colic, and latching for nursing all these can be treated with tiny baby sized adjustments.
Between chiropractic, physical therapy, massage, acupuncture, laser, dry needling, shockwave and nutrition; if you can hurt it, we can fix it.
https://susquespine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Susquehanna-Spine-and-Rehab_340x156px_REV1-300x138.png00BCwebDev48https://susquespine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Susquehanna-Spine-and-Rehab_340x156px_REV1-300x138.pngBCwebDev482019-12-06 04:48:582019-12-06 04:48:58We are everything in between!
We have the technology. Literally, we own it. We have purchased a new and super advanced sophisticated heating device also known as a laser; no sharks though, I asked. An Aspen 60-watt class IV to be exact. It’s actually the exact same brand & model used by the Dallas Cowboys (almost sent it back after finding that out:)) but the same spec as the lasers used most other NFL, NBA, NHL and NASCAR teams that get players back in the game just weeks after what was once season ending injuries.
Laser light, though invisible to the naked eye (thanks for filing my childhood with lies George Lucas) is at such a specific wavelength and frequency when applied to an organism it stimulates metabolic processes at the cellular level. Unlike many other energy waves, laser light holds its intensity until it is absorbed by a medium (the body). The photon energy of laser effectively penetrates the skin and underlying tissue, which accelerates the body’s natural healing process. This transforms cells from a state of illness to a stable, healthy state. The result is reduced inflammation, increased blood flow, and stimulated tissue growth. Translation-it turns your cells into stem cells and triple charges healing and fights pain.
Laser Therapy treats many different things. It has beneficial effects for pain relief, resolving inflammation and increasing the speed, quality, and tensile strength of tissue repair. It has also been proved to increase the immune system, resolve infection and improve the function of damaged neurological tissue. Laser therapy also increases collagen production, bone repair, reducing edema, increasing lymphatic drainage, and increase production of capillary beds. Some other things Laser treats are, and this is the short list: Arthritis, joint and muscle pain of the shoulder and Rotator Cuff, Head & Neck, Back, Arms, wrist & Hand; Hip, Knee and legs, Foot & Ankle. Also, Bell’s Palsy, Bunions, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome (Carpal Tunnel of the feet), Fibromyalgia, Ganglion Cyst, Plantar Fasciitis & Heel Spurs. Along with Sciatica and other pinched nerves including Thoracic Outlet, Shin Splints, TMD/TMJ; Fractures; Diabetic and Non-diabetic neuropathy, Removes Scar tissue (new and old) Diabetic ulcers, Tendon and ligament injuries & Herniated discs.
Is It Safe?
Yes, it’s safe, yes it works, no it doesn’t hurt. It can even be safely administered over surgical – medical implants or metal. Treatments can be administered post-surgery for faster healing and recovery. While not covered by insurance, we have made it affordable to fit in with your regular co-pay and deductible or as a standalone treatment option
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That was a famous saying back when I was in college. My undergraduate institution did not award “F’s,” only A, B, C, D & E’s. You didn’t fail; you just got the opportunity to take that class again.
No One Really Fails
DOT medical exams are similar. No one really fails; the medical examiner assigns the amount of time in which they need to be reevaluated. The 30 second history lesson for DOT exams: The Federal Government, in order to improve highway safety, decided that everyone who holds a commercial driver’s license needs to meet minimal health standards. Since then, many states including Maryland have expanded that list to other vehicle operators. Here in the Old Line State, along with CDL holders, anyone who drives a truck or van for work is supposed to have a medical card.
These minimal health standards rule out health concerns that without professional treatment would prevent the driver from safely operating a motor vehicle. The driver’s history, medications and a few other factors, the driver is then ‘graded’ on how long they are allowed to drive without another evaluation. With recent changes to the laws, there are actually very few things that would “fail” a driver. Number 1 being the use of scheduled narcotics; yes this includes marijuana.
Are You Concerned?
Are you concerned about passing your DOT exam? Don’t be! But if a healthcare professional gave you blood pressure medication you probably need them and should be taking them prior to coming in for your exam.
