Why You Should Schedule Your Chiropractic Appointment BEFORE Your Massage

Chiropractic doctors and massage therapists often work hand in hand to help patients find relief from pain and injury. Many professionals recommend that you even see your chiropractor and your massage therapist on the same day, back-to-back, even, if you can manage it. While scheduling your chiropractic appointments and massages regularly and at the same time can have many visits, the order in which you see these two specialists does make a difference in your treatment.

Your Chiropractic Appointment Comes First

A chiropractic adjustment will make modifications to the alignment of your joints. Typically, these adjustments involve strategic, rapid movements by your doctor in order to release any air or gas that has built up between joints and return your spinal column back to proper alignment. If you have never had a chiropractic adjustment, do not be alarmed by this description of spinal manipulation. It is much more effective for your chiropractor to make small, quick adjustments to guide your body into proper alignment than to attempt to slowly move your vertebrae. A chiropractic adjustment is a painless and harmless way to find pain relief.

Because of the nature of chiropractic adjustments, you can imagine that it comes as a slight shock to your soft tissue. Especially if your body is severely misaligned, a chiropractic adjustment can cause your muscles to tense up as a natural reaction to the change. The stimulus is the exact opposite of the slower, deeper manipulations of soft tissue that you experience during a massage. It is for this reason that you should see your chiropractor before you have a massage.

How Does Massage Support Chiropractic?

After you have had a chiropractic adjustment, your soft tissues are highly stimulated, reacting to the dramatic changes to the alignment of your spinal column. By following your chiropractic appointment with a massage, your therapist can help ease your muscles back into a relaxed state where they can adapt to the new normal that is alignment. Soft tissue work, following a spinal adjustment, helps to ensure the work your chiropractor has done can stand up to your everyday life and the adverse effects things like sitting at a desk all day have on our bodies.

What If Your Muscles Feel Really Tight?

This is a common question both massage therapists and chiropractors hear.

“My muscles are so tight, I can’t get an adjustment.”

When your spinal column is misaligned, the muscles around it will constrict to keep it protected. The longer your body is misaligned, the more your muscles will adapt to your spinal column, even in an inproper state. Overtime, this can make adjustments difficult, however, it does not necessarily warrant a massage before your chiropractic appointment. Chiropractors are well-versed in methods of physical relaxation that encourage the muscles to allow for physical manipulation. This might include massage efforts, electronic stimulation, acupuncture or acupressure, or some combination of the above. Let your downtown Denver chiropractor do the initial relaxation and utilize massage therapy to help your body recover from the adjustment.

Long-Term Relief And Recovery

A singular chiropractic appointment and massage is likely to offer initial relief. However, just as a single workout does not grow muscles and a single class does not teach you the entire course, a single appointment will not offer long-term relief from chronic pain or injury. Utilizing chiropractic adjustments and massage therapy at regular intervals over time can help your find long-term relief and/or recover from injury.

If you’re looking for a massage therapist who works well with chiropractors to help patients find pain relief, look no further than Wayfare Wellness. Contact us today to schedule an appointment - just make sure to see your chiropractor first!