Chiropractic is a broad profession
There can be differences in the services and clinical interventions offered by different chiropractors.
‘Wellness’ chiropractic is one way to describe how I choose to practice chiropractic. Other terms I could use would be “vitalistic” or “philosophical” which have inter-related meaning and relevance.
This variability of what is offered as chiropractic care from one chiropractor to the next can cause confusion as you may visit different chiropractors and be given different explanations about what chiropractic is and how it can help you! It is both a strength and a weakness of chiropractic that you can experience so many variations of healthcare all being ‘sold’ under the same name or ‘banner’.
At the heart of it, all chiropractors focus on improving the function of the spine and nervous system to influence your health and wellbeing.
Within chiropractic, there are two broad categories defined loosely by the approach and intent of the care they provide to you.
Limited Scope Chiropractic
At one end of the spectrum are chiropractors who choose to limit their scope to helping diagnose, treat or manage various symptoms and biomechanical syndromes including pain and conditions – these chiropractors focus on what you might traditionally ‘associate’ as the realm of the chiropractor – back pain, neck pain, headache etc.
“Clearly patients [‘clients’] do not need to be in pain to be candidates for spinal adjustment.”
– Seaman, D.R. Joint complex dysfunction, a novel term to replace subluxation/subluxation complex: etiological and treatment considerations. JMPT 1997; 20(9)
Wellness Chiropractic
At the other end of the spectrum are ‘wellness’ or ‘holistic’ chiropractors that hold to a broader scope of healthcare; this care still includes helping people who may be experiencing symptoms, yet also extends to more.
Wellness chiropractic often will get great results with symptoms, but not from an intent of fixing, curing or treating; wellness chiropractic holds that chiropractic IS one strategy of contributing to better overall health and function. Not the only contributing factor, but most definitely a major one! To understand a rationale for this, click here; to explore why brain function and overall health depend on this, click here.
In reality these descriptions are somewhat artificial and explicit or clear-cut – there is usually a continuum of chiropractic practice and many variations between these two ‘scopes’ as defined – there will be a greater or lesser focus on either end of the spectrum depending on the philosophy, experience and choices of the chiropractor themselves.
It is a great question to ask your chiropractor about where they sit on this spectrum – this may be one factor which may influence your choice about which chiropractor is right for you.
Wellness chiropractic does not diagnose, treat, cure or fix. We instead help you maximise the function inherent in your own body – you heal, not us!
This idea is connected to a framework or model of healthcare called ‘salutogenesis’ where there is a focus on factors that support human health and well-being, rather than on factors that cause disease.
Wellness chiropractic does still use thorough assessments; chiropractors in this model do form a clinical impression (a 'diagnosis'), and we support you through a variety of means to improve your body function – both when you have overt symptoms and also when you don’t!