We are the preferred examiner for Harford County Public School’s drivers, and many other large and small companies. We also provide drug and alcohol testing/collection along with TPA and consortium services.;”>That was a famous saying back when I was in college. My undergraduate institution did not award “F’s,” only A, B, C, D & E’s. You didn’t fail; you just got the opportunity to take that class again.
No One Really Fails
DOT medical exams are similar. No one really fails; the medical examiner assigns the amount of time in which they need to be reevaluated. The 30 second history lesson for DOT exams: The Federal Government, in order to improve highway safety, decided that everyone who holds a commercial driver’s license needs to meet minimal health standards. Since then, many states including Maryland have expanded that list to other vehicle operators. Here in the Old Line State, along with CDL holders, anyone who drives a truck or van for work is supposed to have a medical card.
These minimal health standards rule out health concerns that without professional treatment would prevent the driver from safely operating a motor vehicle. The driver’s history, medications and a few other factors, the driver is then ‘graded’ on how long they are allowed to drive without another evaluation. With recent changes to the laws, there are actually very few things that would “fail” a driver. Number 1 being the use of scheduled narcotics; yes this includes marijuana.
Are You Concerned?
Are you concerned about passing your DOT exam? Don’t be! But if a healthcare professional gave you blood pressure medication you probably need them and should be taking them prior to coming in for your exam.
We are the preferred examiner for Harford County Public School’s drivers, and many other large and small companies. We also provide drug and alcohol testing/collection along with TPA and consortium services.
https://susquespine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Susquehanna-Spine-and-Rehab_340x156px_REV1-300x138.png00BCwebDev48https://susquespine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Susquehanna-Spine-and-Rehab_340x156px_REV1-300x138.pngBCwebDev482019-09-09 11:07:422019-09-09 11:07:42We Don’t Have Any Failures Here!
Some might ask why would a child need physical therapy? Well, for the same reason an adult would: Pain, injury, post-casting/surgical and dysfunction.
That’s All Kids Do Anymore
Kids DO have non-injury pain. There are some doctors and other people that say it’s not possible, but it is. There are hundreds, if not thousands of birth disorders, big and small, that lead to painful situations for kids. Even more common are repetitive stress disorders. Show me anyone over 10 not staring at their phone 24/7 and I’ll show you a purple unicorn. There’s even a name-tech neck. Sitting is the worst thing you can do for your back. That’s all kids do anymore! Also, backpacks that shouldn’t ever exceed 10-20% of a kids body weight are more like 110-120%.
Injury-I have 2 brothers and Wendy has 3. There wasn’t a point from 1975-2005 that one of us didn’t have a cast or stitches. Between the rising demands of kids sports and regular ol’ rough housing; the odds of getting hurt are at all-time highs. Speaking of casts; any time someone is casted or braced, that area immediately begins to de-condition. On top of that, adhesions (think cobwebs) start to form.
Ultimate Goal
With pain, injury, deconditioning, etc. the body changes the way it works. It adapts. Your brain will always find a way for you to continue moving, even if it’s the wrong way. These adoptions will engrain pathways that continue the pain cycle, or create movement patterns that will lead to pain and degeneration. This is even more true with surgery. Our own daughter was born with a diaphragmatic hernia. She had to have corrective surgery at just days old. The surgery leads to adhesion formation that thwarted the development of her core muscles. Her body still allowed her to walk, crawl and run; but not the exact right way. With ongoing and continuous PT she’s been able to lead a pretty normal life.
And that is the ultimate goal of not just Physical Therapy, but Chiropractic, Massage, Acupuncture and everything we do here. Make life more normal. It is normal to NOT have pain; it’s normal to have a full range of motion, to have the strength and in the proper ratios; to be physically able to do anything and everything your body allows.
Physical Therapy Privileges
Dr. Hickey and I both have Physical Therapy privileges in the State of Maryland. Meaning that in addition to being Doctors of Chiropractic with all that entails, we have the same training and privileges as Physical Therapists. Over the last almost 20 years of practice, I’ve treated 1000’s of children including my own.
