The Atlas Chiropractic philosophy is to create a self-sustaining mechanism of the human body through periodic adjustments and patient education. You’ll find the approach at Atlas Chiropractic to be a gentle and educational one. From the first moment you walk through the door, your comfort is our highest priority. Read more about The Phases of Chiropractic Care.
Chiropractic Adjustment
Misalignments and other joint problems can result in decreased mobility, pain, or other symptoms such as numbness or tingling, both at the problem site and elsewhere in the body. Our Chiropractor’s specific and gentle spinal adjustments work to re-establish mobility and proper alignment of your joints. Often, this restores balance within your body and allows you to return to pain-free movement and optimal health.
Myofascial Massage
Our myofascial release approach is a form of soft tissue therapy used to treat pain and restriction of motion with anatomically focused deep tissue massage. Joint problems are almost always accompanied by tension or injury to your soft tissue: muscles, tendons, ligaments, and fascia.
Fascia is the soft tissue component of the connective tissue that provides support and protection for most structures within the human body, including muscle. This soft tissue can become restricted due to many factors like overuse, trauma, infectious agents, or inactivity, often resulting in pain, muscle tension, and corresponding diminished blood flow.
Electrical Muscle Stimulation
Muscle stimulation therapy has been used for many years to treat weak or atrophied muscles resulting from an injury or from long periods of immobility. The electrical impulses stimulate muscles and nerve endings, causing them to contract and relax which develops strength and encourages blood circulation and healing in the affected area. Similar to the effects of deep tissue massage, electrical muscle stimulation therapy is used to treat a variety of painful issues, from muscle strain and injury to fibromyalgia symptoms.
Flexion Distraction
Flexion distraction involves the use of a specialized table that gently “distracts” or stretches the spine. This allows the chiropractor to isolate the affected area while slightly “flexing” the spine using a pumping rhythm. Flexion-distraction is one of the most well-studied chiropractic procedures. It has been shown to be effective for the treatment of disc herniation, degenerative disc disease, and spinal stenosis as well as spinal subluxations.
Kinesiology Tape
Kinesiology Tape is applied along muscles, ligaments, and tendons (soft tissue) to provide a lightweight, strong, external support that helps to prevent injury and speed recovery. Depending on how it is applied, Kinesiology Tape supports and enables or restricts soft tissue and its movement. By stretching and recoiling like a rubber band, the tape augments tissue function and distributes loads away from inflamed or damaged muscles and tendons, thereby protecting tissues from further injury.
By applying Kinesiology Tape over affected tissue, athletes experience external support which helps to prevent further injury and allows the body’s damaged tissue to rest and heal naturally despite continued activity. It also reduces inflammation and increases circulation which prevents muscle cramping and lactic acid buildup.
Therapeutic Exercises
Therapeutic exercises are specific bodily movements prescribed to correct impairment, improve musculoskeletal function, and maintain a state of well-being. Our approach is individualized to every patient’s specific needs and may vary from highly selected activities restricted to specific muscles or parts of the body, to general and vigorous activities that can return a symptomatic patient to the peak of physical condition.
Therapeutic Ultrasound
Ultrasound has been a widely used and accepted modality for the management of many musculoskeletal conditions. Ultrasound is applied using a round-headed wand that is put in direct contact with the patient’s skin and transmits ultrasonic waves which have been shown to decrease inflammation (swelling), remodel scar tissue, increase soft tissue healing, and decrease pain. Some studies have shown that an increase in local blood flow promoted by ultrasound therapy promotes bone fracture healing.
Nutritional Supplements
It can be very confusing to determine the true value of a supplement. Just like any recipe, the quality of the ingredients you use affects the quality of the final product. At our office, we believe that given the proper nutrition, your body has amazing capabilities of keeping itself healthy. We also believe that nutrition should be individualized to meet each patient’s needs.
Standard Process vitamins contain nutrients from many organic whole food sources, not the man-made compounds found in typical retail vitamins. It’s the combination of these foods, not just a single component, which provides the vitamins, minerals, and micronutrients you need to help maintain optimal health.
Shoe Orthotics
Prescription orthotics look like insoles but are biomechanical medical appliances that are custom-made to correct your specific foot imbalance. Orthotics work on your feet much like glasses work on your eyes – they reduce stress and strain on your body by bringing your feet back into proper alignment. Orthotics fit into your shoes as comfortably as an insole and have the advantage of being custom molded to the support requirements of your feet.
Laser / Light Therapy
We use pulsed, light emitting diode devices known as low-level light therapy, and infrared and visible red LEDs (polychromatic light therapy) to provide gentle but powerful, effective and non-invasive pain relief. Light therapy has been FDA approved to decrease pain and inflammation, while increasing circulation and stimulating production of collagen which is an essential protein used to repair damaged tissue. Collagen is also the substance that holds cells together and is highly elastic, so light therapy can also be used to decrease the look of fine lines and wrinkles anywhere on the body!
You can take the device with you and use it in the comfort of your own home.
