Tag Archives: adjustment chicago

Chiropractic Success with Vertigo

Chiropractic success with vertigo is high in our office here in Lincolnwood. I’ve written about this topic in the past, follow this Link to my previous blog post about vertigo. I am writing about this again because I had a really fun case that I’d like to tell you about.

A new patient came to our office recently, let’s call him Jack. Jack has been suffering from vertigo for the past 9 years! He has seen every specialist you can imagine. A primary doctor, a neurologist, an EENT doctor, physical therapist, acupuncturist, massage therapist, headache specialist medical doctor, and on and on. He saw so many people he couldn’t even remember all of them. Jack had MRI’s, CT scans, nerve tests and so much more. The conclusion was that they had tried everything, and he was going to have to live with his vertigo.

He was in tears as he described all of this to me. His symptoms were so bad that he had to plan his driving routes based on places to pull over because the dizziness was so frequent and intense, he was unable to complete a full commute without pulling over. To say the vertigo was affecting his life in a negative way is an understatement.

Chiropractic and Vertigo

The first thing we did for Jack once he was in our office was an exam and X-rays. He stated during all of his doctor visits, tests and exams, not one person ever thought to look at his neck. In chiropractic we realize that a lot of what happens in our head is related to the structure and function of the cervical spine, which is the neck. Upon examination and X-rays I found there was degenerative disc disease, a decrease in normal range of motion and a lot of tension and tightness.

I explained to Jack that my job as his chiropractor is to correct the issues I found in his neck. I couldn’t gurantee him it would fix his vertigo, but in previous similar cases I’ve found that by improving the health of people’s neck and spine, it has helped with their vertigo. We did an adjustment on that visit and he scheduled a follow-up appointment.

On Jack’s follow-up I knew something was different as soon as I saw him. He was smiling…a large happy smile! (Always a good sign). Jack told me that his vertigo was not gone, but it was way less frequent and much less intense! I was so happy to hear this even after only one adjustment.

Stories like this is why I love what I do! I actually quite enjoy when people come to the chiropractor as a last resort. After trying everything to fix their problems they think well, I have nothing to lose let’s try this chiropractic stuff. I like to tell people in this situation, I hope we are your last stop! And most of the time…we are! Get to the root cause of people’s problems and they feel and function so much better! Chiropractic success with vertigo is high in our office. Other ‘complicated’ and chronic conditions respond well to chiropractic as well.

If you are suffering from vertigo and would like to see if chiropractic can help you, please click the link to schedule an appointment.

Yours in Health,

Dr. Steven Bourdage DC

Sciatica and Chiropractic

Sciatica and Chiropractic

Sciatica and Chiropractic go hand in hand with each other. Sciatica is the most common condition that brings people into my office here in Chicago.

If you are suffering from sciatica, or know someone who is, then you know how debilitating and crippling it can be. We have amazing success with sciatica, it responds really well to what we do here in my office.

What I want to talk about is the amount of time people suffer with sciatica before they finally decide to seek treatment.  Many times when people first come in to my office with sciatica I will ask them “How long have you had this?” The answers are always 5 years, 10 years, or forever! It varies, but it is always a REALLY LONG TIME! Why are you waiting so long? I get it. Most people think it will go away on its own, but if you’ve had it for YEARS, guess what? It’s time to get some help!

I challenge you, if you have sciatica, come to our office in Sauganash or go see your local Chiropractor if you are not in Chicago. We have had amazing success with Sciatica and you no longer have to suffer. We can help you get back to the things you want to enjoy in life. More exercise, more movement, sitting, sleeping and all types of everyday activities can be normal again!

Yours in Health,

Dr. Steven Bourdage DC

Chiropractic While Sick

Chiropractic While Sick

There is no need to cancel your adjustment appointment when you are sick. Chiropractic while sick is actually a great idea! Your immune system is controlled by your nervous system. If you have stress on your spine and nervous system it will effect your immune response in a negative way. Getting an adjustment while sick can help you to fight infection and feel better sooner.

Many people feel bad coming into our office while they are sick because they don’t want to get us sick. I get it, thank you for your concern, but it is unnecessary! We are exposed to sick people all day long, and being that we live the chiropractic lifestyle we rarely get sick. It is more important that you keep you appointment so we can get you back on track and get you back to health!

