What Type of Doctor For Sports

Athletes are the most bruised and battered humans who walk the earth today. From sprains and strains to contusions and breaks, athletes put their health on the line each day to compete for fun and glory. These athletes are not simply pro athletes but they are the every day "Joe". The guy who works a 9-5 job in a cubicle is the same guy jumping up for a rebound that night and running a 5k that weekend.

These people hurt. Pain can be seen as a problem. I do not see any problems but instead I see opportunity for solutions. As Chiropractic Physicians, we have the tools necessary to offer that solution.

When an athlete sprains an ankle, most head over to a doctor of medicine, who will offer a pain killer and sends the athlete out the door. When an athlete walks into my office, reducing the pain is only the first step of my job. I want to find out if that individual may have been predisposed to that injury, ensure that any biomechanical imbalances are corrected to prevent that injury from occurring again and improve the performance of that athlete.

People need to understand that Chiropractors are more than just back doctors. Chiropractors are more than just someone who adjusts the cervical spine, thoracic spine, lumbar spine (in that order), and sends you on your way after grabbing your check book. While some choose to be this type of physician, this is not doing most patients any justice.

In school, we have classes such as orthopedic diagnostics, biomechanics, neurology, x- ray, physical therapy, diagnostics, Graston, in conjunction with immunology, infectious disease, etc., and of course adjusting. This makes for a solid foundation in which to use to help athletes get back on the field, improve human performance and of course reduce the chance of injury.

It is with these tools that Chiropractors must build. Chiropractors are not the doctors of the past. We must have the confidence that we can do more than basic adjustments and treat not only injuries but prevent injuries and most of all to improve performance. If an athlete has a muscle imbalance due to a myofascial dysfunction, which may be reducing their sprint time or jump height, we have the tools to offer techniques, other than adjustment of a joint, to correct this dysfunction and improve their performance.

It is up to us to communicate this properly with the public. If the public does not know exactly what we have the capabilities of doing to help them, why should they come see us? Elite athletes know about chiropractic. Most teams have chiropractors on staff now and the US Olympic team has a team of chiropractors. When it comes to the weekend warrior, it is up to us to do the best job we can, using the knowledge we have (and continue to learn with continuing education daily), to treat them and have them back on the playing field immediately. When they play, they are happy. When they are happy they tell everyone around them. When they become injured or want to improve performance, they will come see the Chiropractor and so on. It all begins with the proper education, constantly furthering that education, and having the confidence to step outside the box and use that knowledge to help treat the patient. With patient improvement in human function, the athlete will immediately improve performance and a result is the Chiropractic profession grows in a positive light.