“I decided to try chiropractic care to help my chronic back pain,” shares Amanda F., a high school teacher.
“While I felt great right after my first adjustment, I experienced soreness the next day after my chiropractor treatment! I couldn’t tell if I did the right thing or just injured myself worse. Why would a treatment to make me feel better leave me sore after chiropractor sessions?”
If you’ve ever shared Amanda’s curious case of post-chiropractic soreness and uncertainty, this guide brings clarity. We reveal what causes various muscles and joints to flare up unexpectedly, leading to soreness after chiropractor visits, and offer actionable recovery tips.
Soon, you’ll view some arm/hip/leg/neck irritation as victory banners declaring your body is rapidly realigning thanks to chiropractic care.
Reasons Behind Post-Chiropractic Soreness
Experiencing soreness after a chiropractic adjustment can be surprising, but it’s a familiar and natural body response.
As we explain the reasons behind this discomfort, it’s essential to understand that these sensations are often signs of your body’s healing process and adjustment to better alignment.
Let’s explore the various factors contributing to this post-treatment soreness.
Understimulated Muscles are Roused
Picture a factory assembly line shut down for routine maintenance. Workers return fresh-faced after a rest only noticeable thanks to dusty cobwebs forming on motionless equipment. This resembles muscles unengaged from poor posture and restricted ranges of motion too long.
An adjustment jumpstarts activity like a foreman shouting, “Let’s get back to work!” Soreness lingers while tissue reacclimates.
Overstimulated Muscles are Balanced
Muscle groups like shoulders, necks and lower backs battle overuse from repetitive tasks.
Think bulging disc-shaped boxer biceps bulking on one side compared to gangly weaklings on the opposite.
Adjustments rebalance demands across supportive structures surrounding spines taking pressure off frequent fliers. Uniform fitness minimizes painful knots and spasms.
Your Body is Adjusting to Proper Alignments
Ever try walking normally wearing someone else’s prescription glasses or wandering uneven terrain in flimsy flip flops?
You subconsciously fine-tune posture for stability. Likewise, joint misalignments cause anatomy to contort abnormally long-term pre-adjustment.
As vertebrae regain natural positioning, the body gingerly navigates new stances before relearning better movement patterns, possibly provoking inflammation.
You’ve Been in Misalignment for a Long Time
Bodies self-preserve around bone deformities and degeneration as flowing water carves rock over lifetimes.
For some, joint dysfunction lingers months or years before pursuing care, allowing muscles and connective tissue to memorize distortion thoroughly. Though adjustments rapidly restore areas as intended, surrounding supporting casts require rehabilitation periods to resume newly-adapted roles.
Release of Toxins from Muscles and Joints
Picture grime accumulating across neglected house gutters and then suddenly washed away once cleansed.
Similarly, chiropractic’s light force reintroduces natural mobility to compressed spaces between vertebrae, nerves, and muscle fibers where inflammation-inducing toxicity gathers over time.
This process can lead to what is often referred to as soreness after chiropractor visits.
While the fluid rush of adjustment rinses these regions, the exiting waste products transiently irritate local blood vessels and tissues. This often manifests as widespread soreness, a shared experience known as being sore after chiropractor adjustments.
This soreness is typically temporary until these waste products are filtered out or expelled. Promoting ample hydration is key to accelerating this detoxification process, helping to alleviate the soreness quickly after chiropractor treatments.
Coping with Post-Chiropractic Soreness
Dealing with soreness after a chiropractic session can be managed effectively with the right approach. It’s all about aiding your body in its natural healing process and ensuring comfort during this adjustment period.
Here are some tried and tested methods to help alleviate discomfort and promote faster recovery.
Alternate Heat Therapy Sessions
Rotate heating pads, moist towels or non-electric blankets across tender zones in timed intervals according to package instructions to improve blood flow minus causing burns.
Light Stretching Routine Inclusions
Gently mobilize stiff links via limited range motions avoiding any strenuous flexing, holding each Bernie Sanders handshake pose 20 to 30 seconds before a deep exhale release.
Guzzling Anti-Inflammatory Beverages
Consume pineapple juices, green teas, tart cherry honeys and other antioxidant elixirs to help curb swelling responses internally while replenishing nutrients.
Prioritizing Plenty Sleep
Aim overnight for a cool, comfortably-aligned spine letting joint capsules and fat pads synergize self-healing efforts through REM recharging.
Patience & Persistence
Celebrate small daily milestones like pain gradually centralized to lower levels versus broadly spread and allow sufficient adjustment periods before questioning efficacy.
Embracing the Path to Better Health
Feeling sore after a chiropractor visit is a normal part of the healing journey. It’s your body’s way of adapting to changes and improving. While sometimes surprising, this soreness after chiropractor sessions is usually a temporary discomfort and a sign that your body is working towards better alignment and health.
We’d love to hear about your experiences with soreness after chiropractor adjustments or any questions you might have. Your journey towards better spinal health is essential, and understanding each step of the process, including the experience of being sore after chiropractor visits, is key.
If you’re new to chiropractic care or have been feeling sore after adjustments, don’t hesitate to reach out for a personalized consultation.
Your path to a pain-free life is just an adjustment away!