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Memorial Day weekend was the greatest weekend in Motor Sports. Lewis Hamilton all but cemented his 5th Formula 1 World Driver’s Championship with a spectacularly dominating performance; a Frenchman swept the month of May along with what some consider America’s greatest race and leg of the Motorsport Triple Crown at the Indy 500; and it all followed up with NASCAR’s longest race. Sunday was just shy of 1,300 miles of premiere racing. I’m pretty sure there were more flat tires and fender benders on the Hatem Bridge though during the biggest weekend in vacation driving.
I’d like to say I watched all the action green flag to checkered, or drove somewhere to go fishing. But I, like most of you, spent the long weekend deep cleaning. Found the garage floor and tossed out the last of the baby strollers (considering the youngest is in Middle School), and got the deck washed and stained. And like most you, I needed an adjustment come Monday morning. Thank goodness for Dr. Hickey! When you do home improvement projects, yard work or other summer weekend activities and you feel the aches and pain more than normal that is your body’s way of letting you know it’s time for an adjustment.
Most of the professional drivers went this week to get an adjustment. There were a few that kissed the wall at over 200 mph that are in getting multiple adjustments. If you were like me and spent all weekend sorting large storage containers and sitting on the concrete because all the pool chairs were taken up with person-less towels at the Arena Club.
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The main goal of chiropractic care is to effect not just joint, but all movement and therefore the health of the body. We have many different ways for doing this. We push, pull, stretch, crack snap and sometimes just straight up jump up and down on ya. Additional means of treatment include the use of modalities such as electric stimulation, hydro tables, flexion distraction tables, and kinesio-tape.
RockTap
Recently, Dr. Lee and I (Dr. Hickey) completed a functional based course on kinesio-taping, called RockTape. RockTape is a type of kinesio-tape that is used, not just in treating pain, but to aid in the movement of joints. Joints are moved by the muscles and over time, due to faulty movement patterns, some muscles get overworked and others are neglected. This causes those muscles to ‘cheat’ and ‘wrong’ movement patterns are ingrained. This leads to pain, injury and lost performance. RockTape can be placed on different areas of the body to act as a sensory boost to bring attention to a muscle that may be neglected. When that neglected muscle is facilitated, joint movement improves and the patient can notice an increase in stability. Once noticed, the proper movement patterns can be re-taught and then you’re better.
It’s NOT Exclusive To Athletes
RockTape is used the world wide round by athletes of all disciplines and levels to increase performance via muscle cuing and activation. But it’s NOT exclusive to athletes. Here, it’s used more for pain control, swelling and proprioceptive awareness. Lately, we’ve been using it in treating post-surgical scars, especially C sections to get the core turned back on to fix new mommy backs. Other common uses are treating bruises & edema/lymphedema.
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It doesn’t matter who you are, explosive diarrhea is funny. You can’t watch 3 minutes of TV without seeing a drug commercial. By law, they have to list the most common side effects. There’s yet to be one that doesn’t seemingly lead to the trots or something else you DO NOT want to happen. The other one that always makes my girls giggle is when they say: “if you experience sudden death, please contact your health care provider.”
Side effects are a constant due to the laws of physics. Most of them are quite scary; others not that bad. Propecia and Viagra were both originally heart medications that didn’t really work well for heart conditions, but had some interesting side effects.
Chiropractic, too, has some side effects. The bad ones are soreness or tenderness that only lasts a few days but the good ones are great:
Increased Energy: Chiropractic eliminates interference from pain and inflammation and allows the body to allocate resources that result in increased energy
Boosted Immunity: Adjustments have a positive effect on the nervous system that helps turbo-charge many of its functions most common is the body’s ability to fight off sickness.
Improved Joint Function: Every joint in the body has an optimal range of motion or the path where it should move for best performance. Stress from life or activities can cause increased stress on the joint where it does not move in this optimal range of motion. The adjustment will return the joint to its optional movement.
Decrease Muscle Stiffness And Pain: When your joints are not moving properly it creates stress on the muscles and ligaments associated with the joints. This is when pain occurs. The adjustments as mentioned above will restore proper movement and relieve the pain and stiffness in the muscles.
