Our Squamish chiropractors adopt evidence-informed practice principles and are spine, muscle and nervous system experts. They are specialists in the prevention, assessment, diagnosis and management of spine and neuro-musculo-skeletal systems conditions and will recommend a course of treatment to help relieve chronic pain and improve function with a non-invasive, hands-on approach, such as spinal manipulative therapy (SMT), mobilization, soft tissue therapy, exercise, education and rehabilitation.
Each chiropractor has completed a rigorous academic and practical education (including national standardized educational requirements) and passed a licensing examination to become a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC).
About Our Chiropractic Healthcare
Chiropractors assess, diagnosis, treat and provide preventative care of biomechanical disorders originating from the muscular, skeletal, and or nervous systems.
This includes both acute and chronic conditions, such as:
- Chronic pain, back pain, and muscle tension
- Discogenic Injuries
- Headaches and post-concussion symptoms
- Joint conditions (sprains, arthritis)
- Muscular conditions (strains, tendonitis)
- Neck pain and muscle tension
- Numbness and Tingling
- Osteoarthritis
- Peripheral nerve syndrome (carpal tunnel, sciatica, thoracic outlet syndrome)
- Postural problems (scoliosis care, rounded shoulder, kyphosis)
- Pregnancy care, infant and children
- Sport related injury and rehab (various running injuries, rotator cuff tendonitis, elbow tendonitis, plantar fasciitis etc.)
- And many more…
Come in for your chiropractic assessment:
- After a fall or other physical or emotional stresses.
- When symptoms or discomforts appear
- Prevention follow-up once a month
Active Release Technique (ART)
ART is a manual therapy method that focuses on releasing scar or thickened areas in muscle and fascia (connective tissue) to help reduce pain and restriction and restore strength and mobility. The technique is done by applying pressure through the affected tissue while having the patient actively engage the region and move through the anatomical range of motion that is limited in to help restore biomechanical function. All of our Chiropractors are trained in the ART method.
Pregnancy and Women’s Health
At least 50% of pregnant women will experience back pain, including severe discomfort that impacts their activities of daily living. Pregnancy-related back pain can be multi-factorial and rarely only has one cause.
During pregnancy the average healthy weight gain is approximately 30 lbs, which puts additional stress on the back, hips, knees and feet/ankles. This changes the way we sleep, stand, and move. As the baby grows and the uterus expands, the abdominal muscles also stretch and lose their ability to support the trunk. A change in posture can occur and may cause pain and discomfort specifically in the lower back.
Relaxin levels are highest during the first trimester of pregnancy, but it is present throughout. It has several roles, including prohibiting contraction of the uterine muscles to prevent premature birth, relaxing blood vessels to increase blood flow to the placenta and kidneys as preparing the mother’s body for birth. It relaxes the ligaments of your joints in the pelvis and throughout your body, and softens and widens the cervix to make delivery of the baby easier. The loosening of joints can decrease joint stability and requires more stability to come from your active system, the muscles.
Common conditions arising during pregnancy:
- Aching legs and buttocks
- Back or pelvis pain
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- De Quervain tenosynovitis
- Fatigue and low energy
- Neck pain
- Night-time muscle spasms
- Pelvic pain and pressure
- Peripheral swelling
- Sciatica or shooting pain down the leg/foot
- Sleep disturbances
Studies have shown that manual therapy, including chiropractic, can help decrease pain in pregnancy and labour. Chiropractors can provide safe, effective and drug-free conservative care to relieve pain and improve function during pregnancy and after birth.
Chiropractic care during pregnancy and postpartum can help
Reduce back and pelvic pain
Conservative care including spinal manipulation and mobilization of joints and soft tissue therapy can help reduce pain and improve function.
Help prepare for childbirth
A chiropractor can recommend safe, effective exercises and stretches to help prepare your body for the baby’s delivery.
Promote a faster recovery
As part of a comprehensive plan of management, chiropractic treatment can help manage quicker recovery and address post-natal biomechanical complaints and rehabilitation.
Preventative care
Chiropractic care can help get you back to your regular activities and sports while teaching you how to optimize your body’s biomechanics and function to help with injury prevention.
