Tag Archives: back pain

Into the Deep End

Since I was a kid I have always been afraid of the water and swimming. If the water was deeper than I was tall there was no chance in hell I’d go into it. We would take beach vacations as a kid and I was always content to sit on the beach and watch everyone else enjoy the water. As I got older I would start to venture into the water, but rarely would I go past the water being up to my chest. This blog post is about going into the deep end. What does this have to do with chiropractic you may be thinking? Please read on…. Continue reading →

Chiropractic and Seniors

Have you ever wondered if chiropractic is safe for seniors? I love this question because the answer is a resounding YES! Chiropractic and seniors go together like peanut butter and jelly….It just works! I love working with seniors and love seeing the results they experience. My oldest patient to date is 104 years old! I have many patients that are in their 80’s and above. Let take a look at some of the benefits that seniors experience from chiropractic care. Continue reading →

5 People who need a Chiropractor

Do you have a spine? The answer is yes, everyone with a spine needs a chiropractor in their life, this also includes animal by the way. BUT, here is a a list of 5 people who need a chiropractor and it should be non debate-able.

1) Parents, particularly new moms. Being a parent is the most challenging work on the planet. It’s emotionally, mentally and physically exhausting. Especially for moms. For new moms it is difficult. New moms are sleep deprived, nursing, and carrying around baby carriers all day. If you are a parent, please come get adjusted. You most likely don’t even realize how bad you actually feel because you are just trying to get through the day. Let’s get the stress off your body, increase your energy and get you back to being super parent!

2) Students. When you are spending hours upon hours looking at a textbook or computer screen all day, you are going to have problems. Neck pain, headaches, fatigue, shoulder pain and poor posture come from being a full-time student. Studying is great for your brain, but not great for your body. Students of all ages love chiropractic and feel so much better after adjustments. Feeling better leads to performing better!

3) Desk Jockeys. Do you spend most of your day seated at a desk? If so see #2 above. It’s the same situation. We are not designed to sit as long as we do. The average American desk worker spends 13 hours a day sitting!! That hurts just to think about! Sitting creates low back pain, neck pain, hip pain and sciatica. Chiropractic can help with all of those and then some.

4) Athletes. If you want to keep yourself in the game and performing at your best you need a chiropractor in your life. When you do get injured, if you have been well adjusted we can get you through injuries pretty quick. Whether you are a weekend warrior or a professional athlete, get adjusted!

5) Physical Laborers. Talk about a physically demanding job! I see people in my office that lift furniture, boxes, steel pipes and other objects all day long. Then they are bending over into spaces not designed for humans or holding camera equipment on their backs and the list goes on and on. And if you have a physically demanding job chiropractic care will help you maintain longevity in that career. I have a patient who has been an iron worker for 20 years and has been receiving chiropractic adjustments for half of that time. He says he has coworkers who are in and out of the job all the time because of injuries or they have to take an early retirement. This will not be the case for this particular patient because he is PRO ACTIVE!

Conclusion

Everyone who wants to be healthy and strong needs a chiropractor. These are the 5 types of people who need a chiropractor the most, based on what I have seen with my patients over the last 12 years in practice. If you fall into one of these categories and you need help, please call me at 773-545-9379.

Yours in Health,

Dr. Steven Bourdage

10 Reasons You Need a Chiropractor

Let’s be honest, there are more like 100 reasons, but for the sake of time here are the top 10 reasons you need a chiropractor in your life RIGHT NOW!

Your nervous system controls everything that happens in your body. Spinal stress = Nervous system stress.
Posture improvement. We sit more than ever and it is evident by people’s posture. We look more like hunched over apes then we do erect, strong humans. Chiropractors help with this.
Stress relief. Have you ever noticed that when you get stressed your body becomes very tense and tight? Chiropractic to the rescue.
Headache relief. Due to poor posture and stress people are having more headaches than ever. Subluxations in the neck irritate the nerves causing your headaches. Chiropractors adjust and remove subluxations.
Prevention of health issues. I help my patients to identify their negative health habits and create new positive habits which helps them to stay healthier for longer.
Energy. Are you feeling fatigued and sluggish? A proper, specific adjustment can wake you up faster than a shot of espresso!
Improved athletic performance. There is a reason most all professional sports teams have a chiropractor on staff. Here’s a secret, it’s not to help with injuries, it’s to improve the performance of the athletes.
Avoid surgery. If your first point of contact for a pain condition is a Chiropractor, your chance of having a surgery is much less than compared to if you see a medical doctor first.
Age gracefully. Healthier people age better than unhealthy people. Seeing a chiropractor regularly and being proactive towards your health instead of reactive will help you to maintain your health and wellness.
You have a spine! Like any other possession you have, if you do not take care of it, it will decay and fail. Do you take care of your teeth? Do you take care of your car? Your house? Hopefully the answer to these questions is YES! If you don’t take care of your teeth, car or house you can always replace them. Don’t take care of your spine there is no replacement option…you only get one!!

If you need a chiropractor in the Chicago or Lincolnwood area I would love to be YOUR chiropractor! Give me call 773-545-9379

Dr. Steven Bourdage

Chiropractor Talks Bowel Movements

Let’s talk about poop. You may think its weird that a chiropractor talks bowel movements, but it actually comes up often in my office. In particular, I have two stories I’d like to share with you. One is about a 3 month old baby and the other is about a man in his fifties. Both stories involve poop so follow along with me.