Improved Mood: Often when pain and muscle stiffness is gone patients actually mentally feel better as well. They can deal with stress better and they do not feel the physical effects so the metal condition is often improved. Patients often tell us how their friends and family comment on how much less grouchy they are after chiropractic care; we have seen it first hand
Caution: Chiropractic may cause increased energy, boosted immunity, improve joint function, decrease muscle stiffness and pain, increased mood and increased health! Tell a friend or family member when these occur.
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I remember back in college, my microanatomy tests were the worst. They were scantron, but offering answers A-E wasn’t enough, so they would offer A- J, all of the above, none of the above, only A-D, only F- I, etc.. Or sometimes teacher would ask of all the options, pick the 1 MOST right out of 10 correct answers.
This idea what is the MOST right answer plays true in body as well. I need everyone reading this to stop what they’re doing. Stand up; gather around, and rock this place to the ground. Then, while standing, reach down and touch your toes.
Can you? If so, great, keep it up. If not, why?
Is it because of tight muscles?
Tight tendons?
Too much lunch?
Shirt too starched?
Or something else entirely?
Well, the most right answer is something else entirely. Flexibility is super important for the body. Now I am not talking Cirque du Soleil flexibility. But being able to touch your toes tells us a lot about your body.
Stretching is as much, if not more, a function of the nervous system as anything else. The body is programmed, that above all else, to prioritize self-preservation. The brain and nerves won’t allow your body to do anything it senses may cause harm. It’s like your wife; kills all the fun. If you can’t touch your toes, it might be because the body knows that you don’t have the core stability to handle the load of increased flexion. This is the body’s way of preventing larger issues such as blown out disc.
So inflexibility is a sign of weakness in the core which is a precursor to injuries. The core isn’t all about side bends and sit ups. It’s about activation. You could be a Pilates and yoga guru, have the tightest abs and pelvis floor in the world; no matter how strong the core is, if it’s not engaging, it’s not working.
How would you know if your core is firing?
Lay on your back with your knees bent. Put 1 hand on your stomach and 1 on your chest.
If the hand on your chest moves and/or the one on your stomach doesn’t; call me
If the hand on your stomach does not move twice as much as the one on your chest; call me because PT in our office‘s main goal so core strength and activation.
February, the only month with less than 30 days. Why does it only have 28.25 days a year? Maybe it’s because nobody wants to put up with it for a whole 30 days. It’s cold, dark and full of snow.
But there are plenty of nice things happening too. Like the start of the new NASCAR season, multiple 3 day weekends and great massage specials here at the office. It’s also the time where doctors are all blogging about how to safely shovel snow. But I’ve done that for the last 18 years and no one has ever called because they got hurt shoveling. They usually wait and see if it goes away and then call in June when it’s unbearable and they are leaving for vacation.
(It’d be nice if they gave us the extra time before Valentine’s so we could have a few more hours to put off getting gifts)
Interesting fact, 15% of all snow shoveling injuries occurs from being hit by the shovel. So don’t shovel with your spouse. Seriously to avoid injuries push snow don’t lift it, warm up before you start just like exercise, take breaks.
Stay safe and stay warm this February and call us for specials and if you need an adjustment
13 years ago, the first tweet was twittered. Daniel Craig re-launched one of Dr Lee’s favorite movie franchises as 007 in Casino Royal, his youngest daughter was born and Susquehanna Spine & Rehab treated our first patient. Yes, it’s true we have been here for 13 years.
To celebrate here are our 13 top health tips:
Laughter really is the best medicine. Also, if you think, act and feel like you’re going to get better, you will; if you don’t, you won’t.
Most media outlets are purveyors of fear, which is toxic to your health. Turn off the news!
When choosing foods more colorful the better and keep to the outside aisle of the grocery store
Only 21% of Americans get the 7 hours of sleep needed for regenerative growth hormone release
More germs are transferred shaking hands than kissing; making for an awkward yet more hygienic greeting. Hand washing is the best method for preventing disease, coupled
with immune boosting chiropractic care.
Sitting is the new smoking. Sitting for long periods of time is causing damage to your body.
While 100% of NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB, MLS, NASCAR teams have chiropractors along with most NCAA, Indy Car and Vegas acts; only 15% of the general population feels the love.
You are more than what you eat. You are also what you eat ate. (in short organic and grass fed are better) Allow your food choices fight and prevent pain and disease.