Dr. Steven Bourdage DC

Chicago Chiropractor Talks Sitting

Chicago Chiropractor Talks Sitting

Sitting is the new smoking. This statement is buzz-worthy at the moment, and for good reason. The newest research is showing us how detrimental sitting actually is to our health. Read on as this Chicago Chiropractor Talks Sitting further. Continue reading →

Chicago Chiropractor Talks Exercise

Chicago Chiropractor Talks Exercise

Chicago Chiropractor Talks Exercise Here:

In my office I discuss all aspects of health with my patients. One of the most popular topics that always comes up is exercise. In this blog post I’d like to talk exercise; exercise is a broad topic and there are many different ways to exercise. It is important that before you embark on an exercise program you take into consideration your current fitness level, age, injuries and other factors that you may have to work around.

Exercise is a great way to keep your body healthy and strong. Unfortunately, as Americans we do move our bodies enough or get enough exercise. I feel this is because most people assume that to get a good workout you need to go to the gym and spend an hour each time you are there to get an effective workout. This couldn’t be further from the truth! The key is to incorporate movement into your every day life. Whether it be taking the stairs instead of the escalator, parking further from the door at the grocery store, carrying your children instead of using a stroller, etc…

If you look around there are many opportunities to create more movement in your day. Now that the weather is getting nicer it is time to get outside. I use the summer months as a chance to get out of the gym and into nature. Activities like kayaking, biking, hiking, sprinting up hills, and other things that you maybe don’t get the chance to do during other times of the year. Do something new. When you challenge your body in new ways you become stronger and healthier.

Get outside and get moving. Do something new, learn a new skill, take your kids along and make it a family affair. Let me know in the comments what new ways you have come up with this summer to move your body!

Yours in Health,

Dr. Steven Bourdage

Chicago Chiropractic Office Helps Wrist Pain

Chicago Chiropractic Office Helps Wrist Pain

Many people don’t think to call the chiropractor when they are having wrist pain. Here at our Chicago Chiropractic Office we help wrist pain quite commonly. Everyone knows chiropractors are great helping with neck pain, back pain and headaches. What most people don’t know is we help with so much more!

Wrist Anatomy

The wrist is a complex structure that has many bones, muscles, ligaments and nerves associated with it. When you are having pain in your wrist, it is important to examine the wrist itself, but also critical to look at the elbow and shoulder. Many times wrist pain occurs as a result of something happening at these others joints.

I have seen many cases in my office where someone has had long standing wrist pain and they received physical therapy, injections, etc… to the wrist itself with no relief. They visit us and we start working on their elbow and shoulder and the wrist pain relieves! This is very common and the importance of checking the other joints cannot be overstated.

Common Issues

Carpal tunnel is the most well known diagnosis of the wrist. This condition is often the first thing people think of once they start having wrist pain, but this is not accurate. Carpal tunnel is characterized by pain, achiness, numbness/tingling and in severe cases, even weakness in the hand. If you do experience numbness/tingling it is in the thumb, index and middle fingers. If you are experiencing symptoms in the pinky and ring finger this is something called cubital tunnel syndrome, which is different than carpal tunnel.

Conclusion

If you are suffering from wrist pain and you are sick and tired of it interfering with your everyday activities, please give us a call so we can help get you feeling better and get your problem truly corrected!

Dr. Steven Bourdage DC

 

 

Chiropractic and Vertigo

Chiropractic and Vertigo

I had a patient come to see me for his lower back pain, but during his consultation it came to my attention that he was also suffering from vertigo for the past 3 years. He was not as concerned with his vertigo as he was his lower back pain because he thought there was nothing that could be done to correct it. He knew chiropractors fix back pain, but didn’t think vertigo was a “chiropractic issue” He had already been evaluated by the “specialists” and was given no answers.

One of my early mentors in Chiropractic taught me to always offer your patients hope. I know I have had many patients with vertigo get better, so I asked him if he would mind if I worked on improving his vertigo too? “Sure doc, just help me to feel better” was his response. After a careful examination I discovered not only did he have subluxations (vertebrae out of alignment) in his lower back, but he had a subluxation in his neck too. We got him set up on a treatment plan and after two weeks of adjustments, voila!! No more lower back pain or vertigo! He was amazed! For the first in many years he was able to check his blind spots while driving without getting dizzy!

Form Effects Function

Any time there is a mis-alignment or restriction in the spine it causes stress to the body. In this particular case, the subluxation in the cervical spine was causing vertigo. After specific spinal adjustments were applied, the vertigo disappeared. The best part of this story is that this patient has been vertigo free for over one year now! That is the power of chiropractic and a healthy spine and nervous system.

Be well!