Chiropractic and Babies

Earlier this month a mother brought in her 3 month old baby because the baby was having a lot of gas and was only having a bowel movement once every five days. After some questioning I learned this mother was already doing an AWESOME job. The baby was still nursing, the mom had been doing belly massages for the baby, the mom even changed her diet to see if it would help the baby and still no changes. I examined the baby and found some areas of the spine that did not have the movement they should. I did some very light, specific adjustments and sent them on their way. The next week when they returned the mom informed me the baby had 3 bowel movements in one week! That is a huge improvement! No on should only be pooping once every five days, especially a 3 month old baby. I am continuing to work with this wonderful family to get the baby fully back to 100%.

Chiropractic and Older Men

A man I’ve been adjusting for many years who is in overall good health came in complaining of not having a bowel movement in 4 days along with some mild low back pain which was a new complaint for him. After I examined him I found subluxations in his middle to lower spine. I adjusted those areas which do send nerves to the stomach. We had a great adjustment which resulted in a lot of spinal movement. That movement took pressure off the nerves allowing his stomach and digestive organs to work normally.

Later in the day he emailed to say 20 minutes after he left he was on the toilet pooping!

Conclusion

I am not telling you these stories to make myself sound like a hero. The truth is far from that. I’m just the guide in these stories. The two individuals healed themselves once we removed the interference to their bodies. The human body is designed to work perfectly and in a healthy way. When there is interference to these systems in the form of subluxations (spinal mis-alignments) the body does not work as it is designed.

If you need help pooping you should get checked by a chiropractor and see if your prob;em may be spinal in nature. If you are in Chicago or Lincolnwood give me a call at 773.545.9379

Yours in Health,

Dr. Steven Bourdage DC

How to Bend Properly

Bending over to lift something up is one of the most common causes of a lower back injury. It can happen while peroforming a heavy deadlift in the gym, while picking up one of your kids, or even just trying to get your favorite pair of jeans out of the bottom drawer. However it happens, it is important to be more mindful of how you move your body. See the video below for a visual and description of How to Bend Properly. Continue reading →

Chiropractor Shoveling Tips

It’s that time of year here in Chicago…winter! Winter brings a weaker immune systems, vitamin D deficiency and injuries from falling on ice and shoveling. Here are some of my best chiropractor shoveling tips. Continue reading →

Surgery? No Thanks!

I attended a recent workshop by a local Orthopedic surgeon. It was a very informative session. The topic discussed was new procedures for the knee and shoulder joints. The procedures he discussed are new, non-surgical alternatives for people who are still having pain after trying natural methods to heal first. This was a great workshop because most surgeons like to do surgery. This was a surgeon discussing ways to help people avoid surgery. Modern medicine has realized that people want less invasive and more natural methods to healing. People are more educated than ever and they realize that just numbing something or cutting it out is not going to fix the problem!

This blog post is going to be about something the orthopedic surgeon said that I will never forget. He said, “The system is set up so that all roads lead to surgery.” He went on to explain that if you enter the medical system with a pain, the protocol is to prescribe muscle relaxers, pain killers or anti-inflammatories. Or in most cases, some combination of 2 or 3 of these. If this does not help someone to feel better then you continue the medications and start physical therapy. He said this is where the issues begin. Not because of physical therapy, but because of physical therapy while on medications. Taking these medications which interfere with your pain perception, your tissues are not in their normal states. Now you are doing these exercises that can be causing further damage, but you can’t feel it! The pain is there as a protective mechanism. If you can’t feel the pain you may be working beyond the limits that you should be. Therefore, this leads to more problems. If this fails, this is when you end up on the surgeon’s table.

Chiropractic

I am writing about this because chiropractic offers a different route. We embrace the pain. We figure out why you are having pain and then work to correct that, not just merely cover it up. If you are looking to avoid surgery and get healthier without the use of medications, I am here for you!

Have you gone down this route that has led to surgery? Would you do it again? I’d love to hear more about it in the comments below.

Doing Too Much

I’d like to share with you a story about a particular patient from my office that has a lot to offer and may help you too. This particular patient, let’s call him Bob, came in with an acute lower back disc injury. He was in bad shape, intense lower back pain that traveled into his leg. He was finding it difficult to do basic activities for everyday living. Simple things like getting dressed, tying his own shoes, getting up after sitting, using the toilet, and sleeping at night. To say his life was being affected by this injury is an understatement. Bob was starting to think this was going to do him in. Bob is in his mid to late twenties.

Continue reading →

Quick Posture Fix

In the following video I show you the 3 exercises I do for a quick posture fix. I do these after I find myself sitting for long periods of time. These are great stretches for people who sit at a desk all day long, sit in a car for long time periods, or after a flight. Sitting wreaks havoc on your body and these stretches will help to correct that.

Dr. B Hates Sitting

I spend 80% of my day on my feet. I’m either adjusting patients or standing at my desk doing paperwork. This last weekend I attended a conference and found myself sitting for hours on end. My body felt terrible! At the conclusion of each day of the seminar I did these 3 stretches and I was back to normal in no time!

The three stretches are :

Hip Flexor Stretch
Thoracic Opening
Thoracic Bridge

The thoracic bridge is my favorite, but all 3 are important.

Sitting Series

Previously, I did a series of 3 videos discussing sitting and the negative effects it can have on your health. If you did not see those videos they can be founds here:

Chicago Chiropractor Talks Sitting

After you try these exercises yourself, let me know how much better you feel after!

Yours in Health,

Dr. Steven Bourdage DC