Frequently Asked Questions in Richardson

The Simple and legal answer is yes. In fact, a Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.) is someone that has been granted a License to practice Chiropractic in their respective state and has all credentials in order to have earned the privilege of being called a Doctor within the spectrum of healthcare. No, we are not Medical Doctors M.D.'s, P.H.D's Doctors of philosophy who spend much of their careers in research, or Doctors of Dentistry D.D.S, or even Doctors of Osteopathy D.O.'s who are your primary care physicians in many cases.

But all are "Doctor" level fields of education and specialty. The major differentiating factor when it comes to a chiropractor is the path of education they went before completing school. Which should be 4 years of undergraduate training in route to earning a Bachelor's degree (an example is in Kinesiology or Biology) followed by continuing on to Chiropractic graduate program which is 3.25 year (now in the U.S) which you can co-currently additional degrees (examples Masters in Neuroscience, functional medicine or additional bachelor's degrees).

Prior to completion of chiropractic school, all students must take and pass 5 National board exams. Throughout a 1.5 year stretch. Ranging from advanced science (anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, microbiology, and pathology) then advanced clinical patient management, Neuroscience, diagnostic tests, and radiographic imaging. Followed by a mandated Physiotherapy/ exercise/ rehab exam.

Then finally the clinical practical hands-on assessment and clinical competence in-person exam. This is all prior to our one-year internship in a real clinical setting practicing on real patients (Just like YOU) who we care for and treat under faculty doctor supervision in various settings (from minor back pain cases to neurological disorders that need co-managed extensive rehab). So Yup, Chiropractors are real doctors.

A chiropractor can be so much more than just a back and neck cracker. We are a portal of entry providers, which means you do not need a primary care referral or script. This means you can seek the guidance and care of a Holistic/non-drug prescribing provider before going to the urgent care or pediatrician for example.

The Chiropractor will be your least invasive and more 98% of the time the most affordable option to receive sound health care advice. And as for the adjustive procedure or manipulation when warranted and done correctly can influence the body to relieve pressure in the spine or joint involved and promote optimal healing based on all available relevant collected information.

Asking if Chiropractic works, is like asking if your food is cooked to your liking. What I mean is, If you eat and don't spit your food out. One way or another it nourishes you. Sometimes you may not like the way it tastes or even doesn't sit right in your stomach, but you'll have the energy. But if you truly enjoyed the experience and felt a difference, no matter what you came in for (pain or some organ dysfunction) you'll come back wanting more and tell everyone.

The thing about Chiropractic care (the adjustment in this case) is it doesn't lie. Everyone who is a candidate for care will attest to something different 'I felt better the next day", "I felt better instantly", "I feel taller", "I feel so much lighter", "the pain is less", "the pain is gone" all these factors and then patient outcomes determine whether or not chiropractic works / if you like the cooking.

Yes, and that is why we pay "very little" in malpractice insurance as opposed to professions that put you under anesthesia or perform surgery. Not to mention The paper most cited to discredit the safety of our profession "the Cassidy paper" Cassidy JD, Boyle E, Côté P, et al. Risk of vertebrobasilar stroke and chiropractic care: results of a population-based case-control and case-crossover study. Spine. 2008 Feb;33(4 Suppl):S176-83. never holds up.

For a chiropractor to cause harm to the degree that he/she would be labeled unsafe while performing an adjustment/manipulation, they would have to purposely try to hurt someone with an absence amount of force in a compromised position. I cannot think of any reason why someone would throw their career away to purposefully do this.

The circumstances when a Chiropractor may be at fault or did something unsafe would be "missing" or misdiagnosing an emergent patient who entered the office and was not experiencing a severe symptom at the time and the chiropractor missed the importance of a more thorough the exam and refer to the ER. The worst thing I have seen the most competent chiropractors to is agitate a muscle strain or leave someone sore from extensive muscle work.

Rule number one … DON'T get Hurt. And Rule number two… Get a referral near you (you should be excited and anticipating meeting the new chiropractor that you know gave your loved one or acquaintance a great experience) …It is simple… If a chiropractor tells you need $5000 of care and you haven't been thrown from your car or fell off a motorcycle and landed on your head (with YOUR lawyer involved), then walk out that door.

Chiropractic care is almost always "not covered" by insurance based on it being elective or wellness care. Which is what it is best utilized for keeping your joints and musculoskeletal and nervous system healthy and out of pain and in optimal function. And that is not an opinion it's actually the science that best supports manipulative therapy and optimizing your spinal health.

Chiropractic is the practice of checking the spine for possible nerve interference that leads to pain and dysfunction, performed by hand.