Preventative care can include:
- Addressing postural faults in both sedentary (driving, sitting at desk) and sports specific settings (biking, climbing, etc)
- Helping reduce neuromuscular tension from emotional stress
- Improving lack of recovery from high volume of sport with a low progression of the return to the sports season
- Instruction on proper biomechanics during tasks that load the body
- Prescribing physical conditioning and training
- Recognizing when muscle fatigue leads to muscle compensation
- Understanding when muscle stiffness and rigidity are related to sport intensity vs training volume
Shockwave Therapy
What is Shockwave Therapy?
Shockwave therapy is a pressure wave that is transmitted through a probe into a chronically injured or painful area on the body to help it heal. It causes blood to flow to the area and stimulates more vessels to grow. It also causes a cellular cascade to provide pain relief, initiate healing, and help your cells create more healthy tissue to lay down. This technology is also applied to reducing kidney stones, called lithotripsy, when applied to musculoskeletal conditions it is termed orthotripsy.
There is currently a significant amount of clinical research showing the effectiveness of shockwave as a non-surgical means of helping many chronic conditions to heal, provide pain relief, and improved function. See the list of treatable conditions below.
TREATABLE CONDITIONS FOR SHOCKWAVE THERAPY:
- Achilles tendinitis
- Adhesions
- Bursitis
- Calcific tendonitis or Calcific deposits
- Frozen Shoulder
- Golfer’s elbow
- Hamstring tendinitis
- Heel Spurs
- Heterotopic Ossification
- Iliotibial (I.T) band syndrome
- Metatarsal Pain
- Muscle Strains
- Osteoarthritis Pain
- Patellar tendinitis
- Plantar fasciitis
- Pubic Symphysis pain
- Rotator Cuff Tendinitis
- Scar tissue
- Shin Splints
- Tendinitis
- Tennis Elbow
- Trigger point therapy
CONDITIONS NOT ELIGIBLE TO USE SHOCKWAVE THERAPY
If you have any of the following conditions, it is not safe for you to have Shockwave Therapy:
- Bleeding Disorder
- Blood Thinning Medication
- Cancer or Local Malignancy
- Cortisone Injection less than 6 weeks ago
- Diabetes with Neuropathy
- Inflammatory Joint Disease
- Pacemaker
- Pregnancy
NOTE: Children may have shockwave, however not near the growth plates of any bones/joints.
For safety reasons Shockwave is NOT applied over the front of the neck, chest, or abdomen, and cannot be applied over open wounds or infections.
TREATMENT PLAN:
Research suggests for most conditions 3 – 5 visits are required, each spaced 1 week apart. Some very longstanding conditions may require a few additional treatments. Initial appointments are 30 minutes, follow up appointments are usually 20 minutes. This treatment is covered under Chiropractic service for extended health plans.
IS SHOCKWAVE THERAPY PAINFUL?
Some people feel mild discomfort with Shockwave, but the pressure can be adjusted to a comfortable level. Usually people find it relieves their pain, even during treatment. On the rare occasion people can have slight bruising, swelling or skin redness.
WHAT TO DO AFTER A SHOCKWAVE THERAPY TREATMENT?
Activity and exercise as usual. Shockwave induces healing, inflammation is first stage of healing, so researchers advise not use any anti-inflammatory drugs or ice after treatment because this can reduce the effectiveness of the therapy. If you happen to have any pain it is advised to use an alternate pain relieving medication and or heat.
Chiropractic Manipulative Therapy
Specific training in chiropractic manipulative therapy (CMT – also known as chiropractic adjustments and Spinal Manipulative Therapy) allows chiropractors to provide highly-skilled and precise movements to the joints of the body, including the spine and extremities. Adjustments can be an important tool to restore joint motion to improve movement and function of the body. This type of therapy can support recovery from injury as well as improve movement performance and overall health.
Sport Chiropractic
Sport chiropractors are well trained and prepared to work on the field with individual athletes or sport teams. They can assess, diagnose, and treat sport injuries and help the athletes return to sport.
Injury prevention is a big part of the athlete’s well being and development. Chiropractors can help athletes to achieve optimal performance by enhancing their neuro-musculo-skeletal systems, guiding and advising athletes in technique, ergonomics, exercise prescription, and rehabilitation, or provide referral to medical care when needed. Improving the biomechanics of the human body can help to achieve optimal performance.
All of the chiropractors at LivWell Integrated Health have strong backgrounds working with athletes and teams!