Chiropractors are commonly associated with helping people with back pain and neck pain, though chiropractors help with many more symptoms and conditions( not only limited to joint pain though any joint injury or pain is on the table ) from all energy systems in the body. Chiropractors are Educated with post graduate level  knowledge of anatomy, physiology, biology & more . They can advise on lifestyle choices, changes and health care concerns.

A chiropractic adjustment that is done by hand, it is fast , specific and safe with the intent that a person of any age can receive and if applied correctly there should be less pressure on the nervous system and the body can adapt for the better.

Yes, 99 out of 100 People are going to have no contraindication to receive a chiropractic adjustment. That is why examination is the most important part of what a chiropractor does before treating a patient.

Chiropractic is 5000 times to almost 500,000 times safer than a surgical procedure.

There are countless videos on my YouTube channel, Drpearlmantv dedicated to this topic alone. 

 “Don’t you always have to go back to the Chiropractor forever? “ is a great video to watch HERE

The short answer is “it depends” as every person has a unique case and reason that they are feeling a pain or symptom.

Chiropractic care has a wide range of benefits, from pain relief due to increase range of motion of any and all joints , but also helps with respiratory issues and headaches. I could honestly list every single condition within human existence that it can help if it’s done correctly.

Managing peoples spines (maintaining good spinal hygiene) is the dentist overtime and cleaning your teeth or taking your car to the mechanic to stay fine tuned. 

If you stop brushing your teeth, eventually, your teeth would rot / decay .if you stop taking your car to the mechanic, it would fall apart and always fail.

There are almost no risks with proper chiropractic care.  There are certainly possible times when someone’s existing  injury is severe enough that there is a possible strain or sprain that can occur with an adjustment to the tendon or the ligament over a given joint  being “hyper stressed” . Any and all other risks would be because of a pre-existing condition that was overlooked thus the person should not have been at the Chiropractic office in the first place (they should have been in the emergency room or referred there by said Chiropractor).

As mentioned above, only a bad Chiropractor would be giving bad painful adjustments.  With one exception being, when somebody is in acute enough pain there is always a risk of a partial strain or sprain to the surrounding region.

The only thing that we have total over are the choices we make at a moment in time when we can think about the next step clearly .

Thus, something you saw or somebody told you something that makes you feel comfortable enough to come and consult with Dr. Pearlman and the results will likely speak for themselves.

The initial chiropractic appointment typically takes between a half of an hour and 40 minutes. Follow up visits are usually never more than 15 minutes.

Everybody is different and it always depends. A principal we value is certainly “time is the most precious commodity” and we value our and your Time. We won’t waste it.

Most chiropractors ( my hope is all of us) have four-year degrees and then 3.5 years of chiropractic college. 

7 years plus of science (anatomy, physiology, neurology, biology, biomechanics, and more ) along with four to five national board exams.

Yes, chiropractic is very safe for pregnant people; there are modifications that are taken into consideration when adjusting them.

My favorite question to answer is about the cracking noise in the adjustment!

I will be the person who assures you it is not the same as cracking your knuckles.

Your spinal nerve roots and sensitive spinal substances within your spinal column make it much different than non-spinal material gas release cracking.

When you are adjusted in the spine, a pressure gradient will change around a spinal disc and surrounding joint material.

 The facet joints of the spinal column will separate, making a cavitation; the caveat is that we want a specific type of sound and feeling… not a high-pitched snapping.

A high-pitched snapping is a reflection of a sprained overstretched ligament, a deep thud that can be felt more than it can be heard is what we are after to make a positive chance.

The quality of sound / feeling matters.

You can definitely manipulate yourself with a lot of excessive rotation leading to consistent sprain of ligament.

You cannot do a specific Chiropractic adjustment while you are passive as a patient . This type of passive laying on a table or sitting in a chair then receiving a real chiropractic adjustment cannot be replicated by cracking yourself. 

I’m sure you did not expect me to lead with you “can” manipulate yourself

If an insurance plan reimbursed for chiropractic or covered Chiropractic care it certainly would not be beneficial to you and your family. 

Insurance companies reimbursements for chiropractors are pennies on the dollar. Thus,  Insurance excepting chiropractors add-modalities you do not need to the practice to keep you in the office longer than what is likely going to benefit you in order to justify a higher reimbursement and still charge you a co-pay and up-sell.

A Cash based self-pay Chiropractor (office )  is the way to go as the ( chiropractor )chiropractic clinic only has one choice , and that is to give you a service that you know has your best interest at heart.

A good chiropractor is going to be your best bet when it comes to pain management and Pain Relief along with better One on one time.

A good physical therapist will be the best bet for rehabbing you post surgery or strengthening muscles . The education is completely different at the postgraduate level. And they do not do the same things.

Yes

Yes

Yes , lighter force.